The arithmetical narrative, an aid to environmental education
This article is a preprint and is currently undergoing peer review by UCL Open: Environment.
Abstract
An approach to environmental education is proposed consisting of exercises both arithmetical and story-like, contrary to the popular notion that numbers and stories are incompatible. Two examples are given, a description of a gigatonne of ice and the energy needed to melt it. The narratives appeal to the visual imagination and are entertaining. They incorporate real quantities to convey the scale of the Earth and the processes changing it, and they are so devised that the protagonist of the narratives is oneself, creating a sense of agency that increases salience.
Keywords: story, arithmetical narrative, global warming, environmental education, public education, innumeracy