The Maryland Science Center (MSC), in collaboration with Johns Hopkins University (JHU), the University of Maryland, Baltimore (UMB), and Morgan State University (MSU), has sought the support of the National Institutes of Health SEPA (Science Education Partnership Award) Program to develop "Cellular Universe: The Promise of Stem Cells," a unique exhibition and update center with related programs that highlight the most current science in cell biology and stem cell research. Visitor surveys have shown that science museum visitors are very interested in learning about stem cell research, but know little about the science of stem cells or cell biology, which form the basis of stem cell research. The goal of this project is to help visitors learn about advances in cell biology and stem cells so that they will make informed health-related decisions, explore new career options, and better understand the role of basic and clinical research in health advances that affect people's lives. Topics to be covered include the basic biology of cells, the role of stem cells in human development, current stem cell research and the clinical research process. This exhibition will also address the controversies in stem cell research. Our varied advisory panel, including cell biologists, physiologists, adult and embryonic stem cell researchers and bioethicists, will ensure the objectivity of all content. "Cellular Universe: The Promise of Stem Cells" will be a 3,500 square-foot exhibition to be planned, designed and prototyped in Fall 2006-Winter 2009, and installed in MSC's second-floor human body exhibition hall in Spring 2009. This exhibition will build on the successful model of "BodyLink," our innovative health science update center funded by a 2000 SEPA grant (R25RR015602) and supported by partnerships with JHU and UMB.
"Have You Spotted Me? Learning Lessons by Looking for Ladybugs" is an innovative citizen science project that targets children from Native American, rural, farming, and disadvantaged communities. While most citizen science efforts target teens and adults, this project enables youth ages 5-11 to contribute to the development of a major ladybug database. Adult mentors in youth programs introduce children to topics such as ladybugs, invasive species, biodiversity, and conservation. Youth not affiliated with a program may participate independently. Project deliverables include a self-contained education program, an Internet portal and project website, a dedicated corps of volunteers, and the largest, accessible biological database ever developed. The database is made more reliable by utilizing records accompanied by an identifiable data image as a certified data point. Partners include the NY State 4-H, South Dakota State 4-H, Migrant Worker Children's Education Program, Cayuga Nature Center, Seneca Nation Department of Education Summer Programs, Seneca Nation Early Childhood Learner Centers After School Program, and the Onondaga Nation After School Program. Strategic impact will be realized through the creation of a citizen science project that provides hands-on interactions, field experiences, and accessible data that creates unique learning opportunities for youth. It is estimated that nearly 10,000 youth will be impacted by this work.
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TEAM MEMBERS:
John LoseyLeslie AlleeLouis HeslerMichael CatanguiJohn Pickering
This study of American adults’ attitudes towards children’s experiences in nature was based on survey data from 2,138 people who participated in an independently commissioned, online consumer survey in February 2010. The Encouraging Children’s Nature Experiences Scale (EC-NES) was created to assess adult attitudes and beliefs surrounding encouragement of children’s nature experiences. While a great deal of empirical research has already been undertaken to demonstrate the value and impact of these experiences, not all of the research has been adopted by the public. The EC-NES scale was designed
Project LIFTOFF works with local, regional, and national partners to engineer statewide systems for Informal Science Education that inspire: YOUTH to pursue STEM education and careers through increased opportunities for quality, hands-on STEM learning. AFTERSCHOOL STAFF to facilitate STEM learning experiences that contribute to the overall STEM education and aspirations of youth in their programs. PROGRAM ADMINISTRATORS to encourage and support staff in the integration of STEM enrichment into the daily programming. STATE LEADERS to sustain and expand afterschool learning opportunities so that all students have access to engaging STEM experiences outside of the regular school day. Project LIFTOFF is dedicated to the development of the following essential elements of statewide systems for informal science education:
Access to appropriate STEM Curriculum for youth of all ages, abilities, and socio-cultural backgrounds that meets the needs and interests of individual community programs
Systematic STEM Professional Development that matches individual skills in positive youth development with abilities to facilitate discovery and science learning
A diverse Cadres of Trainers who will deliver the professional development, technical assistance and curriculum dissemination in their local communities
Authentic Evaluation of informal science efforts that determine the impacts on youth aspirations and the capacity of youth programs to provide quality STEM experiences
Local STEM education leadership to identify the ways in which collaborative education efforts can advance the development of 21st Century Skills and the preparedness for STEM workforce and higher education
Partnerships in support of youth development and informal science education that convene local, regional, and statewide organizations and stakeholders
To advance national initiatives and states' sySTEM engineering efforts, LIFTOFF coordinates an annual convening, the Midwest Afterschool Science Academy, that brings together national informal science experts, system leaders and youth development professionals to elevate the levels of science after school. The 5th MASA will be in the spring of 2014 in Kansas City, MO
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TEAM MEMBERS:
Missouri AfterSchool NetworkJeff Buehler
Stroud Water Research Center (SWRC) will partner with Longwood Gardens (LG) to develop educational materials that help visitors understand the links between the hydrologic and carbon cycles. The goal is to demonstrate how landscape aesthetics can influence land-use decisions, and to offer carbon-neutral methods the public and others can employ to reduce the impact of storm runoff. The intended audience is primarily adults among the 800,000 annual visitors to the Gardens who are landowners as well as professionals such as engineers, regional planners, landscape architects, developers and municipal officials. This project will also communicate research to public audiences through SWRC and LG websites.
