This week in education news, climate change skeptic group seeks to influence 200,000 teachers; some California schools are trading the blacktop for greentop; New Mexico schools continue to teach outdated science while new standards sit on the shelf; engineering is getting more attention in classrooms; and President Trump leaves science jobs vacant, troubling critics.

Climate Change Skeptic Group Seeks to Influence 200,000 Teachers

Twenty-five thousand science teachers opened their mailboxes this month and found a package from the Heartland Institute, a libertarian think tank that rejects the scientific consensus on climate change. It contained the organization’s book “Why Scientists Disagree About Global Warming,” as well as a DVD rejecting the human role in climate change and arguing instead that rising temperatures have been caused primarily by natural phenomena. Click here to read the article featured on PBS.org.

Some Schools Trading The Blacktop For Greentop As An Innovative Way To Teach Science

Some students in California don’t have to take field trips to parks or national forests for environmental education – they just open their classroom door. To supplement their science and environmental curricula, hundreds of schools across the state have busted up their asphalt play yards and replaced them with wood chips, trees, flowers, shrubs and vegetables. The new gardens help teachers implement California’s new science standards, which emphasize hands-on learning, and crossover between scientific disciplines. Click here to read the article featured in EdSource.

What Would Trump’s Proposed Cut To Teacher Funding Mean For Schools?

President Trump has proposed getting rid of the Title II program, which aims to help districts and states pay for teacher and principal development, reduce class-size, craft new evaluation systems, and more. The program, which is officially called the Supporting Effective Instruction State Grant program, or Title II, Part A, is the third largest in the U.S. Department of Education’s budget that goes to K-12 education. Eliminating it would be a really big deal, state, district, and school officials say. Click here to read the article featured in Education Week.

The Irony In Ivanka Trump’s And Betsy DeVos’s Push For STEM Education

On Tuesday, presidential daughter Ivanka Trump and Education Secretary Betsy DeVos visited the National Air and Space Museum in Washington to “highlight the importance of science, technology, engineering and mathematics education” and to discuss “empowering young women to pursue STEM-related careers.” The event came just a short time after President Trump advanced his first federal budget, which included wiping out NASA’s education office, which oversees efforts to support women and underrepresented minorities in STEM fields, operates camps and enrichment programs, and provides internships and scholarships for young scientists. Click here to read the article featured in The Washington Post.

Sanitized Science

For four years, New Mexico Education Secretary Hanna Skandera has had on her desk a unanimous recommendation from a hand-picked panel of math and science experts. They want the state to join a growing list of others that have adopted the nationally vetted Next Generation Science Standards. It’s been two years since Skandera convened a focus group of 85 teachers, professors and school administrators to review new standards. That group also recommended NGSS adoption. Click here to read the article featured in the Santa Fe Reporter.

Engineering Making Headway In Schools, Analysis Shows

Engineering is getting more attention in classrooms, especially in those states that have adopted the Next Generation Science Standards, according to an analysis of national test data. Click here to read the article featured in Education Week.

Trump Leaves Science Jobs Vacant, Troubling Critics

On the fourth floor of the Eisenhower Executive Office Building, the staff of the White House chief technology officer has been virtually deleted, down from 24 members before the election to, by Friday, only one. Mr. Trump has not yet named his top advisers on technology or science, and so far, has made just one hire. It is unclear whether the vacancies are the result of the Trump administration’s overall slowness in hiring or a signal that the president places less importance on science and technology than Mr. Obama did. Click here to read the article featured in The New York Times.

Stay tuned for next week’s top education news stories.

The Communication, Legislative & Public Affairs (CLPA) team strives to keep NSTA members, teachers, science education leaders, and the general public informed about NSTA programs, products, and services and key science education issues and legislation. In the association’s role as the national voice for science education, its CLPA team actively promotes NSTA’s positions on science education issues and communicates key NSTA messages to essential audiences.

The mission of NSTA is to promote excellence and innovation in science teaching and learning for all.

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STEM Sims: The Multicolored Dice

Introduction

As mentioned in our prior overview of STEM Sims [http://nstacommunities.org/blog/2017/02/06/stem-sims-interactive-simulations-for-the-stem-classroom/], this interactive software package provides over 100 simulations of laboratory experiments and engineering design products for the STEM classroom. The simulation featured here is called “The Multicolored Dice,”  which we found to be an excellent simulation for mathematics applications related to the concept of probability. Subsequently, students predict which combinations are most likely to occur and then evaluate their hypotheses by rolling the dice to generate combinations of numerical values for predicting the color combinations of multicolored dice. As with numerical dice, where the probability of one dice is 1/6 and the probability of two dice being the same particular number is 1/6 x 1/6 = 1/36. … There are six different possible numbers, so that would be 6/36 or 1/6. Hence, the same rules apply to color combination of dice. The Multicolored Dice is aligned with national (NGSS) standards (MS-ETS1.B – Developing Possible Solutions) and is compatible with state standards as well.

