Funded by the National Science Foundation (NSF),The STEM Pathways project focused on exploring strategies through which at-risk and incarcerated Hispanic youth could be engaged around STEM careers, understand the education, training, and skills they would need to attain them, and think that such a path was a future possibility. To this end, the project and evaluation teams collaborated on a literature review, the development of a logic model, and the design, implementation, and evaluation of a diverse set of program activities that included media, art, and flash mentoring with STEM role models
SciStarter is the place to find out about, take part in, and contribute to science through citizen science, recreational activities and research projects. If you're a scientist or a representative of a citizen science organization or community group: This is the place to tell eager people about your work and get them interested in helping out. We aim to: 1) Enable and encourage people to learn about, participate in, and contribute to science through both informal recreational activities and formal research efforts; 2) Inspire greater appreciation and promote a better understanding of science and technology among the general public; 3) Create a shared space where scientists can talk with citizens interested in working on or learning about their research projects and 4) Satisfy the popular urge to tinker, build, and explore by making it simple and fun for people to jump in and get their hands dirty with science.
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SciStarter (a division of Science For Citizens)Darlene Cavalier
This report is a synthesis of ongoing research, design, and implementation of an approach to education called “connected learning.” Connected learning advocates for broadened access to learning that is socially embedded, interest-driven, and oriented toward educational, economic, or political opportunity. Connected learning is realized when a young person is able to pursue a personal interest or passion with the support of friends and caring adults, and is in turn able to link this learning and interest to academic achievement, career success or civic engagement.
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Digital Media and Learning Research HubMizuko ItoKris GutierrezSonia LivingstoneBill PenuelJean RhodesKatie SalenJuliet SchorJulian Sefton-GreenS. Craig Watkins
Conventional wisdom about young people's use of digital technology often equates generational identity with technology identity: today's teens seem constantly plugged in to video games, social networks sites, and text messaging. Yet there is little actual research that investigates the intricate dynamics of youth's social and recreational use of digital media. This book fills that gap, reporting on an ambitious three-year ethnographic investigation into how young people are living and learning with new media in varied settings—at home, in after school programs, and in online spaces. By
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University of California, IrvineMizuko Ito
This report was completed by the Program Evaluation Research Group at Endicott College in October 2013. It describes the outcomes and impacts of a four-year, NSF-funded project called Go Botany: Integrated Tools to Advance Botanical Learning (grant number 0840186). Go Botany focuses on fostering increased interest in and knowledge of botany among youth and adults in New England. This was being done through the creation of an online flora for the region, along with the development of related tools, including PlantShare, and a user-friendly interface for ‘smartphones’. In January 2012, the PI
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Judah LeblangNew England Wild Flower Society
Rockman et al (REA) conducted an independent summative evaluation of the Eutelelost Tree of Life: Web Module. The Euteleost Tree of Life (EToL) is a collaborative National Science Foundation research project between eight institutions, including Kansas University, to resolve evolutionary relationships within the euteleost fishes. The main aim of the interactive Web module is for users to explore the evolutionary history of fish and how they are related to one another. REA's summative evaluation was designed to (1) gather users' feedback about the website, as well as (2) assess the impact of
The Global Soundscapes! Big Data, Big Screens, Open Ears Project uses the new science of soundscape ecology to design a variety of informal science learning experiences that engage participants through acoustic discovery Soundscape ecology is an interdisciplinary science that studies how humans relate to place through sound and how humans influence the environment through the alteration of natural sound composition. The project includes: (1) an interface to the NSF-funded Global Sustainable Soundscapes Network, which includes 12 universities around the world; (2) sound-based learning experiences targeting middle-school students (grades 5-8), visually impaired and urban students, and the general public; and (3) professional development for informal science educators. Project educational components include: the first interactive, sound-based digital theater experience; hands-on Your Ecosystem Listening Labs (YELLS), a 1-2 day program for school classes and out-of school groups; a soundscape database that will assist researchers in developing a soundscape Big Database; and iListen, a virtual online portal for learning and discovery about soundscape. The project team includes Purdue-based researchers involved in soundscape and other ecological research; Foxfire Interactive, an award-winning educational media company; science museum partners with digital theaters; the National Audubon Society and its national network of field stations; the Perkins School for the Blind; and Multimedia Research (as the external evaluator).
