College students' plausibility perceptions about global climate change

Human-induced climate change is causing an increase in extreme weather events due to its profound effect on the Earth's atmospheric balance. The main purpose of the current study was to investigate whether college students' plausibility perceptions on global climate change (GCC) increased after participating in a scaffolding activity. The study sample consisted of 62 students from a private research university in the United States. Three instruments were used to investigate the research questions. First, the demographic information form for the participants' and Plausibility Perception Measure (PPM) scale were used. PPM scale was implemented before and after the Extreme Weather (EW) Model Evidence Link (MEL) activity, an instructional scaffold that aims to promote students' critical evaluation practices. The results showed that students' plausibility perceptions changed statistically significantly after the MEL activity. Secondly, in the EW MEL activity, students were asked to evaluate two different models and the results showed that more students found Model A (scientific explanation) more plausible than Model B (alternative explanation). However, Model B was also found plausible by many students. Finally, the results of the EW MEL diagrams showed that there were more correct evidence-model links for Model A than for Model B. Students' alternative explanations were mostly found to be in the erroneous evaluation category for the EW MEL diagram. The results showed that students were aware that human activities have a major impact on current GCC, but they still have misconceptions about GCC and its link to EW events. This study contributes to the literature by using an updated PPM scale and a current EW MEL diagram, as EW events have increased significantly in recent years. This study also shows that college students have a lack of understanding of GCC and EW events. Critical evaluation is a scientific practice that could be explicitly taught in higher education programs to improve students' engagement and understanding of evidence-based decision-making practices.