The Nanoscale Informal Science Education Network (NISE Network) is a national infrastructure that links science museums and other informal science education organizations with nanoscale science and engineering research organizations. The Network’s overall goal is to foster public awareness, engagement, and understanding of nanoscale science, engineering, and technology. As part of the front-end effort, this report, Part IIB, documents 19 nanoscale STEM programming, media, and school-based projects that have been completed or are in development as of 2005.
This article summarizes summative evaluation of the impact on public radio listeners of Earth & Sky, a short-format science radio program airing daily on more than 1,000 commerical and public radio stations in the U.S. as well as on satellite and Internet radio outlets. Earth & Sky’s goals are to make science accessible and interesting and to increase science literacy by providing daily doses of science to listeners with a range of science backgrounds, knowledge and interest. Subsequent to listening to Earth & Sky, the producers hope listeners may be motivated to turn to other sources of
Earth & Sky is a daily short-format science series for both commercial and public radio. Produced by EarthTalk, Inc. of Austin, TX, the series is hosted by Deborah Byrd and Joel Block and consists of 90-second programs on a wide variety of topics mostly drawn from environmental sciences, earth sciences and astronomy. With support from the National Science Foundation, Multimedia Research presents the second study of a two-part summative evaluation on the impact of Earth & Sky on public radio listeners, focusing on traditional formats as well as the new “Edge of Discovery” programming that
Goodman Research Group, Inc. (GRG) conducted summative evaluation of Origins of the Universe, the 4-part NOVA miniseries. The Origins series chronicled the history of the earth's formation, how the universe evolved to permit the emergence of life on earth, the likelihood that there is life beyond earth, and the tools and techniques scientists use to study the universe. In June 2007, Thomas Levenson, MIT professor and Executive Producer of the series, won the inaugural Walter P. Kistler Science Documentary Film Award for his work on Origins. An extensive outreach campaign accompanied the series
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TEAM MEMBERS:
Jennifer BeckJennie MurackUnicorn Projects, Inc.Irene F Goodman
Goodman Research Group, Inc. (GRG) conducted a summative evaluation of the first season of NOVA scienceNOW, the PBS series that explores cutting-edge scientific and technological innovation in real time. The evaluation included two primary components: 1) an evaluation of the television series, and 2) an evaluation of the outreach, which consisted of a companion website and a series of Science Cafes hosted around the country. GRG's evaluation was designed to assess the project's effectiveness in meeting its overall goal of engaging a variety of audiences more deeply with scientific research in
The findings from this evaluation indicate that compared to the typical children's Web site, parents consider the PEEP Web site to be more educational and easier for children to navigate on their own. Children were very engaged by the Interactive Games, and demonstrated proficiency with regard to comprehension and site navigation. Further, parents rated the Anywhere Science Activities very positively, particularly noting that the activities gave parents excellent ideas for how to turn everyday situations into science explorations with their children.
This external evaluation of the PEEP Explorer's Guide found the Guide effective in meeting its goals. Teachers who used the Guide were extremely satisfied with its content, materials, and usability. They reported the Guide was highly appealing to children, and they used materials from the Guide to forge home-school connections. Teachers found the Guide made useful links between science, literacy, and language. Pre-post comparisons demonstrated that, while teachers were engaged in similar instructional practices before and after using the Guide, the Guide alleviated the challenges of teaching
Focus groups with parents of third and fourth graders were implemented to help support the revision and expansion of the current Cyberchase website for parents. This study focused on the following research questions: (1) How do parents understand their role in helping their children with learning in math? (a) Do parents see their role as motivational? (b) Do parents see their role as helping their child with math difficulties? (c) Do parents see their role as collaborating with their child in learning math? (2) What are parents' concerns or anxieties about their role in supporting math
To gain insight into the Cyberchase audience, a Web survey was conducted with parents through the PBS Web site during June and July, 2005. Participants were 94 parents of children who were current or past users of at least one Cyberchase media component (e.g., TV, Web site, outreach materials, etc.). Roughly equal numbers of boys and girls were represented, and one-third of the children were identified as minorities. Parents were recruited through the Cyberchase Web site and online mailings, and were asked to complete the online survey. Rather than being representative of U.S. parents as a
In 2005, WGBH began production of a new science television series for children called FETCH. FETCH is a competition-based game/reality show for 6-10 year old children that consists of both animation and live action footage. The show is hosted by a cartoon dog named Ruff Ruffman. Each week Ruff assigns competitors from a cast of real kids to leave the studio and go out into the world and complete challenges. There are typically two challenges assigned in each show. One challenge per episode requires its contestants to learn about and understand science concepts and to use scientific process
Strange Days on Planet Earth combines a 4-part television series and outreach program produced by Sea Studios Foundation (SSF) for National Geographic Television and Film and Vulcan Productions, with funding from the National Science Foundation (NSF) and The David and Lucile Packard Foundation. The project comprises three primary components: a broadcast series, website, and a national consortium of informal learning institutions. The project team expects that through consistent messaging and content, these components, when integrated, collectively offer the public enriched opportunities to
Strange Days on Planet Earth combines a 4-part television series and outreach program produced by Sea Studios Foundation (SSF) for National Geographic Television and Film and Vulcan Productions, with funding from the National Science Foundation (NSF) and The David and Lucile Packard Foundation. The project comprises three primary components: a broadcast series, website, and a national consortium of informal learning institutions. The project team expects that through consistent messaging and content, these components, when integrated, collectively offer the public enriched opportunities to