Education Commons^™

Advancing Inclusion In The Geosciences: An Overview Of The Nsf-Gold Program, Julie R. Posselt, Jason A. Chen, Grady Dixon, Jerlando F. L. Jackson, Robert Kirsch, Anne-Marie Nuñez, Brian J. Teppen

School of Education Articles

Here we report on five pilot projects working to develop effective professional development aimed at improving diversity, equity, and inclusion within the geosciences. All five projects were funded by the NSF GEO Opportunities for Leadership in Diversity (GOLD) program, which was designed to bring together geoscientists and social scientists to create innovative pilot programs for preparing and empowering geoscientists as change agents for increasing diversity. Each project has different objectives and applies different combinations of methods, but focuses on professional development, bystander intervention training, and the formation of new networks in the pursuit of systemic, institutional change. This article describes …

Assessing Short-Term Learning And Long-Term Impacts Of Non-Formal Education Programs, Mallory Munden, Sarah Nuss

VIMS Articles

Non-formal education programs, such as summer camps, offer opportunities for immersive learning and increased experiential science. Summer camps at the Chesapeake Bay National Estuarine Research Reserve in Virginia provide hands-on marine science experiences for 1st–8th grade students. This article assesses the short-term learning gains and long-term impacts of attending a marine science summer camp. Across all age groups, there is evidence of short-term learning, high numbers of new experiences for campers, and increased scientific confidence in many campers. The longitudinal study revealed that these impacts may last until at minimum college, influencing career choice, extracurricular activities, and course enrollment.

Assessing Resiliency In The Face Of Sea-Level Rise, Kristen Sharpe, Sarah Nuss

VIMS Articles

The ocean is inextricably linked to human societies. Climate change and its associated impacts to the aquatic environment pose problems for human communities as well. It is important for students and citizens to understand the changes they can expect to see on a local level, and prepare to respond to those impacts due to climate change. In this lesson, high school earth science students participate in a mock “stakeholder meeting” activity, where they role-play as land planners, emergency responders, and watermen, using climate change projections and county elevation information to create resilience plans for their communities in the year 2050.

Kindling The Fire: Fueling Preservice Science Teachers' Interest To Teach In High-Needs Schools, Meredith W. Kier, Jason A. Chen

School of Education Articles

This study applies psychological models of interest and motivation (i.e., a model of interest‐development and self‐determination theory) to the experiences of six preservice science Noyce scholars who participated in a teacher preparation program. The National Science Foundation's Noyce grant aims to incentivize mathematics and science majors to teach in high‐needs school districts. Through this interview study, we sought to understand how Noyce scholars' pre‐existing interests and their experiences in the Noyce program interact to develop individual commitments to teach in high‐needs school settings. Case studies reveal that scholars had no prior experiences in high‐needs schools, abstract ideas about teachers, students, …

Prismatic Little Plankton. Subjects: Life Sciences, Physical Science/Chemistry; Marine/Ocean Science - Grades: 9-12, Kristen Sharpe

Reports

This is a hands-on interdisciplinary activity that incorporates the fun of biology into physics!

Students participate in chromatography experiments to investigate the properties of plant pigments found in various fruits and vegetables, representing pigments commonly found in various species of marine phytoplankton. The students then apply what they've learned to create and analyze a chromatogram of a mystery "algal" sample to determine which species of phytoplankton are in the sample based on the pigments present. This activity simulates phytoplankton community analysis research done using High Performance Liquid Chromatography at VIMS.

A Program Evaluation Of Middle School Science Teachers’ Perceptions And Instructional Practices With The Next Generation Science Standards: Science And Engineering Practices, Antoinette Marie Glenn

Dissertations, Theses, and Masters Projects

The Next Generation Science Standards (NGSS) is the most recent reform in science education across the United States. The NGSS demands a shift in both teaching and learning. Yet there is no direction on how teachers are to implement this shift in their classrooms. This mixed-methods study examined 12 middle school teachers’ perceptions and the instructional practices within the NGSS Science and Engineering Practices (SEPs) by using interviews and classroom observations. Findings suggest that there was a shift in instructional practices and a varying degree of implementation of the eight SEPs. The data analysis identified ongoing needs related to specific …

One Fish, Two Fish, Red Fish, Whose Fish? Subjects: Life Science, Environmental Science, Marine / Ocean Science, Shelby White

Reports

This activity invites students to assume the role of various stakeholders in fisheries management and actively discuss the influence of economics, ecology and human interactions in decision-making.

