Observations taken each year at the same place over a long period of time are valuable for showing phenological trends. The Konza Environmental Education Program (KEEP) began recording phenological events at Konza Prairie several years ago, and those observations are posted on the KEEP website. “What’s Blooming?” lists the procession of native plant species in bloom, and “Who’s Here?” lists the first sightings of the most common birds, mammals, reptiles, amphibians and insects that migrate, hibernate or otherwise appear on the landscape after an absence. A phenology database is available for each of the animal groups and also for plants that are commonly found on Konza Prairie in Kansas. These lists are not exhaustive but represent those plants and animals easily observed or abundant. The data added by volunteers and students becomes part of a long-term data set to show trends and relationships among plants or animals across Kansas. Phenology of the tallgrass prairie is observed by volunteers annually for the last eight yeas for the plant community and for the last five years for animals.
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TEAM MEMBERS:
Konza Prairie Biological StationValerie Wright
The Family Science Learning Project is comprised of a research study and subsequent program development designed to fundamentally improve family science learning in museums. The endeavor will be carried out in the Philadelphia area by PISEC, a partnership of The Academy of Natural Sciences, The Franklin Institute, the Thomas H. Kean New Jersey State Aquarium at Camden and the Philadelphia Zoo, joined for this project by the University of the Arts. To achieve the goal of fostering science literacy by encouraging families to engage in successful learning strategies while visiting science museums, PISEC has identified the following objectives for the project: - To increase understanding of the processes and potential of science museum-based family learning. - To apply this understanding to the development and implementation of effective program and exhibit enhancements in four science museums. - To involve existing staff so that evaluation and research become an ongoing component of program and exhibit development in the participating museums. - To utilize a multi-institution team approach designed to maximize impact, be cost-effective and be replicable in other regions across the country. The project has three phases. First, a research study using ethnographic data collection and focus groups will be conducted at the participating museums. This study will lead to the formulation of a set of criteria for successful family science learning and hypotheses about what is needed to facilitate this behavior. Second, utilizing these findings, the four institutions will develop four distinct programs and/or exhibit enhancements designed to foster positive family learning experiences. Formative evaluation and inter-museum collaborative will be integral parts of this process. Finally, the summative findings of the individual efforts will be compared to look for constants in successful programming across the sites. Results will be assembled in a handbook which will be widely disseminated to the field. In carrying out this study, the project will fill in the body of existing museum-based family learning research. The knowledge gained will give science museum professionals a new set of tools which can be used to increase the frequency of positive learning experiences in their facilities, and to broaden the diversity of visiting families as well. Because the subject matter under investigation represents a wide range of scientific disciplines, the results of the projects should prove applicable to many different types of informal science learning environments, including science centers, natural history museums, zoos, aquariums and botanic gardens. The collaborative nature of the project will serve as a model for similar partnerships among cultural institutions and universities in other large metropolitan areas.
The Bay Beach Wildlife Sanctuary requests $58,414 from the Informal Science Education Program of the National Science Foundation to infuse an environmental education message with innovative approaches to visitor self-instruction, through the two elements which comprise our Communities and Connections in the World of Nature project. This $364,097 project is an ambitious attempt to introduce and involve BBWS visitors with the fascinating interactions of life which hold all living communities together. Fine and coarse grain examination of 11 ecological concepts (e.g., habitat, human impacts, energy flow, etc.) central to these interactions is achieved through a creative blend of innovative public programs, museum-style interactive exhibits, engaging graphics and habitat-oriented live animal displays. Specifically, NSF funding will allow BBWS to: 1) Develop and conduct participatory educational programs (Jr. Naturalist/ages 5-8, Jr. Ecologist/ages 9-12) that introduce ecological themes and concepts to families and school groups. 2) Develop and produce a 180 sq. ft. computer-based interact exhibit (Habitat Puzzle) that encourages visitors to explore ecological concepts of habitat composition in depth.
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TEAM MEMBERS:
Tyrus William BaumannKimberly KasterMichael Reed
Stream Monitoring is a statewide program for Wisconsin citizens interested in learning about and improving the quality of Wisconsin’s streams and rivers. As a volunteer for monitoring through Beaver Creek Reserve Citizen Science Center, you will collect information once a month May through September from one of the numerous streams in the Lower Chippewa Basin. To become a volunteer, you will need to attend a day-long training session to learn how to measure and record the stream data. There are two levels for stream monitoring; level 2 monitoring requires additional training and you are assigned specific streams and times to monitor them.
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TEAM MEMBERS:
Beaver Creek ReserveWisconsin Department of Natural ResourcesSarah Braun