In this media literacy activity, students will analyze two video clips about Exxon's 1980s scientific research, which indicated a link between fossil fuels and rising global temperatures.
The videos make different claims as to the relevancy of the research and why Exxon chose to keep the information away from the public.
Students will investigate how the video producers' intentions and goals shaped the information in each video.
Teaching Tips
Positives
The lesson plan includes discussion questions for several academic subjects.
This lesson requires students to think critically about where information comes from and how the producer's intentions shape the viewer's understanding of the topic.
Additional Prerequisites
Teachers must create a free account to access the materials.
Teachers should research the sources so they are aware of their viewpoints and biases.
For more information about climate change misinformation, have students watch this video by the Climate Reality Project.
Differentiation
Students could respond to questions individually or in small groups before discussing their answers as a class.
Social studies classes could debate whether corporations are responsible for divulging information that could affect the well-being of people or the environment.
Science classes could evaluate the claims made in the two videos and discuss the way that scientific findings are generally shared with the scientific community and the public.
Other resources on this topic include this lesson on misinformation about climate change, this activity on identifying climate myths, and this NowThis Earth video on greenwashing.
Scientist Notes
This resource is recommended for teaching for students to decipher and extract energy data from Exxon.
Standards
English Language Arts
Reading: Informational Text (K-12)
8.RI.6 Determine an author's perspective and/or purpose in a text and analyze how the author acknowledges and responds to conflicting evidence or viewpoints.
8.RI.9 Analyze a case in which two or more texts provide conflicting information on the same topic and identify where the texts disagree on matters of fact or interpretation.
Science
ESS3: Earth and Human Activity
6.ESS3.5 Ask clarifying questions based on evidence about the factors that have caused climate change over the past century.
Social Sciences
Economics (K-8)
7.8 Examine how economic decisions affect the well-being of individuals, businesses, and society.
