How People Learn: Bridging Research and Practice provides a broad overview of research on learners and learning and on teachers and teaching. It expands on the 1999 National Research Council publication How People Learn: Brain, Mind, Experience, and School, Expanded Edition that analyzed the science of learning in infants, educators, experts, and more. In How People Learn: Bridging Research and Practice, the Committee on Learning Research and Educational Practice asks how the insights from research can be incorporated into classroom practice and suggests a research and development agenda that
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M. Suzanne DonovanJohn BransfordJames Pellegrino
Informal environments—or out-of-school-time (OST) settings—play an important role in promoting science learning for preK–12 students and beyond. The learning experiences delivered by parents, friends, and educators in informal environments can spark student interest in science and provide opportunities to broaden and deepen students’ engagement; reinforce scientific concepts and practices introduced during the school day; and promote an appreciation for and interest in the pursuit of science in school and in daily life. NSTA recommends strengthening informal learning opportunities for all preK
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National Science Teachers Association
The Magnet Lab has a strong commitment to education. Through the Center for Integrating Research & Learning, the lab supports educational programming at all academic levels: K-12, technical, undergraduate, graduate and postdoctoral. Please explore the links listed to the left to find out more about the depth of our educational resources for the community, for teachers and for students as well as our unique research offerings. Our programs are designed to excite and educate students, teachers and the general public about science, technology and the world around them. All of our programs are developed in close collaboration with research scientists and educators. Housed at and partly funded by the MagLab, the Center is uniquely positioned to take advantage of the excellent resources, connections, world-class facilities and cutting-edge science the lab has to offer. We also receive generous support from the National Science Foundation and the State of Florida. The Center maintains a rigorous research agenda designed to investigate how Center programs and materials affect teachers and students. Our Mission Statement is to expand scientific literacy and to encourage interest in and the pursuit of scientific studies among educators and students of all ages through connections between the National High Magnetic Field Laboratory and the National Science Foundation, the community of Tallahassee, the State of Florida and the nation.
The Developmental Studies Center is supporting the active involvement of parents in their children's mathematical development, helping parents understand more about how their children learn mathematically and socially, and increasing the likelihood that children will discuss mathematics with an adult who is significant in their lives. The first phase of this project develops, pilot tests, and evaluates a Homeside Math resource book for each grade level, K-2, with activities teachers can send home to foster positive interaction about mathematics between parents and their children. These activities are related to exemplary school curricula, particularly those developed with NSF support. The next phase develops a limited number of additional activities to add to the Homeside Math collection to be published as Community Math. Community Math is a resource book for youth workers with activities that foster mathematical discussions between children ages 5-8 and a significant adult and can be used in a variety of community organization settings and sent home for family use. Workshops are developed for parents, teachers, and youth workers to strengthen their knowledge of child-centered instructional strategies, meaningful activities, and how children develop mathematically and socially. And facilitator workshops are developed for parents, teachers, and youth workers to enable them to lead workshops for parents.
The Wildlife Conservation Society is developing and implementing a five-year science program for 420 parents and 210 teachers of children in grades K-8. Linked directly with school curricula and the new National Science Education Standards, the program will bridge the gap between parents and schools, and position the Zoo as a partner and intermediary to help parents and teachers improve the quality and quantity of science education. The program consists of four interrelated components: 1) A series of workshops that will prepare the 420 parents and 210 teachers to work in teams for better and more widely available science education; 2) A series of education projects that will enable workshop participants to teach thousands of other parents and educators about the importance of science literacy, the need for active parental engagement in children's education, and the crucial role that informal science institutions play in augmenting formal science instruction; 3) A series of four Science Advocacy Fairs at the Zoo that are expected to raise the visitor's consciousness on a large scale about the above issues; and 4) A symposium for educators from schools and informal science centers in the region to disseminate successful methods for involving parents in science education.
