In fall 2019, the Bell Museum received funding via a NASA TEAM II grant to create Mars: The Ultimate Voyage, a full-dome planetarium show and accompanying hands-on activities that focus on the interdisciplinary roles that will be needed to send humans to Mars. This report from Catalyst Consulting Group presents the findings from the summative evaluation completed in March–May 2023.
Education Development Center (EDC) conducted the external evaluation of this second phase of NASA@ My Library. Library staff from partner libraries increased their confidence and ability to facilitate library programming related to Earth, space, and engineering.
The Exploratorium’s livestream of the August 2017 Total Solar Eclipse reached over 63 million people. Live programs in English and Spanish provided an informal learning experience outside the museum. Over 2.75 million people viewed on-demand videos on eclipse science. Sixty major media providers rebroadcast the livestream telescope feed.
Edu, Inc. conducted a summative evaluation of the NASA-funded project. The study reveals that the Exploratorium successfully disseminated eclipse science and STEM content through media channels and a mobile app, delivering a museum experience to online
In March of 2016, a total solar eclipse occurred in the southwestern pacific; and in August of 2017, a total solar eclipse occurred across a broad swath of the United States. The Exploratorium launched a 2.5 year public education program—Navigating the Path of Totality—that used these two total solar eclipses as platforms for sparking public engagement and learning about the Sun, heliophysics, and the STEM content related to both. These sequential eclipses provided an unprecedented opportunity to build and scaffold public engagement and education. Our strategy was to start the public engagement process with the 2016 eclipse, nurture that engagement with resources, activities and outreach during the 17 months between the eclipses, so that audiences (especially in the U.S., where totality was visible in multiple areas across the country) would be excited, actively interested, and prepared for deeper engagement during the 2017 eclipse. For the August 2017 eclipse, the Exploratorium produced live telescope and program feeds from Madras, OR and Casper, WY. The Exploratorium worked with NASA to leverage what was a once-in-a-lifetime experience for millions to bring heliophysics information and research to students, educators, and the public at large through a variety of learning experiences and platforms.
The core of this project was live broadcasts/webcasts of each eclipse. To accomplish these objectives, the Exploratorium produced and disseminate live feeds of telescope-only images (no commentary) of each eclipse originating them from remote locations; produce and disseminate from the field live hosted broadcasts/webcasts of each eclipse using these telescope images; design and launch websites, apps, videos, educator resources, and shareable online materials for each eclipse; design and deliver eclipse themed video installations for our Webcast studio and Observatory gallery in the months that lead up to each eclipse and a public program during each eclipse; and conduct a formative and summative evaluation of the project.
These broadcasts/webcasts and pre-produced videos provide the backbone upon which complementary educational resources and activities can be built and delivered. Programs and videos were produced in English and Spanish languages. As a freely available resource, the broadcasts/webcasts also provide the baseline content for hundreds if not thousands of educational efforts provided by other science-rich institutions, schools, community-based organizations, and venues. Platforms such as NASA TV and NASA website, broadcast and online media outlets such as ABC, NBC, CBS, CNN, MSNBC and PBS, as well as hundreds of science institutions and thousands of classrooms streamed the Exploratorium eclipse broadcasts as part of their own educational programming, reaching 63M people. These live broadcasts were relied upon educational infrastructure during total solar eclipses for institutions and individuals on the path and off the path alike.
Summary
Girlstart’s mission is to increase girls’ interest and engagement in STEM through innovative, nationally-recognized informal STEM education programs. Girlstart examines in this report how STEM education directed toward elementary school girls influences long-term readiness and participation to math and science learning. This report compares Girlstart After School participants’ academic performance to nonparticipant performance. Specifically, it examines how Girlstart After School influences science STAAR performance and course enrollment in subsequent elementary and early middle
NASA’s Science Mission Directorate (SMD) explores the Earth, the Sun, our solar system, the galaxy and beyond through four SMD divisions: Earth Science, Heliophysics, Planetary Science and Astrophysics. Alongside NASA scientists, teams of education and public outreach (EPO) specialists develop and implement programs and resources that are designed to inspire and educate students, teachers, and the public about NASA science.
Moving Beyond Earth Programming: “STEM in 30” Webcasts. The Smithsonian’s National Air and Space Museum (NASM) will develop nine “STEM in 30” webcasts which will be made available to teachers and students in grades 5-8 classrooms across the country. The primary goal of this program is to increase interest and engagement in STEM for students. Formative and summative evaluations will assess the outcomes for the program, which include the following:
Increased interest in STEM and STEM careers, Increased understanding of science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM), Increased awareness and importance of current and future human space exploration, and Increased learning in the content areas.
