Sitting in small groups, elementary pre-service teachers (PSTs) discussed their reactions
to the documentary film Bag It and a subsequent guest lecture by a local scientist who researched
plastic marine debris in the so-called "Great Pacific Garbage Patch" with Captain Charles Moore,
the oceanographer who first discovered its existence in 1997. The largest of the world's trash
vortexes, the Great Pacific Garbage Patch is located in the North Pacific Gyre. Due to powerful
ocean currents, marine debris becomes trapped and accumulates over time. Because plastic
photodegrades (rather than biodegrades), plastic breaks down into tiny pieces called
microplastics. The Great Pacific Garbage Patch is comprised primarily of such microplastics, as
well as other debris, 80% of which derives from a land-based source. This implies that an
improperly discarded plastic bag in California, for example, could make its way into the Pacific
Trash Vortex, ultimately harming the wildlife, ocean environment, and even humans who
consume seafood that ingest microplastics, mistaking them for food (National Geographic
Society, 1996-2015). “I feel kind of guilty,” one student remarked. Another agreed: “It’s one of
those things where you don’t really think about it until you’re actually seeing it… that it’s real
life. I feel like everyone should have to watch [Bag It] to make it come to life for them as well.”