Research On Strategies For Improving Children’s Ocean Literacy From The Perspective Of Science Communication

The realization of the "maritime power" strategy requires citizens with high ocean literacy,and the improvement of citizens’ ocean literacy depends on the effective dissemination of marine scientific knowledge and concepts.Under the macro background of "maritime power"strategy,the research of marine communication has begun to receive attention.Different researchers have constructed and interpreted the concept and extension of ocean communication differently.This study puts marine communication within the framework of science communication,regards marine communication as marine-related science communication,and regards ocean literacy as a special scientific literacy juxtaposed with health literacy and environmental literacy.Ocean literacy surveys are an important basis for understanding the effect of marine science communication.Relevant surveys show that the current level of understanding of the ocean by Chinese citizens is not optimistic and the awareness of marine science communication is kindly weak.At present,many countries and regions have conducted ocean literacy surveys based on the basic principles and evaluation system of Ocean Literacy Scope and Sequence for Grades K-12 established by the Ocean Literacy Campaign,but surveys under this standard have not been carried out in Chinese Mainland.This study investigated and analyzed the ocean literacy and influencing factors of primary school students in Shandong Province by means of questionnaires and in-depth interviews,referring to the basic principles of K-12 ocean literacy,and conducted exploratory research on the choice of communication strategies,with a view to providing a set of marine science communication programs to improve citizens’ ocean literacy for the grand goal of the national "marine power" strategy.In the questionnaire part,the study takes ocean literacy as a dependent variable,examines the impact of different regions and different communication levels on ocean literacy,and the correlation among knowledge,attitude,and behavior,focusing on the status,function,and goal realization of the media.Research has found that there is no significant difference in the overall level of ocean literacy among primary school students in inland and coastal areas;Primary groups have a significant impact on primary school students’ ocean literacy,but the impact paths of different communication levels in inland and coastal areas are opposite.The impact path of family centered outward diffusion has been formed in inland cities,and the impact of schools is not significant,while in coastal cities,the impact of primary groups is weakened from the media impact of radio and television;The level of ocean literacy is positively correlated with attitudes and behaviors,and attitudes have a stronger impact on ocean literacy than behaviors;The influence of media in inland and coastal areas varies,but they play a significant role in changing ocean attitudes,enhancing ocean behavior,and directly influencing ocean literacy.Traditional media,represented by radio and television,have shown strong influence.The study interpreted the survey results in the form of in-depth interviews,and combined the interview content to sort out the current status and problems of marine science communication.Overall,there are issues with the current marine science dissemination for children in Shandong Province,such as imbalance between inland and coastal areas,mismatch between dissemination efforts and effects,lack of understanding of audience media choices,and a lack of high-quality content and talent.Finally,based on the paradigm of scientific communication and the particularity of marine science communication,framework suggestions were provided to improve the effectiveness of marine science communication.