We present the assets that collaboration across a land grant university brought to the table, and the Winterberry Citizen Science program design elements we have developed to engage our 1080+ volunteer berry citizen scientists ages three through elder across urban and rural, Indigenous and non-Indigenous, and formal and informal learning settings.
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TEAM MEMBERS:
Katie SpellmanJasmine ShawChristine VillanoChrista MulderElena SparrowDouglas Cost
We used a youth focused wild berry monitoring program that spanned urban and rural Alaska to test this method across diverse age levels and learning settings.
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TEAM MEMBERS:
Katie SpellmanDouglas CostChristine Villano
In this study, we examined how two different CCS models, a contributory design and a co-created design, influenced science self-efficacy and science interest among youth CCS participants.
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TEAM MEMBERS:
Sarah ClementKatie SpellmanLaura OxtobyKelly KealyKarin BodonyElena SparrowChristopher Arp
The Space and Earth Informal STEM Education (SEISE) project, led by the Arizona State University with partners Science Museum of Minnesota, Museum of Science, Boston, and the University of California Berkeley’s Lawrence Hall of Science and Space Sciences Laboratory, is raising the capacity of museums and informal science educators to engage the public in Heliophysics, Earth Science, Planetary Science, and Astrophysics, and their social dimensions through the National Informal STEM Education Network (NISE Net). SEISE will also partner on a network-to-network basis with other existing coalitions and professional associations dedicated to informal and lifelong STEM learning, including the Afterschool Alliance, National Girls Collaborative Project, NASA Museum Alliance, STAR_Net, and members of the Association of Children’s Museums and Association of Science-Technology Centers. The goals for this project include engaging multiple and diverse public audiences in STEM, improving the knowledge and skills of informal educators, and encouraging local partnerships.
In collaboration with the NASA Science Mission Directorate (SMD), SEISE is leveraging NASA subject matter experts (SMEs), SMD assets and data, and existing educational products and online portals to create compelling learning experiences that will be widely use to share the story, science, and adventure of NASA’s scientific explorations of planet Earth, our solar system, and the universe beyond. Collaborative goals include enabling STEM education, improving U.S. scientific literacy, advancing national educational goals, and leveraging science activities through partnerships. Efforts will focus on providing opportunities for learners explore and build skills in the core science and engineering content, skills, and processes related to Earth and space sciences. SEISE is creating hands-on activity toolkits (250-350 toolkits per year over four years), small footprint exhibitions (50 identical copies), and professional development opportunities (including online workshops).
Evaluation for the project will include front-end and formative data to inform the development of products and help with project decision gates, as well as summative data that will allow stakeholders to understand the project’s reach and outcomes.
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.
Prince George’s County Public Schools (PGCPS) Howard B. Owens Science Center (HBOSC) will infuse NASA Earth, Heliophysics, and Planetary mission science data into onsite formal and informal curriculum programs to expand scientific understanding of the Earth, Sun, and the universe. The goal of the project is to develop a pipeline of programs for grades 3-8 to enhance teacher and student understanding of NASA Science Mission Directorate (SMD) Earth, Planetary, and Heliophysics science and promote STEM careers and understanding of NASA career pathways using the HBOSC Planetarium, Challenger Center and classrooms. During the school year, PGCPS students in Grades 3 through 8 will experience field trip opportunities that will feature NASA Sun-Earth connection, comparative planetology, Kepler Exoplanet data, and NASA Space Weather Action Center data. PGCPS Grade 3 through 8 teachers will receive summer, day, and evening professional development in comparable earth and space science content both engaging the HBOSC Planetarium and Challenger facility and its resources. The students and teachers in four PGCPS academies (Grades 3 through 8) will serve as a pilot group for broader expansion of the program district-wide. ESPSI will provide opportunities for county-wide participation through community outreach programs that will promote NASA Earth, Heliophysics, and Planetary mission data. Community outreach will be offered through piloting the Maryland Science Center outreach program to four of PGCPS southern located schools and monthly evening planetarium shows along with quarterly family science nights that will include guest speakers and hands-on exhibits from the local science community and Goddard Space Flight Center (GSFC).