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TEAM MEMBERS:
Louis KaplanJ. Denis NewboldSusan GillAnthony Aufdenkampe
MarshAccess is an informal science education program based at the Meadowlands Environment Center (MEC) in Lyndhurst, NJ, and funded by the National Science Foundation. MarshAccess seeks to engage largely underserved populations of young and older adults with disabilities, as well as older adults with age-related limitations, in outdoor experiential STEM activities centered on the New Jersey Meadowlands marsh ecosystem. Program modules are designed to increase interest in science, increase scientific literacy, develop a sustained relationship between the MEC and the target audience and audience
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TEAM MEMBERS:
Hilarie B. DavisBradford T. DaveyRamapo College of New Jersey
Exploring the Euteleost Tree of Life represents the education and outreach of the Euteleost Tree of Life assembling the tree of life research grant (NSF DEB Grant No. 0732819; PI: Ed Wiley) it includes a curriculum activity and a interactive fish tree. Investigating a Deep Sea Mystery, a curriculum module for high school and undergraduate students follows the research of project collaborator Dave Johnson (Smithsonian Institution) to explore deep sea fish phylogeny. The module includes an investigation of What is a fish?, fish anatomy and morphology, and how different lines of evidence (morphological and molecular) can be used to study evolutionary relationships. A fisheye view of the tree of life is a web module featuring an interactive fish tree of life highlight with a series of mini-stories Web material is still in the early stages of development, and will include a splash page with a simplified clickable fish tree through which the different.
In 2009, the Monterey Bay Aquarium began looking at new ways to interpret its Seafood Watch program. This nationwide conservation program strives to educate the public about the importance of buying sustainable seafood. As part of the program, the Aquarium publishes a printed pocket guide that lists the types of seafood consumers should buy and the types they should avoid. (For more information, visit www.seafoodwatch.org.) Over the years, several zoos, aquariums and museums that partner with the Aquarium have expressed interest in displaying an exhibit to encourage more of their visitors to
Edu, Inc. provided expertise and experience in user testing and evaluation of public outreach using new media for this project. In their role as advisor, Edu, Inc., observed that the website successfully satisfied the project goal of producing and testing five new models of interactive media and several feedback mechanisms to allow the public to register personal opinions on ethical scenarios regarding nanotechnology. The evaluators suggest that there is significant anecdotal evidence to recommend four practices tested by the web designers: 1. The potential of web comics as a media to present
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TEAM MEMBERS:
Douglas SpencerOregon Public BroadcastingJediah GrahamSusan Hibbard
Cracking the Maya Code is a one-hour PBS/NOVA adaptation of the two-hour feature documentary Breaking the Maya Code, based on the book of the same title by Michael D. Coe. Major funding for the project - which included website, eduational and outreach components - was provided by the National Science Foundation and the National Endowment for the Humanities. Knight Williams Research conducted a summative evaluation of Cracking the Maya Code. The evaluation examined the appeal, clarity, and educational impact of the program, focusing on educating Viewers about: The basic principles that underlie
The Coalition for Watershed Education, consisting of the Land Access Information Association, Great Lakes Children's Museum, Interlochen Public Radio and Northwestern Michigan College Great Lakes Studies Institute will implement a comprehensive science education project for youth and adults. The major components include: Watershed Discovery field experiences, Soundscapes radio broadcasts, Waterscapes exhibits, a project website, and the expanded Great Lakes Coalition for Watershed Education. Watershed Discovery is a field-based experience for youth ages 11-17. Teams of 6-10 youth will work with mentors who specialize in GPS, GIS, geology and geography to research and collect data on the Great Lakes watershed. These students will also use their new knowledge to produce radio segments as part of the Soundscapes component. Youth teams will be trained to interview sources, gather information and write scripts for use on the local National Public Radio affiliate. The Great Lakes Children's Museum will design a permanent, interactive watershed of 1,500 square feet, as well as a traveling exhibit of 500 square feet for visitors ages 7-12. Other deliverables include "A Community Guide to Watershed-based Science Education" (available in print and CD-ROM), a one-day regional dissemination conference, and an interactive website. Strategic impact will be realized through the development of a novel model for watershed education, its subsequent replication and summative evaluation outcomes. It is estimated that over 40,000 children will be reached by this community-wide initiative.
The University of Minnesota is partnering with several nature centers in the Midwest to transform citizen "technicians" into citizen "scientists." The Driven to Discover project will use existing citizen science programs with strong educational components to engage 12-14 year old youth and their adult mentors in authentic research. The goal of the project is to develop a training model for adults who work with youth in a variety of informal education settings to involve them in authentic scientific inquiry via citizen science rather than just data collection activities. In the proof-of-concept phase, teams consisting of 4-H youth, adult leaders, and several scientists are conducting participatory action research to understand what factors lead youth to full engagement in ecological research. In phase two, project personnel are training 4-H educators, naturalists, and teachers how to engage youth and their adult leaders in other 4-H programs and other informal education programs to conduct ecological research with scientists in advisory roles. Phase one involves approximately 10 adults and 70 youth, whereas phase two involves approximately 40 adults and 300 youth. A front-end study defined the project's target audiences and partners. Formative evaluation study will monitor interactions among members of the research teams and summative evaluation will measure impacts on participants' knowledge, skills development, attitudes, and behavior. Project deliverables include youth-generated ecological research findings, web-based program implementation materials, an annual conference, and a model for engaging youth groups in informal settings in authentic scientific inquiry. The model is expected to impact more than six million youth nationwide.
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TEAM MEMBERS:
Karen OberhauserNathan MeyerAndrea Lorek StraussPamela NippoltKatie ClarkRobert Blair