The Maryland Science Center (MSC), in collaboration with Johns Hopkins University (JHU), the University of Maryland, Baltimore (UMB), and Morgan State University (MSU), has sought the support of the National Institutes of Health SEPA (Science Education Partnership Award) Program to develop "Cellular Universe: The Promise of Stem Cells," a unique exhibition and update center with related programs that highlight the most current science in cell biology and stem cell research. Visitor surveys have shown that science museum visitors are very interested in learning about stem cell research, but know little about the science of stem cells or cell biology, which form the basis of stem cell research. The goal of this project is to help visitors learn about advances in cell biology and stem cells so that they will make informed health-related decisions, explore new career options, and better understand the role of basic and clinical research in health advances that affect people's lives. Topics to be covered include the basic biology of cells, the role of stem cells in human development, current stem cell research and the clinical research process. This exhibition will also address the controversies in stem cell research. Our varied advisory panel, including cell biologists, physiologists, adult and embryonic stem cell researchers and bioethicists, will ensure the objectivity of all content. "Cellular Universe: The Promise of Stem Cells" will be a 3,500 square-foot exhibition to be planned, designed and prototyped in Fall 2006-Winter 2009, and installed in MSC's second-floor human body exhibition hall in Spring 2009. This exhibition will build on the successful model of "BodyLink," our innovative health science update center funded by a 2000 SEPA grant (R25RR015602) and supported by partnerships with JHU and UMB.
DATE:
-
TEAM MEMBERS:
Roberta Cooks
resourceprojectProfessional Development, Conferences, and Networks
The Coalition for Science After School (CSAS) was established in 2004 in response to the growing need for more STEM (science, technology, engineering, and mathematics) learning opportunities in out-of-school time. CSAS sought to build this field by uniting STEM education goals with out-of-school time opportunities and a focus on youth development. Over a decade of work, CSAS Steering Committee members, staff and partners advocated for STEM in out-of-school-time settings, convened leaders, and created resources to support this work. CSAS leadership decided to conclude CSAS operations in 2014, as the STEM in out-of-school time movement had experienced tremendous growth of programming and attention to science-related out-of-school time opportunities on a national level. In its ten-year strategic plan, CSAS took as its vision the full integration of the STEM education and out-of-school time communities to ensure that quality out-of-school time STEM opportunities became prevalent and available to learners nationwide. Key CSAS activities included: (1) Setting and advancing a collective agenda by working with members to identify gaps in the field, organizing others to create solutions that meet the needs, identifying policy needs in the field and supporting advocates to advance them; (2) Developing and linking committed communities by providing opportunities for focused networking and learning through conferences, webinars, and other outreach activities; and (3) Identifying, collecting, capturing, and sharing information and available research and resources in the field. The leadership of the Coalition for Science After School is deeply grateful to the funders, partners, supporters, and constituents that worked together to advance STEM in out-of-school time during the last decade, and that make up today's rich and varied STEM in out-of-school time landscape. We have much to be proud of, but as a movement there is much more work to be done. As this work continues to expand and deepen, it is appropriate for the Coalition for Science After School to step down as the many other organizations that have emerged over the last decade take on leadership for the critical work that remains to be done. A timeline and summary of CSAS activities, products, and accomplishments is available for download on this page. All resources noted in the narrative are also available for download below.
The story from the museum may not be read by visitors, who come with their own knowledge and understanding and read a different story in the animals. The visitors read a story which makes sense to them and builds on what they already know and interests them. Increasingly, robotics models are being used in natural history museums, science centers, and zoos to attract visitors and tell some kind of story. What do the visitors actually talk about when looking at such robotic animals? The visitors reported on in this paper were primary school groups and families. Do they talk about similar things
The importance of reporting current science to the general public is more important now than ever before. The best way to ensure enthusiastic support for science is to engage the general public as directly as possible. Unlike schooling, learning in a museum is self-motivated, self-directed, and can be lifelong. The partnership between Columbia University's MRSEC (Materials Research Science and Engineering Center) and the New York Hall of Science will do this in an exciting manner by development of innovative 'rolling exhibits' (Discovery Carts) that are visually attractive, intellectually stimulating and demonstrate current research. This project will unite a dynamic University research faculty, dedicated graduate students, and high school teachers from one of the largest and best known teacher research experience programs in the country. NY Hall of Science, specialists in public science education, have developed exhibitions, over the past 20 years, for school and family group visitors in biology, chemistry and physics. Most recently, the Hall opened an 800-foot biochemistry discovery lab featuring ten experiments that teach visitors about the role of molecules in everyday life. The lab is facilitated by an explainer, and hundreds of families use the lab throughout the year. All exhibits and programs have rigorous science presented in an engaging manner in an educationally non-threatening environment. Columbia University is one of the premier research institutions in the country. Columbia's MRSEC is engaged in multi-faceted educational outreach activities in the New York metropolitan area, including a close working relationship with Columbia's 16 year old RET program. Together these institutions are well situated to involve the research community in public education activities that will inform the public about the current advances in science. Teachers and graduate students who have worked in MRSEC labs will assist in bringing new skills and ideas to the development of museum programming and exhibits. The teachers have experienced both the research projects first-hand and have had the experience in translating the research into meaningful classroom activities for their students. The graduate students have worked alongside the teachers, assisting them in making the research meaningful to high school students. Broader Impact: Highly skilled educators who can improve a young person's chances for success are like gold for the nation's schools, which are under pressure for tough accountability standards. Teachers will influence over a thousand students during the course of their careers. The Hall's Explainers are of high school and college age. These two groups will have positive impacts on our society for years to come. They will benefit from participation, and the tens of thousands of visitors to the museum will learn about cutting edge research.
