This PDF includes a synthesis of presentations and discussions that took place at the Engaging and Learning for Conservation Workshop on Public Participation in Scientific Research, held at the American Museum of Natural History on April 7 & 8, 2011. Working in design studio mode, participants break into small groups to focus on areas of interest and issues of concern that lend themselves to a PPSR approach. In the process of designing potential PPSR projects to address these topics, the goal is to keep conservation at the forefront, to apply and test the steps generated during the previous
This poster was presented at the April 2011 workshop, Engaging and Learning for Conservation. It describes a citizen science project at the Seattle Aquarium and outlines the essential elements of a successful citizen science program.
This poster was presented at the April 2011 workshop, Engaging and Learning for Conservation. It describes the eBirding citizen science program, including its methods, findings and conclusions.
This poster was presented at the April 2011 workshop, Engaging and Learning for Conservation. It describes the citizen science project and website, CitSci.org.
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TEAM MEMBERS:
USGS National Institute of Invasive Species ScienceNatural Resource Ecology LaboratoryGreg Newman
In this article, Ian Kerrigan, Assistant Director of Exhibition Development at the National September 11 Memorial and Museum, articulates the importance of the 9/11 Memorial Museum being located at the World Trade Center site. Kerrigan goes on to explain how the museum is also serving as a archaeological site, how artifacts will play a pivotal role in the Museum's public spaces, and how the Museum's primary artifact is the site in and of itself. Kerrigan also describes how media is an integral element of the exhibition space that reflect the media age of era and allow visitors to share and
In this article, Eugene Dillenburg, Assistant Professor of Museum Studies and Scholar at Michigan State University, seeks a universal definition for a museum, noting that the term nowadays describes institutions representing a broad range of sizes and disciplines. Dillenburg provides examples from museum literature and deconstructs these definitions to conclude that exhibits are the defining feature of the museum. He goes on to define exhibits and remarks that exhibits are museums' "one irreplaceable feature."
This article describes how science centers and museums can better engage ethnic-specific communities that, overall, historically do not visit these institutions. Cecilia Garibay, principal of the Garibay Group, summarizes her research in this area, specifically focusing on Latino families in the United States and shares several key values that influence Latino parents' leisure choices. Examples of how leading institutions have used these findings are included and highlight ways museums can use research to better engage diverse communities.
This article describes how some museums are expanding their partnerships with schools and encouraging teachers to view museums as more than field trip destinations. This article describes the benefits of museum schools, citing the advantages of the symbiotic relationship between the museums and schools, the value of inquiry-based learning, and the professional development opportunities for teachers.
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TEAM MEMBERS:
Joelle Seligson
resourceprojectProfessional Development, Conferences, and Networks
Rhode Island Information Technology Experiences for Students and Teachers (RI-ITEST) is a comprehensive ITEST project for high school students and teachers. The goal of RI-ITEST is to prepare students from diverse backgrounds for careers in information technologies by engaging them in exciting, inquiry-based learning activities that use sophisticated computational models in support of a revolutionary science curriculum. It advances science education by enhancing the Physics First initiative in Rhode Island through the use of NSF funded student materials based on molecular modeling and promotes IT education by teaching modeling skills and providing students with career and vocational information on the use of computational models. The project provides over 120 hours of credit-bearing activities for 100 teachers and full support for classroom implementation. RI-ITEST is developing an optimal placement of the interactive materials from CC's Science of Atoms and Molecules project in the Physics First courses in Rhode Island; developing IT materials that are coordinated with the student materials that emphasize modeling skills and the career and vocational dimensions of computational modeling; preparing100 diverse Rhode Island science teachers in two cohorts to offer a course in the Physics-Chemistry-Biology sequence; developing materials and supports for using molecular dynamics and related IT materials for teachers in Rhode Island and elsewhere who are not ITEST participants; generating evidence for the effectiveness of the IT-enhanced project materials for increasing student learning and changing student attitudes about science, mathematics, and technology careers; reaching parents, guidance counselors, school administrators, and business partners with information about the project, student productions, and evidence for effectiveness; disseminating materials and findings to other teachers, programs, and districts nationwide.
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TEAM MEMBERS:
Daniel DamelinGerald KowaiczykJames Magyar
resourceprojectProfessional Development, Conferences, and Networks
The Nanoscale Science and Engineering Education (NSEE) Center for Learning and Teaching (NCLT) would focus on the research and development of nano-science instructional resources for grades 7-16, related professional development opportunities for 7-12 teachers, and programs infused with nano-science content for education doctoral students. The Center would bring together educators and scientists from several areas of nano-science and engineering research to collaborate with science teachers and doctoral candidates in education on both the development of the resources and research on their efficacy. The PI has prior experience as director of the Materials World Modules project, an NSF-funded curriculum currently in use in several secondary schools across the country. Lead partners in the proposed Center are Northwestern University, Purdue University, University of Michigan, University of Illinois at Chicago and University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. Additional partners include Argonne National Laboratory, West Point Military Academy, Alabama A & M University, Fisk University, Hampton University, Morehouse College and University of Texas at El Paso. The additional partners will widen the geographic range of the project, expanding opportunities to reach a diverse and currently underrepresented population of graduate students, teachers and ultimately students. STEM and Education faculty and researchers from the partner institutions would participate in interdisciplinary teams to address the Center's mission: Provide national education leadership and resources for advancing NSEE Create and implement professional development programs in NSEE Use innovative ideas in learning to design instructional materials for grades 7-16 Conduct research relating to integration of NSEE into science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) education.
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TEAM MEMBERS:
R. P. H. ChangThomas MasonNcholas GiordanoJoseph Krajcik
resourceprojectProfessional Development, Conferences, and Networks
The Association of Science-Technology Centers, the Institute for Learning Innovation, University of Pittsburgh Center for Learning in Out-of-School Environments, the Visitor Studies Association and other collaborators stewarded development of an Informal Science Education Resource Center (ISERC) to support ongoing improvement of the national infrastructure for informal science education. Activities included a clearinghouse for ISE-funded awards to enable others to learn from and build upon prior work, identification of practices and findings, and leadership development, with emphasis on increasing diversity in the field.
The Ecological Society of America will host an Ecology and Education Summit in the fall of 2010. It will bring together leaders of diverse national ecology and environmental education organizations and scientific societies, as well as organizations of teachers, technology experts, and the business sector, to disseminate best practices that will advance Environmental Literacy for a Sustainable World, reduce duplication of efforts, and coordinate strategies to build capacity and pathways of support for green careers for the next generation. In this effort, strategies to increase the participation of underrepresented minorities and women into the ecological and environmental agenda are of critical priority. By bringing the best in science, educational practice, and technology development to one event, the Summit aims to accelerate the transformation of teaching and learning among K-20+ audiences in both formal and informal settings in response to the urgent and complex environmental challenges faced today.