MarshAccess is an informal science education program based at the Meadowlands Environment Center (MEC) in Lyndhurst, NJ, and funded by the National Science Foundation. MarshAccess seeks to engage largely underserved populations of young and older adults with disabilities, as well as older adults with age-related limitations, in outdoor experiential STEM activities centered on the New Jersey Meadowlands marsh ecosystem. Program modules are designed to increase interest in science, increase scientific literacy, develop a sustained relationship between the MEC and the target audience and audience
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Hilarie B. DavisBradford T. DaveyRamapo College of New Jersey
TERC, in partnership with the Boston Museum of Science, will investigate deaf and hard-of-hearing museum visitors' use of App-based signing math and science dictionaries delivered on the iPod Touch. The project is employing a mixed-methods design to study how and the extent to which family visitors, ages 5-12+, and classroom visitors in grades K-12 use the dictionaries to access and communicate about exhibit content and engage in activities. Study participants will visit one of two preselected exhibit areas and do several activities that have Word Lists posted on the activity panels. The Word Lists include key terms for the activity that are also included in at least one of the dictionaries. They will then do several activities that do not have Word Lists posted. A coin toss will be used to randomly assign the first group of visitors to a starting Word List condition. The second group will then begin with the alternate Word List condition. From this point on, subsequent groups will continue to alternate the starting point. Data collection will include observation, videotaping, interviews, and surveys. Results of the study will be disseminated through a report of findings, presentations and publications.
The Meadowlands Environmental Center, reaching 60,000 members of the public annually, will develop test and implement the "Marsh Access" program." This project will identify and test appropriate assistive technologies and programmatic approaches engaging 5,000 adults from specific disability groups in outdoor field-based experiences in order to better support their engagement, to foster their interest in science and to improve their scientific literacy. One hundred professionals will participate in conferences and professional development around the implementation of these programmatic approaches and will create plans to implement similar programming in outdoor settings across the nation. Utilizing an accessible outdoor garden and trail in the marshes of the New Jersey Meadowlands, Ramapo College in partnership with the New Jersey Meadowlands Commission, Recording for the Blind and Dyslexic, Spectrum for Living and the Adler Aphasia Center will identify and prototype kiosks and educational programming. Evaluation and program development will focus on identifying specific tools and approaches for engaging people with visual, hearing, mobility, mental/cognitive and age related disabilities. Data will be collected through observations, surveys and focus groups during a field testing process with groups of individuals from partner agencies over the three years of the program. Deliverables include two programmatic modules focusing on the science, natural history and ecology of the meadowlands, two multi media kiosks at points along the outdoor trail, a set of assistive technologies for use by public audiences in both facilitated and non facilitated experiences, and a set of program materials available to the public outlining the process and findings of the program.
This planning activity will produce a prototype film on Spanish horses and conduct 10 focus group discussions to determine: audience interest, background knowledge, what viewers would like to see in this documentary, language barriers, cultural barriers, and how the film could be structured to help the public and teachers interact with children. The focus groups will target the follow groups: (1) middle school teachers, (2) elementary school teachers, (3) families with young children, (4) Hispanic families, (5) American Indian families, (6) youth ages 13-19, (7) horse lovers and those involved in horse activities, (8) senior citizens and individuals with disabilities, (9) documentary, museum exhibit and website production professionals, and (10) media and museum marketing professionals. The effort is intended to guide development of a PBS documentary, an interactive website, a companion book, and a museum exhibit on the origins, evolution, migration and impact of Spanish horses. STEM content in mathematics, genetics, paleontology, chemistry, evolution, and animal behavior, integrated with history, will be incorporated into the scripts for this diverse array of media platforms. The project also presents an opportunity to present in a very interesting and real sense the scientific process used for discovery. In addition to producing the prototype film and conducting focus group discussions, this planning grant will help to: clarify the responsibilities of all of the participants, especially the international participants; clarify the contributions from each discipline and scientist; plan in detail ways to achieve the greatest understanding with the anticipated diverse audiences; select the best geographic region, graphics, media, and animation; and establish realistic budgets and elements for production and post-production. Collaborators include: New Mexican Horse Project, New Mexico Museum of Natural History and Science, Habitat Media, University of New Mexico and Institute for Social Research, Cambridge University, Texas A &M University, Universidad Nacional Autonoma de Mexico, Selinda Research Associates, and PBS.
The Shared Signing Science Planning Project will develop a prototype of a web-based Signing Science Pictionary. The prototype will be piloted to families and caretakers of deaf and hard of hearing children to study the feasibility and effectiveness of the learning technology and identify the activities that are most effective in helping deaf children learn life science at informal science centers. The project team will also compile a dictionary of science terms with the intention of including the terms in a full version of the Pictionary. The final Pictionary will be comprehensive; including scientific terms from life, physical, Earth, and space science and will be presented in animated sign language accompanied by written explanations and pictorial illustrations. The project will also produce a video guide with a description of activities that parents can implement with their children. The planning project will result in a prototype with 100 life science terms of species found at the three informal science centers the children and parents will visit to test the prototype. These informal sites are hands-on and exploratory featuring marine organisms and a range of terrestrial flora and fauna to touch and interact with. To prepare for the site visits, parents and caretakers of deaf or hard of hearing children will be taught how to use the Pictionary with children through a Flash-based movie that introduces the interactive features and assists the parents in engaging with their children in three activities using the signing scientific vocabulary. The preparatory vocabulary work with the parents and children will lay the educational foundation for the visits to the informal science education sites. Families will test the initial project prototypes with deaf children using a control group for comparison. Pre-tests will be used to assess childrens' vocabulary before use of the Pictionary. Follow up tests will test knowledge of the new words and will include field observations of children in museums, zoos, and farms, where the new terms will come to life in corresponding exhibits. The results of the ongoing evaluation will be compiled into a guide for other developers of similar materials for the deaf community, and will impact the development of the final project. The project will broaden participation of an underserved audience in STEM learning and generate new knowledge about how to effectively integrate emerging learning technologies into exhibits and programs for deaf learners.The project team includes TERC and Vcom3D and collaborators from Gallaudet University Regional Center at Northern Essex Community College, the College of the Holy Cross, and the Learning Center for Deaf Children. Participating informal science education institutions are represented by the EcoTarium, Davis' Farmland, and the Stone Zoo. These partnerships provide the necessary expertise and support for the proposed project to have significant impact on advancing STEM learning in informal settings for children with hearing disabilities through the use of assistive learning technologies.