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.
The Ross Sea Project was a Broader Impact projects for an NSF sponsored research mission to the Ross Sea in Antarctica. The project, which began in the summer of 2010 and ended in May 2011, consisted of several components: (1) A multidisciplinary teacher-education team that included educators, scientists, Web 2.0 technology experts and storytellers, and a photographer/writer blogging team; (2) Twenty-five middle-school and high-school earth science teachers, mostly from New Jersey but also New York and California; (3) Weeklong summer teacher institute at Liberty Science Center (LSC) where teachers and scientists met, and teachers learned about questions to be investigated and technologies to be used during the mission, and how to do the science to be conducted in Antarctica; (4) COSEE NOW interactive community website where teachers, LSC staff and other COSEE NOW members shared lesson plans or activities and discussed issues related to implementing the mission-based science in their classrooms; (5) Technological support and consultations for teachers, plus online practice sessions on the use of Web 2.0 technologies (webinars, blogs, digital storytelling, etc.); (6)Daily shipboard blog from the Ross Sea created by Chris Linder and Hugh Powell (a professional photographer/writer team) and posted on the COSEE NOW website to keep teachers and students up-to-date in real-time on science experiments, discoveries and frustrations, as well as shipboard life; (7) Live webinar calls from the Ross Sea, facilitated by Rutgers and LSC staff, where students posed questions and interacted directly with shipboard researchers and staff; and (8) A follow-up gathering of teachers and scientists near the end of the school year to debrief on the mission and preliminary findings. What resulted from this project was not only the professional development of teachers, which extended into the classroom and to students, but also the development of a relationship that teachers and students felt they had with the scientists and the science. Via personal and virtual interactions, teachers and students connected to scientists personally, while engaged in the science process in the classroom and in the field.
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.
Earth to Sky (ETS) is an exciting, growing partnership between the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA), the National Park Service (NPS) the US Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS), and the University of California, Berkeley. Together we work to enable and encourage informal educators to access and use relevant NASA and other science, data, and educational products in their work. The project is co-lead by NASA Earth Science Education, in partnership with NPS, USFWS and U.C. Berkeley. Earth to Sky has been funded by a series of NASA grants and the Earth Science Division of NASA's Science Mission Directorate. Mission Statement: Actively foster collaborative work between the science and interpretation/education communities of NPS, USFWS and NASA, to ultimately enrich the experiences of millions of visitors to America’s National Parks, Refuges and other protected areas. There are two, closely linked components to ETS: Professional Development, and an active Community of Practice. We use a collaborative approach to interagency professional development, bringing scientists and educators together in collegial learning environments. Our training events emphasize development of plans for use of course content in participants’ work environment. We provide face-to-face, distance-learning and blended learning opportunities. Since 2008 the effort has focused on climate change science and communication. However, we maintain connections with other science content areas, including comparative planetology and the Sun-Earth connection. We have also developed, and continue to nurture and expand, a community of practice that uses the science and communication skills and capabilities of each of the partners to enrich public engagement in natural and cultural heritage sites across the United States. Impact: 86 course participants from a total of 3 ETS courses have in turn reached well over 4 million visitors to parks and refuges with content derived from ETS professional development. Archives of almost all ETS presentations and examples of participants’ work are available to registered members of our website http://www.earthtosky.org Registration is free and open to anyone with an interest in science communication. We also maintain a listserv of nearly 500 individuals, which provides periodic updates on science, professional development opportunities and other news of relevance to the community.
"Have You Spotted Me? Learning Lessons by Looking for Ladybugs" is an innovative citizen science project that targets children from Native American, rural, farming, and disadvantaged communities. While most citizen science efforts target teens and adults, this project enables youth ages 5-11 to contribute to the development of a major ladybug database. Adult mentors in youth programs introduce children to topics such as ladybugs, invasive species, biodiversity, and conservation. Youth not affiliated with a program may participate independently. Project deliverables include a self-contained education program, an Internet portal and project website, a dedicated corps of volunteers, and the largest, accessible biological database ever developed. The database is made more reliable by utilizing records accompanied by an identifiable data image as a certified data point. Partners include the NY State 4-H, South Dakota State 4-H, Migrant Worker Children's Education Program, Cayuga Nature Center, Seneca Nation Department of Education Summer Programs, Seneca Nation Early Childhood Learner Centers After School Program, and the Onondaga Nation After School Program. Strategic impact will be realized through the creation of a citizen science project that provides hands-on interactions, field experiences, and accessible data that creates unique learning opportunities for youth. It is estimated that nearly 10,000 youth will be impacted by this work.