The Pittsburgh Children's Museum (PCM) is developing a 2,700 sq ft traveling exhibition, "How People Make Things," in collaboration with Family Communications, the producers of "Mister Rogers' Neighborhood." The exhibition will use the factory visit segments from this popular television program, the longest running on PBS, as a jumping off point for engaging children in the processes by which familiar objects are manufactured. PCM is building on its prior success with "Design It!," an after-school program funded by a prior NSF grant. This project extends that work to expose children to the hidden science and technology that form the basis for manufacturing. The exhibition will include the Neighborhood Factory orientation area and sections on Making Things: Designing Things, Forming Things (Additive, Subtractive, Deformational), and Assembling Things. Project collaborators include members of the Carnegie Mellon University Industrial and Engineering Design program and the University of Pittsburgh Learning Research and Development Center UPCLOSE. Broader Impact: The exhibition is projected to reach at least 750,000 visitors in nine museum venues through its nationwide tour; the target audience is families with children ages 3 to 10. Promotion and dissemination will be enhanced by the connection with PBS, which continues to air the "Mister Roger's Neighborhood" program. Partnerships with the AFL-CIO, Catalyst Communications, and Society of Manufacturing Engineers will extend the outreach effort. Special efforts will be made to target girls and underserved audiences.
The Fort Worth Museum of Science and History will utilize the popular areas of criminal investigation and forensic science to create a 5,000 square foot national traveling exhibition and an accompanying web adventure. The project builds upon the work done during the planning grant (ESI-0307473). The target audience is families with middle-school aged children and school groups in grades four through nine. The project partners include Rice University Center for Technology in Teaching and Learning, the American Academy of Forensic Sciences, the Science Museum Exhibit Collaborative, Boys & Girls Clubs and 14 science museums in EPSCOR states. The potential strategic impact of this project will be a new model for developing an exhibit and website that are fully integrated from the beginning with the same learning goals. The evaluation will provide information about how an integrated exhibit and website is developed and its impact.
This study (1) creates a genre of exhibit-based, group scientific inquiry programs for general and low-income museum visitors, (2) determines key program characteristics that lead to learning, (3) conducts a controlled experiment to assess the levels and nature of actual transfer of such skills to other exhibits and to visitors' lives beyond the museum visit. A team of researchers and educators creates, revises, and studies Exhibit Investigations for general and underserved visitors at the Exploratorium. During Investigations, educators coach visitors in inquiry skills that are heuristics for engaging with exhibits or physical phenomena beyond the museum. Pre- and post-assessments of learner interactions with a novel exhibit are recorded and analyzed for evidence of transfer of the inquiry skills introduced during the Investigations. Exit and follow-up interviews determine long-term impact. Two versions of the Investigations-with and without mnemonic cards summarizing inquiry skills-are compared with two control conditions in a randomized block design with four conditions and 50 groups per condition. Intellectual Merit The project broadens the focus of current research on the learning of scientific inquiry skills beyond the school setting. A science museum with engaging and interactive exhibits constitutes an ideal and understudied setting for research on inquiry learning by groups. This project . describes the nature of inquiry learning in an informal learning environment . generates principles for using audience diversity to enhance learning identifies specific inquiry skills that are relevant and effective in this environment . assesses levels of transfer of such skills by visitors . compares such transfer to control groups receiving no mediation or content-based mediation The exhibit-based, group inquiries adapt best practices from formal education for use in the multigenerational, free-choice learning environment of a museum. The research yields a series of effective programs and a set of theoretical principles that account for their efficacy. Broader Impacts Project results and learning principles will be disseminated to academic, museum, and lay audiences. In total, the project serves approximately 1,000 Exploratorium visitors. The project will is presented at national and local conferences such as AERA, ASTC, VSA, and AAM, reaching museum researchers, practitioners, and a broad educational research community. Articles are submitted to peer-review journals in the fields of museum studies and science education. Project updates and the final report are posted on the Exploratorium Web site (visited by 15 million annually). Outcomes are disseminated to the Center for Informal Learning and Schools (CILS), an initiative of the Exploratorium, Kings College London, and UC Santa Cruz. A non-technical publication, distributed through the Association of Science-Technology Centers (ASTC), informs science centers around the world.