This research and development project explores the mechanisms that initiate and support innovation in early childhood education, especially in combining informal learning via public media and technology with teacher and family interactions to maximize children's math learning. Deliverables include 27 episodes of Peg+Cat, an animated math adventure series on PBS, 8 related online games and apps, summer math institutes and school-year training for preschool/Head Start teachers, and complementary activities and resources to support parent's knowledge and practice and student's engagement, interest, and learning of foundational math concepts. The research agenda will test several hypotheses regarding the strategies to extend teacher's math content knowledge and pedagogy and parent/ caregiver's understanding and valuing of math. A key question will focus on how coupled learning opportunities (professional development for teachers, transmedia, and support for families) enable and sustain children's engagement and learning in math. Formative evaluation of the media components will use focus groups of 3-5 year olds to assure develerables are engaging and accessible. The summative evaluation by Rockman et al will focus on how well the project met its overall goals including the project implementation, and impacts on Head Start teachers, parents/caregivers, and preschoolers. The project's transmedia deliverables will reach millions of preschoolers through daily PBS broadcasts and online games and apps. Fifty Head Start teachers will participate in the two-year professional development program and will be using new content knowledge and pedagogy to teach 550 Head Start children in southwest Pennsylvania and engage their parents/caregivers. The Head Start infrastructure will provide further dissemination of the project's findings and resources.
SciGirls and Citizen Science: Real Data, Real Kids, Real Discoveries SciGirls is showcasing Citizen Science! From their own backyards to a NASA research center, the bright, relatable, real girls featured on the groundbreaking PBS series are seriously into science, technology, engineering and math, or STEM. And Season Three of SciGirls finds these STEM adventurers tracking toads, counting clouds and much more, all in the name of citizen science. The brand-new season of the Emmy-winning show, featuring six stand-out episodes, debuted April 2015 on PBS KIDS (check local listings) and online at http://pbskids.org/scigirls. Citizen science is the newest STEM frontier that engages the general public –and kids – in real science. Scientists worldwide invite ordinary people—like the SciGirls—to observe and record data about everything from birds to beaches, monarch butterflies to maple trees. The data is then shared with scientists, who use it to generate new scientific knowledge. In six exciting new episodes, middle school girls and their female STEM professional mentors hit the great outdoors, cataloging frog calls, tracking the changing seasons, verifying satellite imagery of clouds, monitoring fragile butterfly populations, improving urban bird habitats, and advocating for healthy oceans. In addition, animated characters Izzie and Jake are back and finding themselves in sticky situations that can only be solved by STEM—and the SciGirls. When the SciGirls share their data with professional scientists, they save the day for Izzie and Jake and help save the environment! The new mobile-friendly website at http://pbskids.org/scigirls lets kids play new games, watch episodes and videos, and connect with fellow STEM explorers anywhere, anytime. “Collaboration is the key to successful citizen science,” said SciGirls executive producer Richard Hudson. “Since SciGirls’ beginning, working together—making discoveries, mistakes and friends—is one of the important research-based methods we use to engage girls around STEM. This new season underscores the importance of collaboration within the scientific research community and workforce. SciGirls is fortunate to have powerful partners advising us about citizen science, including the Cornell Lab of Ornithology, NASA and SciStarter.” The SciGirls creative team is headed by Twin Cities Public Television’s Director of Science Content Richard Hudson, Executive Producer of the long-running PBS children’s science series Newton's Apple and creator of DragonflyTV and the SciGirls initiative. Animation is created by Soup2Nuts, producers of PBS’ WordGirl. Strategic partners for the new series are the Cornell Lab of Ornithology, Rick Bonney co-PI, and the National Girls Collaborative Project, co-PI Karen Peterson. SciGirls is made possible by a major grant from the National Science Foundation. Additional funding is provided by INFOR, Northrop Grumman Foundation, and PPG Industries Foundation.