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TEAM MEMBERS:
John LoseyLeslie AlleeLouis HeslerMichael CatanguiJohn Pickering
Backyard Mystery is an NSF-funded curriculum, focused on diseases, pathogens and careers, using interactive paper and physical activities. Content is for middle school participants in afterschool settings, like 4-H and other similar venues. The curriculum engages student interest in genetics and genomics and in the bioSTEM workforce. The curriculum storyline is placed in a familiar setting to students--the backyard--and explores fungi, bacteria, viruses and parasites in a way that is engaging fun and informative. It can be tailored to specific audiences, e.g. participants interested in animal science will gain from focusing on the parasite panel. The curriculum is available in two forms: a combined lesson that brings all of the elements together in one session and another in which the content is broken out into three separate lessons. We would like to share this curriculum with facilitators and educators for both out-of-school time and classroom settings. It is available electronically and free to use. We only ask for users to complete a brief survey to give us feedback, which is helpful for NSF.
Arizona State University (ASU) in collaboration with Arizona Science Center, Boeing, Intel, Microchip, Motorola, Salt River Project, AZ Foundation for Resource Education, AZ Game & Fish Department, US Partnership for the Decade of Education for Sustainable Development, Mesa Public Schools, and Boys & Girls Clubs of the East Valley, offer a three-year extracurricular project resulting in IT/STEM-related learning outcomes for 96 participants in grades 7, 8, and 9. The project targets and engages female and minority youth traditionally under-represented in IT/STEM fields in multi-year out-of-school technological design and problem solving experiences. These include summer internships/externships and university research in the science center and industrial settings where participants develop socially responsible solutions for challenging real world problems. The program includes cognitive apprenticeships with diverse mentors, opportunities to practice workplace skills such as leadership, teamwork, time management, creativity and reporting, and use of technological tools to gather and analyze complex data sets. Participants simulate desert tortoise behaviors, research and develop designs to mitigate the urban heat island, build small-scale renewable energy resources, design autonomous rovers capable of navigating Mars-like terrain, and develop a model habitat for humans to live on Mars. Together with their families participants gain first-hand knowledge of IT/STEM career and educational pathways. In addition to youth outcomes, the adults associated with this project are better prepared to positively influence IT/STEM learning experiences for under-represented youth. The evaluation measures participant content knowledge, attitudes and interest in IT/STEM subjects, workplace skills and intentions to pursue IT/STEM educational and career pathways to understand participant reactions, learning, transfer and results. Informal curricula developed through this project, field-tested with youth at Boys & Girls Clubs and youth at Arizona Science Center will be available on the project website.
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TEAM MEMBERS:
Tirupalavanam GaneshMonica ElserStephen KrauseDale BakerSharon Robinson-Kurplus
Stroud Water Research Center (SWRC) will partner with Longwood Gardens (LG) to develop educational materials that help visitors understand the links between the hydrologic and carbon cycles. The goal is to demonstrate how landscape aesthetics can influence land-use decisions, and to offer carbon-neutral methods the public and others can employ to reduce the impact of storm runoff. The intended audience is primarily adults among the 800,000 annual visitors to the Gardens who are landowners as well as professionals such as engineers, regional planners, landscape architects, developers and municipal officials. This project will also communicate research to public audiences through SWRC and LG websites.