The simulation provides students with a brochure, a pre-assessment quiz , and introductory information about probability (see below). Another reason to consider using this activity is that it reinforces the connection between mathematics content and science content with and emphasis on the application of probability and statistics. Hence, this simulation enables science teachers introduce mathematics concepts that apply to scientific inquiry with probability as a foundation for prediction and analysis. Given the emphasis of integrating mathematics and science in the schools today, this simulation is an excellent opportunity to integrate concepts of mathematics that can help students to do science.

Brochure: https://stemsims.com/content/brochures/multicolored-dice-brochure.pdf?version=2017-01-19

STEM Sims provides four separate lesson plans for this simulation (see links below). These lesson plans are very well-organized and fit the learning objectives and assess learning outcomes. As an example, we have included a Sample Assessment, which is a multiple-choice quiz that includes an answer guide for each lesson.

Sample Assessment

Sample Lessons

Lesson 1: https://stemsims.com/content/lessons/multicolored-dice-lesson-1.pdf?version=2017-01-10

Lesson 2: https://stemsims.com/content/lessons/multicolored-dice-lesson-2.pdf?version=2017-01-10

Lesson 3: https://stemsims.com/content/lessons/multicolored-dice-lesson-3.pdf?version=2017-01-10

Lesson 4: https://stemsims.com/content/lessons/multicolored-dice-lesson-4.pdf?version=2017-01-10

Conclusion

The Multicolored Dice offers teachers an opportunity to integrate mathematics and scientific concepts into a variety of subjects.  Undoubtedly, this simulation will motivate students to formulate questions that will enrich their understanding of science.  Consider signing-up for a free trial of this simulation to determine where this instructive learning tool fits into your classroom learning environment.

For a free trial, visit https://stemsims.com/account/sign-up

Recommended System Qualifications:

• Operating system: Windows XP or Mac OS X 10.7
• Browser: Chrome 40, Firefox 35, Internet Explorer 11, or Safari 7
• Java 7, Flash Player 13

Single classroom subscription: $169 for a 365-day subscription and includes access for 30 students and 100 simulations.

Product Site: https://stemsims.com/

Edwin P. Christmann is a professor and chairman of the secondary education department and graduate coordinator of the mathematics and science teaching program at Slippery Rock University in Slippery Rock, Pennsylvania. Anthony Balos is a graduate student and a research assistant in the secondary education program at Slippery Rock University in Slippery Rock, Pennsylvania

I think one of the hardest things about attending the NSTA National Conference is know just where to be—attending one of the numerous presentations, taking part in a field trip, checking out the exhibit hall, joining a networking event. I like to plan my schedule in advance—selecting sessions (try to make sure they’re not too far apart so I can get to them on time!) that just may lead to a future NSTA Reports’ article. But sometimes you just have to be flexible, like when you spot a familiar cartoon character in the exhibit hall or science teachers dropping Lego® astronauts from overhead to try to hit a target and you have to pause to take a picture.

Seeing people I haven’t seen since the last NSTA conference is always a highlight, as is meeting new folks. The NSTA Hub in the South Lobby has been a lot fun—I’ve talked to a lot new members, many long-term members, and quite a few who needed directions to the field trip buses or the registration area!

If you haven’t visited the NSTA Hub, stop by during the conference, meet some of your NSTA Board and Council members, as well as some of the staff. And don’t forget to check out the walls around the Hub where NSTA members are expressing their love for science education!

More About the 2017 National Conference on Science Education

Browse the program preview, or check out more sessions and other events with the LA Session Browser/Personal Scheduler. Follow all our conference tweets using #NSTA17, and if you tweet, please feel free to tag us @NSTA so we see it!

The mission of NSTA is to promote excellence and innovation in science teaching and learning for all.

Future NSTA Conferences

2017 STEM Forum & Expo
Kissimmee/Orlando, July 12–14

2017 Area Conferences

Baltimore, October 5–7
Milwaukee, November 9–11
New Orleans, Nov. 30–Dec. 2

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