This series of live 30-minute webcasts from the National Air and Space Museum and partner sites focus on STEM subjects that integrate all four areas. The webcasts will feature NASA and NASM curators, scientists, and educators exploring STEM subjects using museum and NASA collections, galleries, and activities. During the 30-minute broadcasts, students will engage with museum experts through experiments and activities, ask the experts questions, and answer interactive poll questions. After the live broadcasts, NASM will also archive the webcasts in an interactive “STEM in 30” Gallery.
DATE:
-
TEAM MEMBERS:
Roger Launius
resourceprojectProfessional Development, Conferences, and Networks
Engineering Enabling Science - A NASA GSFC Informal Education Environment Collaborative is a collaborative relationship between and among NASA Goddard Education Office, Greenbelt and Wallops Visitor Centers, Port Discovery Children’s Museum of Baltimore, The Maryland Science Center, and Prince George’s County Public Schools Owens Science Center to leverage current and past NASA Goddard Office of Education and Science Mission Directorate and Engineering investments in Earth Sciences, Astrophysics, Heliophysics, and Planetary Science and NASA Missions. The goal of GSFC’s collaborative is to interface with a number of organizations to provide leveraging, expand their activities and to utilize NASA-related activities in a broader context than that of the individual organization thereby reducing redundancy of effort and services. Specifically, the Office of Education-GSFC Visitor Centers (Greenbelt and Wallops) will develop an integrated model for sharing and delivering high quality education services and activities based on NASA unique capabilities within a network of organizations and institutions serving the general public. The common thread across all proposed activities will be NASA-unique content that flows from the science and technology work of NASA’s Mission Directorates and its Engineering directorate, thereby demonstrating that engineering truly enables science by applying the engineering cycle to the four science themes of Earth Science, Astrophysics, Planetary Science, and Heliophysics. The products of these activities will directly relate to the Educator Professional Development (EPD) and STEM Engagement (SE) lines of business established by NASA educators, as well as showing the interactions and shared STEM learning opportunities between informal and formal education communities rather than viewing informal and formal education as stovepipes.
This evaluation reports on the Mission: Solar System project, a 2-year project funded by NASA. The goal of the Mission: Solar System was to create a collection of resources that integrates digital media with hands-on science and engineering activities to support kids’ exploration in formal and informal education settings. Our goal in creating the resources were: For youth: (1) Provide opportunities to use science, technology, engineering, and math to solve challenges related to exploring our solar system, (2) Build and hone critical thinking, problem-solving, and design process skills, (3)
WGBH received funding to develop and create NOVA Labs, an online environment that provides teen audiences with an online research lab, educational content, and the opportunity to engage with authentic data, tools, and processes to investigate scientific questions. This work has begun with the development of a first pilot lab, called The Sun Lab. NOVA Education created and launched this lab in early summer 2012. Examining the site in its pilot form, the Lifelong Learning Group (LLG) engaged in a formative evaluation to support refinements and improvements in the design of subsequent NOVA Lab
NOVA Labs (www.pbs.org/nova/labs) is a web-based platform designed for use by educators, students, and teens to engage learners with authentic data, processes, and tools of working scientists. The present evaluation study sought to investigate the outcomes achieved by users of the third NOVA Labs platform developed: Cloud Lab. The intended outcomes identified for student users were that they would: • Be able to successfully work with the real data provided in the Cloud Lab; • Demonstrate ability to interpret and use scientific data and tools; • Engage with real scientific data through the
Stennis Space Center (SSC) Office of Education and Visitors Center provided relevant education activities and experiences for teachers, students, and the general public. Activities included partnerships with INFINITY Science Center, 4-H of Mississippi, the Boys & Girls Club of America, development and delivery of educator professional development workshops that meet national curriculum standards; inquiry-based activities that emphasized the International Space Station, robotics, aeronautics, and propulsion testing; and development and installation of an interactive exhibit at the Infinity Science Center. The opening of the Infinity Science Center at Stennis Space Center in April 2012 allowed a new opportunity for SSC to partner and expand NASA’s outreach. A commercial-grade playground was professionally installed at the Infinity Science Center, along with OSHA-approved safety matting. The goal of the project was to utilize a commercially available playground and add graphics and quiz-based activities modifications enabling young visitors to INFINITY at NASA Stennis Space Center, the official visitor center for Stennis Space Center, to have an interactive, yet educational, experience.