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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Joelle Seligson
resourceevaluationProfessional Development, Conferences, and Networks
The Beliefs about Science and School Science Questionnaire (BASSSQ)was designed to assess high school science teachers' beliefs about what occurs in science. The first part of the BASSSQ is comprised of two subscales, "Process of Scientific Inquiry" and "Certainty of Scientific Knowledge." Although the survey was developed and validated for use with high school science teachers, it should also be suitable for use in the general adult population.
This report details the results of the initial CoSTEM inventory of Federal STEM education investments. The report includes detailed information on STEM education investments in order to identify duplication, overlap, and fragmentation in the Federal STEM education portfolio, illustrate distinct characteristics of investments, identify areas of potential synergy across and within agencies, support the sharing of effective STEM education strategies and evaluation techniques, increase awareness of education investments within and across Federal agencies, and support the development of a Federal
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The Office of Science and Technology PolicyFast-Track Action Committee
The Government Performance and Results Act (GPRA) (Public Law 103-62) requires Federal agencies to develop strategic plans setting forth missions, long-term goals, and means to achieving those goals, and ensure the effectiveness of agency programs through the integration of planning, budgeting, and performance measurement. “Empowering the Nation Through Discovery and Innovation: NSF Strategic Plan for Fiscal Years (FY) 2011-2016” updates and replaces “Investing in America’s Future: NSF Strategic Plan FY 2006-2011.” To develop this new plan, NSF formed a working group consisting of office and
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National Science FoundationNational Science Foundation
In the Community Science Learning through Youth Astronomy Apprenticeships (YAA) project, underrepresented urban high school youths, working with recent college grads, conducted astronomy investigations, then translated their personal learning and enthusiasm into outreach programs for younger children, families and community members in an astronomy and space science program. Science education centers at Massachusetts Institute of Technology and Smithsonian Astrophysical Observatory, Boston community-based after school centers and the Institute for Learning Innovation collaborated.
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Irene PorroMary DussaultSusan O'ConnorJohn Belcher
In this Communicating Research to Public Audiences project, the University of Colorado at Boulder -- in partnership with the University of Colorado Museum of Natural History, the City of Boulder Open Space and Mountain Parks, and the CU-Boulder Office of Diversity, Equity and Community Engagement -- is building on the work they have done via their NSF research award, A Meta-Design Framework for Participative Software Systems, in which they have been developing participative software systems (PPS) and applications of the framework. Community of Soundscapes will employ newly developed mobile computing and collaborative mapping technology in programs that help users gain greater insights and stake into the shared environment in which they live and visit. Sound Camera, a digital recording device outfitted with GPS mapping software, allows users to collect audio clips of their sonic experiences as they explore their cities, parks and other environments and upload them online onto a digital map through a Web 2.0 application. They can then compose, annotate, and share soundscapes of the places where the sounds were recorded. A Web site will be developed to expand the project's reach to audiences not in the Boulder programs. Professional development training will be provided for collaborators and through the Colorado Alliance for Environmental Education. The educational goals are to promote literacy of PSS and engage the public in personally meaningful activities that benefit environmental education (cognitive goal) and expand environmental awareness (affective goal). The project work and its evaluation processes (by Wells Resources, Inc.) are intended to advance the field of informal science education with respect to PSS and to study how these new technologies might affect shifts in the kinds of experiences various audiences prefer to have.
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Gerhard FischerElisa GiaccardiGerhard Fischer
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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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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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.
Washington State University, the University of Puget Sound, the University of Washington, a consortium of three museums, and a state-wide charter school system that assists home-school teachers in the Northwest are collaborating to develop new strategies to educate and inform the public about evolution through interactive museum exhibits. Background information and baseline knowledge will be garnered through focus group discussions and surveys. Information will be sought from parents and students in home-school environments and teachers of faith-based groups. The planning work is the prelude to development of the actual exhibition and is needed to inform the PIs how most effectively to help the public best learn key concepts of evolution. The same groups that supply the baseline information and knowledge of concepts will be used to judge museum development in an iterative manner. A second objective in this endeavor is to catalyze collaboration among regional museums. Participants in the project will be staff from the Burke Museum of Natural History and Culture in Seattle, Conner Museum in Pullman, Washington, Slater Museum of Natural History in Tacoma, Washington, Nebraska State Museum, and Idaho Distance Education Academy. An advisory committee includes evolutionary scientists, philosophers of science, and members of the clergy. This project will derive baseline perspectives on evolution from the unique home-school and faith-based communities, piloted interactive exhibits describing contemporary evolution stories, comparative knowledge on whether these participating groups provide useful strategies in the exhibit development, and whether contemporary content exhibits are better at explanations of evolution than the more traditional examples.
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TEAM MEMBERS:
Larry HuffordMichael WebsterRichard OlmsteadAmy RykenCarol AnelliPeter Wimberger
Red Hills Studios proposes to design and develop BioArcade, a suite of online biology games for youth ages 9 to 13. Unique to the field of educational games is the specialized and innovative modding feature that Red Hills Studio will develop. Modding will allow learners to create their own customized versions of BioArcade games for dissemination to other learners. BioArcade games are intended to encourage extended game play and motivation for learning key biology concepts through exciting interactive game modules developed by a leading group of game developers and science content experts. The underlying educational and scientific framework for BioArcade will be developed collaboratively with Co-PI, Dr. Janis Cannon-Bowers at the University of Central Florida and Roger Bybee at the Biological Sciences Curriculum Study (BSCS), along with the projects Scientific and Design Advisory Boards. The project will rigorously evaluate modding as a potential new approach in game design. The modding innovation will be studied in a three-condition randomized controlled trial to determine its effectiveness in promoting deep exploration of scientific concepts and increased knowledge gain. Results of the study will be disseminated to the informal learning community through peer-reviewed educational journals, papers, and presentations at science education and game conferences. Extensive formative and summative evaluations, conducted by Knight Williams Research Communications, will provide valuable insight and assessment of the game design approach for science content learning in informal venues. BioArcade will be widely disseminated daily to millions of young learners online through PBSKids: www.pbskids.org/