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TEAM MEMBERS:
Louis KaplanJ. Denis NewboldSusan GillAnthony Aufdenkampe
resourceprojectWebsites, Mobile Apps, and Online Media
SETAC is funded by the Lifelong Learning Programme of the European Union and emerges out of the need to undertake specific action for the improvement of science education. It regards science education as among the fundamental tools for developing active citizens in the knowledge society. SETAC draws on the cooperation between formal and informal learning institutions, aiming to enhance school science education and active citizenship looking further into the role of science education as a lifelong tool in the knowledge society. On the day of the project’s conclusion, 31 October 2010, after two years of work SETAC contributes the following products and results to the field: 1. “Quality Science Education: Where do we stand? Guidelines for practice from a European experience” This is the concluding manifesto that presents the results of the SETAC work in the form of recommendations for practitioners working in formal and informal science learning institutions; 2. “Teaching and Learning Scientific Literacy and Citizenship in Partnership with Schools and Science Museums” This paper constitutes the theoretical framework of the project and innovative ways of using museums for science education and develop new modes of linking formal and informal learning environments; 3. Tools for teaching and learning in science: misconceptions, authentic questions, motivation. Three specific studies, leading to three specific reports, have been conducted in the context of the project, looking in particular into notions with an important role in science teaching and learning. These are on: Children’s misconceptions; Authentic questions as tool when working in science education; Students’ attitudes and motivation as factors influencing their achievement and participation in science and science-related issues; 4. Activities with schools: SETAC developed a series of prototype education activities which were tested with schools in each country. Among the activities developed between the partners, two have been chosen and are available on-line for practitioners to use and to adapt in their own context. These are: The Energy role game, a role game on Energy invites students to act in different roles, those of the stakeholders of an imaginary community, called to debate and decide upon a certain common problem; MyTest www.museoscienza.org/myTest, which aims to encourage students to engage in researching, reflecting and communicating science-oriented topics; 5. European in-service training course for primary and secondary school teachers across Europe. The training course is designed in such a way as to engage participants in debate and exploration of issues related to science education and active citizenship. The course is open to school teachers, headteachers and teacher trainers from all EU-member and associate countries. Professionals interested can apply for a EU Comenius grant. All the products of the project as well as information about the training course are available at the project website, some of them in more than one languages: www.museoscienza.org/setac
The WGBH Educational Foundation together with the Association of Computing Machinery (ACM) and dozens of partners, proposes a major new initiative to reshape the image of computing among college-bound high school students, with a special focus on Latina girls and African-American boys. Image is seen as an important factor in the lack of interest in computing majors among high school and college students, who often see computer scientists as geeks and nerds with boring jobs and equally boring lives. Latina girls and African-American boys--among the most underrepresented groups in computing--represent particularly important and challenging audiences. The New Image for Computing project will research and design a "communications make-over"--a new set of messages that will accurately and positively portray the field and will be widely tested for their emotional appeal to and intellectual connection with the targeted audiences. Experienced marketing professionals will help create the messaging campaign using proven marketing and communications strategies. WGBH, a leading producer of programming for public television and non-broadcast educational media, is uniquely positioned to lead this initiative, as they have a current, similar project called Engineer Your Life that aims to encourage academically prepared high school girls to consider engineering as an attractive option for both post-secondary education and as a career choice.
The goal of this engineering education project entitled EXTRAORDINARY WOMEN ENGINEERS (EWE) is to encourage more academically prepared high school girls to consider engineering as an attractive option for post-secondary education and subsequent careers in order to increase the number of women who make up the engineering workforce. Specific project objectives are to: 1) mobilize America's more than one million engineers to reach out to educators, school counselors, and high school girls with tested messages tailored to encourage participation in engineering education and careers; 2) help high school counselors and science, math, and technology teachers to better understand the nature of engineering, the academic background needed to pursue engineering, and the career paths available in engineering; 3) equip high school counselors and teachers to share this information with students, especially girls; and 4) reach out to girls directly with messages that accurately reflect the field of engineering and will inspire girls to choose engineering. The WGBH Educational Foundation has partnered with the American Association of Engineering Societies (AAES), American Society of Civil Engineers (ASCE), and a coalition of more than 50 of the country's engineering associations, colleges, and universities to fundamentally shift the way the engineering and educational communities portray engineering. Based on a needs assessment performed in 2004, the EWE coalition embraces a communication strategy that focuses on the societal value and rewards of being an engineer, as opposed to the traditional emphasis on the process and challenges of becoming an engineer. This project represents a nationwide outreach effort that includes training opportunities for engineers; targeted Web-based and print resources for students, school counselors and teachers, and engineers; and a range of outreach and marketing activities.
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TEAM MEMBERS:
Julie BenyoPatrick NataleF. Suzanne Jenniches
This project will produce a multi-part radio project including eight half-hour documentaries, 40-50 short radio features, an audio clearinghouse and a website on scientific research in the Polar Regions. The content of the programs support the goals of IPY. The project will be produced with four international radio partners: the science units of The Australian Broadcasting Co., the BBC World Service, Radio Deustche-Welle and Radio New Zealand. These international collaborators will look at issues such as the influence of conditions in Polar Regions on global climatic change, how animals adapt to rapid environmental change, survival in extreme environments and processes of change among native people in the Polar regions. The programs will reach a large audience in the United States as well as internationally through the collaborating partners. The clearinghouse/website will be designed to provide organized learning resources and an audio archive of the project's radio programs and archival interviews and sounds for use by both the general public and professional audiences. There will be both formative and summative evaluation of the programs and website.