Students will demonstrate their argument for/against a certain regulation by participating as a specific stakeholder (i.e. commercial fisher, recreational fisher, scientists/researcher, environmental group, management agency, and citizen). Students will recognize that stakeholders tend to advocate based on their individual needs, often making it difficult for proposed policies to satisfy the needs of all stakeholders and achieve sustainability goals.

Expedition Sediments: Mud's Journey Through The Watershed. Subjects: Earth Science / Environmental Science Grades: 9-12, Jessie Turner

Reports

Expedition Sediments is a game-in-a-lesson that allows students to explore the movement of sediments through watersheds by moving around the classroom. This lesson explores how grains of estuarine mud and sand move throughout estuaries and coastal regions, with a focus on processes surrounding a highly populated estuary such as the Chesapeake Bay. By the end of the lesson, students will be able to explain how sediments are transported through an estuary, graph sediment residence times in different locations, and compare the timescales of different sediment transport processes.

Atlantic Wolffish: A Tale Of Missing Teeth. Subjects: Life Science, Biology, Marine/Ocean Science - Grades: 6-8, Kate Bemis

Reports

This lesson plan asks students to make observations based on photographs of real specimens from a natural history collection.

Students collect data to make graphs, which allow them to compare trends for how different variables impact the ecology of Atlantic Wolffish.

Sequence Csi: The Nitrogen Cycle. Subjects: Life Science, Environmental Science, Marine/Ocean Science - Grades: 9-12, Stephanie Wilson

Reports

This lesson invites students to work together to identify a mystery DNA sample using state of the art biotechnology.

After identifying the organism, they can work with another group of students to hypothesize about how the different organisms are related to one another. Students will learn that the samples are connected through the nitrogen cycle! This gives students an introduction to scientific molecular techniques and environmental nitrogen cycling.

Mitigating Marshes Against Sea Level Rise: Thin-Layer Placement Experiment, Chesapeake Bay National Estuarine Research Reserve In Virginia

Reports

Students will learn about thin-layer placement restoration techniques by using data from the first year of a plot-based thin-layer restoration science project being conducted by the Chesapeake Bay National Estuarine Research Reserve in Virginia (CBNERR-VA). In groups, students will analyze images of vegetation plots exposed to different treatments and decide which is performing best and could be used as a possible restoration technique to combat sea level rise in the marsh. Students will also interpret graphs of vegetation percent cover, and use classroom discussion to come to a conclusion using critical thinking.

Trawling Through The Five Gyres: A Microplastic Research Study. Subjects: Life Science, Earth Science, Marine/Ocean Science - Grade 6, Meredith Seeley

Reports

This activity challenges students to help researchers understand what types of plastics are polluting the oceans!

Teachers will prepare samples of microplastics that were collected in each of the 5 ocean gyres, mimicking plastic concentrations actually found in the oceans! Working as a group, students will count the items of plastic and graph their results. They will share their results with the class to compare their gyre to the other four gyres. Finally, students will understand the link between ocean microplastic pollution, and our use of single-use plastics.

This activity can be completed in 45 minutes in the class. An …

Investigating The Functions Of Wetlands, Chesapeake Bay National Estuarine Research Reserve In Virginia

Reports

Grade level: 2-5

Subject area: Life Science

Students will perform two experiments using models of wetlands to learn about the ability of wetlands to prevent erosion, control flooding, and soak up pollutants. They will apply this knowledge in an activity using metaphors to describe a wetland.There is also an outdoor activity that may be added to teach students about a particular type of wetland, the saltmarsh, and adaptations for plants that live in those environments

Language And Mathematics: Questioning Strategies In A Dual Language Bilingual Education Classroom, Gladys Krause, Katherine Barko-Alva

School of Education Articles

This study presents an emerging framework of teaching moves for teaching mathematics in a DLBE classroom. Our preliminary findings indicate how the teacher in our study uses language during mathematics instruction to a) support the development of conceptual understanding, b) create opportunities for cross-linguistic connections, and c) create opportunities to support bilingual students’ linguistic and mathematical understanding.