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TEAM MEMBERS:
Kara Libby
resourceprojectProfessional Development, Conferences, and Networks
Achieving the Future of Education and Engagement is focused on the 21st Century Teacher Academy. 21CTA is a unique Educator Professional Development (EPD) two-week residential workshop designed to immerse teachers in best practices and methodologies to develop and implement real-world, Project Based Learning (PBL) curricula using NASA missions. Participating teams of STEM teachers from across the Nation are invited to Ames Research Center in order to fully experience the center's world-class facilities and researchers.
The program's intensive structure achieves the following goals: Improve educational opportunities for teachers and students, deepen teacher understanding of implementing 21st century skills using NASA centric PBL, and create an active Professional Learning Community (PLC) through NASA Ames. In order to meet the program goals, participants will: 1) Successfully design and construct PBL based lessons using NASA content, 2) Integrate NASA missions, resources and programs into lesson plans and resource documents, 3) Demonstrate a deep knowledge of NASA aeronautics research by integrating several different topics into their curricula, 4) Actively participate in NASA outreach (media networking), with students to inspire STEM participation, 5) Conduct a NASA Themed PBL using train-the-trainer module to other educators within the first year of participating in 21CTA.
At the conclusion of the workshop each participant team produced: At least one complete NASA themed PBL curricula, including no fewer than 3 NASA themed PBL activities; Supplemental multi-media presentations and tools to accompany, and/or be integrated into, the main PBL curricula, and; Submitted lessons, content, and best practices on the Professional Learning Community (PLC) website.
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)
The purpose of the 3-year formative and summative evaluation was to gauge public perceptions of the utility and quality of NASA-funded workshops and programs offered by the North Carolina Museum of Natural Sciences. This final summative report includes 3-year project findings from 11 NASA Educator Workshops and three Astronomy Days events.
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TEAM MEMBERS:
North Carolina State Museum of Natural ScienceMary Styers
Youth EXPO: Youth Exploring the Potential of Virtual Worlds was a proof-of-concept study to determine if an immersive, 3D virtual environment is an effective medium to increase high school students’ understanding of current climate change research and motivate interest in learning more about climatology-related careers. The project was conducted by the Miami Science Museum in partnership with Goddard Institute of Space Sciences and Goddard Space Flight Center, and implemented with high school students in Miami. The overall goal of the project was to develop a prototype cyber resource to promote awareness of climate change and careers in climatology, in support of NASA’s role in helping youth understand how Earth’s global climate system is changing. YouthEXPO explored the extent to which 3D virtual learning experiences can increase high school students’ conceptual understanding of complex scientific issues related to climate change. This was accomplished through the development of a series of virtual exhibits, YouthEXPO Island, and pilot testing of the exhibition with high school students as part of a broader climate change curriculum. Youth EXPO Island is a series of simulations in an immersive, 3D virtual world environment designed to increase high school students’ understanding of current climate change research and motivate interest in learning more about climatology-related careers. Modules include EarthLab, IceLab, VolcanoLab and SpaceLab, four environmental simulations where avatars can analyze the relationship between global temperature change and a variety of climate factors, learn about remote sensing and field sampling techniques, and explore related careers.
Journey into Space (JIS) is designed to improve student, educator, and general public understanding of earth/space science and its relationship to NASA goals and objectives through the use of a traveling GeoDome (inflatable planetarium) and engaging supporting programming at The Journey Museum. The Museum collaborates with area colleges, school districts, K-12 educators, youth serving organizations, astronomical affiliations, and others. The overall goal of JIS is to improve student, educator, and general public understanding of STEM and its relationship to NASA goals and objectives. JIS objectives are: 1) To increase student and public interest and awareness in STEM areas; 2) To increase student interest in pursuing STEM careers; 3) To improve teacher knowledge of NASA related science; 4) To increase teacher comfort level and confidence in teaching NASA related science in their classrooms; 5) To increase collaboration between informal and formal science educators; 6) To increase student and public understanding of Plains Indians ethno astronomy; and 7) To increase museum visitors’ interest and understanding of NASA related science. The Museum produced 2 films (“Cradle of Life”, “Looney Moons”) that are offered daily, 4 recurring monthly programs (Final Frontier Friday, Amazing Science, SciGirls that became Science Explorer’s Club, and Black Hills Astronomical Society meetings), summer robotics classes and teachers’ workshops, annual Earth Science Day, in addition to the GeoDome programming that has toured the region including presentations in the three poorest counties in the United States. The ethno-astronomy is underway in partnership with Oglala Lakota College and South Dakota Space Grant Consortium.