The Sciencenter will develop Tech City Exhibition, a 2500 sq. ft. traveling exhibit that will promote awareness of engineering as a process and a career. The exhibit will consist of a set of twelve interactive exhibit stations presenting design tasks from various fields of engineering related to the human needs of a hypothetical community called "Tech City." The tasks will use engineering as an iterative process to meet design goals (e.g. building a structure strong enough to withstand an earthquake) while faced with constraints (e.g. a limited budget.) The primary audience will be youth in their late elementary and middle school years with a specific emphasis on women and other groups traditionally underrepresented in engineering. A broad menu of complementary activities will be developed that includes a hands-on program for visiting school groups, a teacher training technology unit, career speakers' bureau, "Engineering Day at the Mall" program, and activities especially created for families. The Association of Science and Technology Centers will manage the national tour of the exhibit. It is schedule to circulate for three years and reach an estimated one million individuals.
The New Mexico Museum of Natural History and Science proposed to develop an outreach science and mathematics program with a parent involvement and teacher enhancement professional development component. The goals of the project are as follows: (1) to involve parents in their children's education; (2) to promote a positive attitude on behalf of parents and students toward science and mathematics; (3) to increase teachers' level of comfort in teaching science; and (4) to enhance teacher's confidence in the hands-on approach as an effective method for teaching science. The objectives for the parent component of this project are: acquaint parents with the national and state science education goals and standards; introduce parents to activities that can be done at home with children; and provide families with materials and activity sheets that can be used at home. The objectives for the teacher component of this project are: (1) to provide teachers with opportunities for increased communication with parents about science literacy for children; (2) provide professional development for teachers on the use of hands-on science activities in the classroom; and (3) to providing bilingual activity guides and kits containing materials to encourage science learning. The methods for implementing this project will be varied according to the needs of the target audiences. Parents and children will be engaged through parent workshops and multi-aged children's activities conducted at the museum by experienced science educators. The professional development for teachers' component of this project will include an extensive summer workshop, on-going training/ planning sessions during the school calendar year and session on the uses of the bilingual teaching manuals. The cost sharing for this NSF award is 46.7% of the total project cost.
The Oregon Museum of Science and Industry (OMSI) will develop Engineer It! Dissemination of a Successful Multiple Outcome Exhibition. This will be a 5000 sq. ft. traveling exhibit based on their NSF supported exhibit Engineer It! that opened as a permanent exhibit at OMSI in 1994. The exhibit presents visitors with an environment rich in opportunities to design, engineer, and test structures in three testing areas focusing on water, structures, and wind. Visitors will learn basic engineering principles through experimentation by designing boats, buildings, bridges, cranes, windmills, and paper airplanes among other things. Supporting components include training workshops for host museums on how to most effectively use the experimental environment of the exhibit, a Teacher's Guide, take-home activities, and a web page. The primary audience is the general museum visitor which includes many families, and elementary school students. Careful attention will be given to the development of family friendly exhibit text that will help adults understand how children learn from developmentally appropriate hands-on activities and how they can support that learning through adult-child interaction. The content of the exhibit is in synchrony with national science standards.
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TEAM MEMBERS:
Raymond VandiverJan DabrowskiNancy Stueber
Miami University, in conjunction with the National Science Teachers Association, is producing an inquiry-driven science program for use in informal settings. A key component of the program will an Internet component with a web page that complements and supports the existing Dragonfly magazine and the Dragonfly pilot television program that is being produced under a separate grant. The web page follows the same themes as the magazine and provides scientific information, an educational interactive experience, a sidebar of interesting information about topics, and advice about how users can investigate themes further themselves off-line. Other Dragonfly Quest components will include a leader's guide for educators in informal settings, and educator's companion, a Dragonfly Pocket Field Book with challenges to engage youth in investigations in the field, and Dragonfly badges, certificates, and notebooks. Dragonfly Quest clubs will be established at 200 Boys & Girls Clubs (B&GC) of America chapters nationwide. The B&GC are making a major effort to see that their chapters having computer and Internet capabilities available to the participants. Currently, approximately 40% of the 2000 chapters are linked to the Internet. The chapters with computers selected for this project each will all have at least four computers for youth - all capable of running browser software at the level Netscape 3.0. Assessment of the effectiveness of the project will be carried out at all 200 clubs. The evaluation will be conducted at 160 clubs with Internet access and 40 clubs without Internet access to evaluate the added-value component of the web pages relative to the other elements of the Dragonfly Quest package.
