A case study of community-based socioscientific issue program: focusing on the abandoned animal issue

The purpose of the study was to investigate the effects of community-based socioscientific issue programmes (SSI-COMM) regarding the issue of abandoned animals on promoting middle school students’ understanding of the issue and their character and values as citizens. An SSI-COMM program, called ‘Save Abandoned Pets! (SAP),’ was implemented in four middle schools located in Seoul; 172 seventh graders voluntarily participated in the programme over eight weeks. Data were collected by observation with detailed field-notes, two questionnaires, and individual interviews with the participating students, instructors and teachers, and local experts. Results indicated that there was a statistically significant increase in their understanding of the abandoned animal issue (QU-SSI) and character and values as citizens (CVGCA) after implementing SSI-COMM. Qualitative data analysis also revealed that the SAP programme prompted the students to consider the healthy relationship between human beings and animals, how badly our behaviours could threaten animals or destroy their well-being, and what kinds of efforts we could make for humans and animals to live together. Ultimately, the students felt sympathy and empathy for the abandoned animals and responsibility to take care of them by participating in the SAP programme.