Colorado State University proposes to identify the framework and infrastructure needed for the university's main campus and pueblo campus to deliver informal science education to school aged youth and their families with a particular focus on Hispanic families. The two-year planning process will include workshops, surveys, focus groups and interviews with key partners in the community that provide programming and advocacy for the targeted audience of school age children and Hispanic families in particular. An advisory board and core team of planners will use data gathered from this process to inform the development of the infrastructure model and to identify STEM concepts and formats, compelling University resources and faculty Professional Development needs in this University/Community partnership. The results of this planning initiative will provide tools, infrastructural plans and community awareness that will support future opportunities for delivering programs to specific school age audiences and developing the capacity of the faculty/staff to work with new audiences. These future efforts will support the ultimate goal of increasing school age children's participation in ISE and ultimately the numbers of Hispanic youth who go on to participate in STEM careers.
Cornell University will utilize planning grant funds to conduct front-end research to inform a major citizen science effort targeting Latino families in six major US cities. Partnering organizations include the New York Restoration Project (New York), Aspira of Illinois, Inc. (Chicago), Youth Policy Institute (Los Angeles), Chicanos Por la Causa, Inc. (Phoenix), the Children's Museum of Houston (Houston), and Aspira of Florida, Inc. (Miami) Project deliverables for the planning effort include culturally responsive research and subsequent dissemination of findings. The Garibay Group will create profiles of partner communities and conduct focus groups with potential project participants to examine attitudes towards science, interest in participatory science activities, tools (online bird identification, data entry, and data visualization tools), and technologies. The research will also include an analysis of existing data from interviews previously conducted by project partners. The research results will provide insights into effective strategies for engaging Latino audiences in citizen science efforts.
The Brooklyn Children's Museum (BCM) will develop "LifeTrek," a 6000-sq. ft. permanent exhibition and related educational extensions. LifeTrek will be an integrated learning environment comprised of a series of immersive indoor habitats where children will investigate natural phenomena and processes. Designed for urban children ages 4-11 and their families and teachers, LifeTrek will provide a range of open-ended and challenging opportunities to practice science skills, and facilitate greater awareness of and respect for the natural world. Reflecting the ecological framework in which New York City resides, a northern estuary system, the exhibition will feature twelve object-rich habitats: stream's edge, flowing stream, freshwater pond, salt marsh, tidal pool, shore, dune, cliff, cave, meadow, fallen log and living tree.
The Science Museum of Minnesota (SMM) will carry out a museum-wide initiative to distribute exhibits and programs about new science and research among its core exhibits. The project goal is to redefine science for visitors as a dynamic human endeavor that is rich in discovery and relevant to their lives, as well as to position SMM as a resource for complex science and science issues. The project includes Current Science Central (500 sq ft) plus three Current Science Zones (250-300 sq ft) distributed among existing galleries (Mississippi River, Human Body, Experiment). Standardized formats (e.g., newscast scripts, quiz questions, multimedia kiosks, bulletin/graffiti boards) will provide frameworks that simplify the constant need for updating content and increase the ability to respond quickly. Target audiences are families, school groups, teachers, teens and lifelong learners from among the 850,000 annual visitors; involvement of the Youth Science Center will engage underserved audiences. Project collaborators are researchers (University of Minnesota, Augsburg College, Gentra Systems, 3M and JPL), as well as media (Physics Today, television and radio). The science museum field will benefit from the experience gained through this project.
DATE:
-
TEAM MEMBERS:
Liza PryorCari DwyerMark DahlagerPaul Martin
National Geographic Television is producing a large-format, 3D film, "Sea Monsters," about prehistoric marine reptiles. The project will also include formative and summative evaluations, educational materials for home, after-school and classroom use, professional development for educators, an interactive website and innovative outreach to underserved youth. The film will present the current scientific understanding of Mesozoic marine ecosystems and the biology and behavior of prehistoric marine reptiles. The storyline of the films sets paleontological discovery into historical context, and reveals much about the scientific method and process of inquiry. Innovative intercutting between live-action paleontology sequences and photo realistic 3D animation of the reptiles will bring the fossils to life and allow audiences to make connections between the remains that are uncovered and the reptiles' activities, all of which are driven by concrete evidence in the fossil record. Sea Monsters will have a strategic impact on the field of informal science education by using groundbreaking computer-generated imagery technologies, and by demonstrating that a strong, dramatic storyline is a powerful and effective method for communicating scientific concepts. Standards-based lesson plans for the classroom and informal activity guides for families will augment the impact of the film. National Geographic has teamed with leading scientific experts and formal and informal education specialists to inform and advise the project. Multimedia Research and Knight-Williams Research Communication, respectively, will conduct formative and summative research.