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TEAM MEMBERS:
Christopher MyersPhyllis MarcuccioR. Hays CumminsChris WolfeCarolyn Haynes
Blue Mountain Films, in association with the American Museum of Natural History, is producing a multi-component project on biodiversity that will examine closely the risks we face if the web of life on Earth is progressively diminished. The central component of the project will be a large format film that seeks to locate and understand humans' place in, and impact upon, the natural order of life on this planet. The film will be based on what appears to be a critical paradox: while we humans, like all living things, have always been dependent upon natural systems for our survival, our unique cultural development and technological prowess have convinced us that we are somehow "above" nature. As a corollary theme, the Life in the Balance film will examine the urgency of the scientific effort to explore and understand ecosystems and the flora and fauna they contain before their unique genetic information is lost due to human actions. In addition, the film will convey an appreciation of how science actually is done in the field. The film will be augmented by: * The Life in the Balance Bookshelf of material currently being developed by the new National Center at the American Museum of Natural History: * Biodiversity: An Action Guide aimed at encouraging children and their families to explore together topics and issues surrounding biodiversity. * Teacher's Curriculum-Biodiversity Counts designed as a middle school-based activity that encourages students to engage in scientific exploration and discover the diversity of species in their own neighborhoods. * Book of Essays designed as a resource book for high school students and their teachers. * Teacher/Educator's Guide consisting of hands-on science activities that can be used independently of the film and as preparation for viewing and/or following screenings of the film. * Life in the Balance "Interactive" Poster with a four-color acetate overlay of pictures which, wen pulled away, reveals a seco nd sheet with science information. * Fun Facts Brochure with biodiversity facts and questions presented in a simple, fun fashion, such as quizzes and games. * Life in the Balance Website feature family activities, an extinction conference section, and a bio-bulletin. * Life in the Balance National Training Institute, a 10 day workshop brining together teams of science educators from community organizations, schools, and science centers and museums. The PI and producer/director/writer of the film will be Bayley Silleck who served in these same roles for the Cosmic Voyage film. The Co-PI and producer will be Jeffrey Marvin. The principal scientist will be Thomas Eisner, Jacob Gould Schurman Professor of Chemical Ecology at Cornell University. This production team will work closely with an advisory committee that includes Jane Lubchenco, Peter H. Raven, Edward O. Wilson, Andrew Peter Dobson, Myles Gordon, Mary Elizabeth Murray-Wilson, and Lee Schmitt.
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Bayley SilleckJeffrey MarvinThomas Eisner
Alice is a traveling exhibition based on Lewis Carroll's beloved classic Alice in Wonderland. Alice will open in early 2001, first in San Jose and subsequently at mid-size children's museums and science centers across the country. It is projected that over the four years of traveling this exhibition around the United States, a target audience of more than two million people will view the project. The target audience for the exhibition is young children age 3-8 years old, with an emphasis on attracting girls and minorities, populations traditionally underserved in science and mathematics, together with their parents and teachers. Alice takes the link between curiosity and explanation as its rationale, using its eponymous heroine's dream-adventure as a framework for activities that will help children and adults build a shared foundation for mathematics and science literacy. The designer for the project will be Koem Liem, a recognized exhibit developer.
The Hudson River Museum (HRM) will develop Hudson Riverama: An Interactive, Long-term Exhibition for Families and School Children. This will be a 2000 sq. ft. exhibit and will take the form of a trip along the Hudson River. Part I, "The Journey," will introduce seven distinct river environments from Lake Tear in the Clouds to the New York Harbor. Part II, "River People," will present human occupations and activities that are related to the river such as a shad fisherman, a municipal planner, a sewage treatment worker, and an environmental educator. The exhibit will present four fundamental, interrelated environmental concepts: ecosystems, habitats, adaptation, and human impact on the environment. Learners will immerse themselves in a habitat by "becoming" Hudson River animals and by role playing field guides, urban planners, etc. National science standards will provide a framework for the exhibit and complementary educational activities. The complementary materials will include pre- and post-visit materials for use by teachers and their students. These will include visual, auditory, tactile and kinesthetic activities that will connect the science education requirements with the exhibit. Information about the exhibit will be broadly disseminated and it is expected that other similar museums will emulate this approach. The exhibit is scheduled to open in January, 2001.
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TEAM MEMBERS:
Philip VerreCatherine Shiga-Gattullo