Using STEM America (USA) is a two-year Pathways project designed to examine the feasibility of using informal STEM learning opportunities to improve science literacy among English Language Learner (ELL) students in Imperial County, California. Project partners include the Rueben H. Fleet Science Center and the University of California, San Diego (UCSD). The project's goals are to support teachers in the development of informal science education opportunities for English learners, partner with students in grades 7-12 to create activities and exhibits, deliver student-produced products to community members, and sustain and disseminate the activities through the development of web-based teacher tools. The teachers will work with informal science education experts, STEM professionals, and undergraduate students to develop and implement the program lessons with their 7-12 grade students. The activities and exhibits designed for community audiences will be used in the Imperial Valley Discovery Zone, slated for completion in fall 2013. Special emphasis will be placed on understanding English scientific word frames and science content specific vocabulary to help ELL students express complex scientific concepts in English. The project deliverables in this pilot project include a comprehensive teacher professional development strategy, student-developed informal science activities and exhibits, a project website, and multiple teacher resources (lesson plans, how-to guides, training materials, and social networking tools). Teachers will receive 45 hours of professional development during the summer with an additional 20 hours of support provided during the school year. UCSD's Jacob's School of Engineering will provide training on solar energy micro-grids using a micro-grid observatory to be located in Imperial Valley. English language development training will be provided by the University of California's Professional Development Institute (UCPDI) and address the role of language objectives in scientific conceptual knowledge and language development; using science and language to improve classroom questioning/discussion; and teaching academic language to English learners. The informal science education component of the training provided by the Fleet Science Center will address topics such as questioning strategies, scientific reasoning frameworks, communicating science to public audiences, and learning "high level" science content using hands-on approaches. The project design builds on research which supports an active learning approach that mirrors scientific practice and is one of the strengths of informal science learning environments. The question to be addressed by the USA Project is: "Can informal STEM activities with embedded English Language development strategies assist English learner students to increase their English language competency and their interest in STEM subjects?" The PI seeks to identify the impact that teachers have on guiding students in inquiry-based informal STEM education, evaluate the academic outcomes for students, and measure changes in community interest, understanding, and attitudes towards STEM and STEM occupations. The USA Project is designed to reach approximately 200 underserved students and will promote the participation of at least 400 additional students, parents, and other rural community members. It is anticipated that this project will result in the development of a model for teacher-led informal STEM education, increased STEM learning opportunities for the community, and the development of a network of educational institutions that helps to bridge formal and informal STEM learning and learning environments.
This Pathways project responds to the high level of public skepticism about climate change science despite strong scientific consensus. In 2010, two George Mason University / Yale University polls became headline news in mainstream media (such as the NY Times and NPR) when they reported that 50% or more of our broadcast meteorologists and TV news directors are skeptical about global climate science. A full 30% of TV broadcast meteorologists, who are largely untrained in disciplines other than meteorology and weather forecasting, denounce anthropogenic global warming (AGW) as a hoax or a scam. Such polls strongly suggest that the general public trusts media statements over scientific facts, despite position statements acknowledging dominantly human responsibility for global warming in the past 50 years from nearly every U.S. professional society dealing with Earth sciences. Climate literacy in citizens and policy makers is essential for advancing responsible public policy on energy legislation, carbon emission reductions, and other climate change issues, and TV broadcast meteorologists have great potential for enhancing that literacy.
This report combines the views of education researchers, technology developers, educators, and researchers in emerging fields such as educational data mining and technology-supported evidence-centered design to present an expanded view of approaches to evidence. It presents the case for why the transition to digital learning warrants a re-examination of how we think about educational evidence. The report describes approaches to evidence-gathering that capitalize on digital learning data and draws implications for policy, education practice, and R&D funding.
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U.S. Department of EducationOffice of Educational Technology