NSTA recently issued a position statement calling for greater support for science educators in teaching evidence-based science, including climate science and climate change. The statement promotes the teaching of climate science as any other established field of science and calls on teachers to reject pressures to eliminate or de-emphasize climate-based science concepts in science instruction. The statement acknowledges the decades of research and overwhelming scientific consensus indicating with increasing certainty that Earth’s climate is changing, largely due to human impacts. It also establishes that any controversies regarding climate change and its causes that are based on social, economic, or political arguments—and not scientific evidence—should not be part of a science curriculum. Read more about the statement and access climate resources at www.nsta.org/climate.

NSTA has asked a few members of the position statement panel to give science teachers further insights on important issues related to the teaching of climate science.

What are the key takeaways from NSTA’s position statement on the teaching of climate science?

When I think about classroom teachers, I know that they wish the best for their students, especially in preparing them for the challenges they will face once they leave school. In order to do that, and to best refine their own science knowledge and skills, teachers need the very best findings and tools that science can offer. They also need to know that other stakeholders will support them in the classroom. This position statement lays out a beacon in all of the noise that surrounds the teaching of the science of climate and climate change. The statement expresses not just the urgency and critical importance of understanding climate change, but also offers constructive tools for distinguishing science from non-science around climate change. It also lays out what teachers themselves should perhaps demand of other stakeholders if their students are to leave school with tools for resilience in dealing with future climate change effects and not face the future with sense of despair over the environment.

Eric J. Pyle (Chair)
Professor, Department of Geology & Environmental Science
Coordinator, Science Teacher Preparation, College of Science & Mathematics
James Madison University
Harrisonburg, Virginia

What challenges do K–12 teachers face teaching climate science and how can this statement help them?

This statement addresses three of the challenges that K–12 teachers face when teaching climate change: teacher-training, lesson planning, and networking.

Researchers and college faculty are reminded that all preservice and inservice teachers need exemplary and rigorous instruction in climate change. To teach climate change well, all teachers need a deeper understanding of the associated science and resulting social issues. No one course should bear the burden of teaching climate change and its consequences.

We understand that the mindset and strategies of teaching climate change should be no different than that of teaching any other established science. This requires accurate and appropriate vetted instructional resources. By integrating content from exemplary resource collections, teachers can create evidence-based, three-dimensional learning opportunities on climate change.

Strong networks encourage good teaching. We call on researchers, curriculum developers, administrators and peers to encourage teachers to strengthen content knowledge to plan and provide engaging and accurate instruction. These networks provide teachers a place to turn when challenged and give teachers the opportunity to question, reflect, and grow.

Cheryl Manning
Past-President, National Earth Science Teachers Association
Science Teacher, Evergreen High School
Evergreen, Colorado

Can you clarify the difference between scientific argumentation and “debates” based on beliefs and opinions, not science?

The study of climate change allows students to delve into the very nature of science: How are scientific explanations, models, and theories constructed by the science community? How does the scientific community use peer review to come to consensus?  How is a peer-reviewed explanation different from an individual belief or opinion?

While students may harbor beliefs or opinions regarding climate change— based on anything from political affiliation to personal experience with weather events—their individual beliefs and opinions do not inform scientific debate and do not constitute the empirical evidence used to support scientific explanations, models, or theories. So while there is no place in the science classroom to “teach the controversy” or to engage in “debate” about the existence or anthropogenic cause of climate change, there are plenty of opportunities to engage students in learning about the nature of scientific investigation and the process of constructing scientific explanations.

Chris Geerer
6th-Grade Science Teacher
Parcells Middle School
Grosse Point Woods, Michigan

Do teachers have high-quality classroom resources to teach climate science effectively and where can they find them?

The interdisciplinary nature of climate science challenges science educators—who often don’t have formal training in climate science—to identify resources that are scientifically accurate before weaving them together into units that teach about the climate system. This is especially challenging as teachers are working to adjust how they teach science and engineering based on the recommendations of A Framework for K–12 Science Education and the Next Generation Science Standards (NGSS) that promote three-dimensional teaching and systems thinking.

To help, the Climate Literacy and Energy Awareness Network (CLEAN) is a comprehensive source of high-quality, NGSS-aligned resources that can be quickly and easily searched. The CLEAN project reviews over 30,000 digital and free related resources and provides over 700 peer-reviewed, classroom-ready resources on climate and energy topics. The CLEAN project also helps educators design NGSS-style, three-dimensional lessons about the climate system. The CLEAN portal also has a NGSS “Get Started Guide” that helps teachers integrate Disciplinary Core Ideas, Crosscutting Concepts, and Science and Engineering Practices based on the teaching strategy chosen for the lesson or unit topic. This model uses CLEAN-reviewed lessons as the core activity but provides the necessary framework for classroom implementation.

There are many other great resources and I encourage you to visit the NSTA Climate Science Resource page to access them.

Frank Niepold
Senior Climate Education Program Manager
NOAA Climate Program Office
Climate Literacy and Energy Awareness Network (CLEAN) Co-Chair
Silver Spring, Maryland

What special challenges and opportunities are provided by the interdisciplinary nature of climate change as a topic?

If you only understand climate change from the perspective of the physical science that causes warming, you do not understand climate change deeply. The most important issues facing global society in the coming decades—climate, energy, water, and soil—are all deeply grounded in both climate science and social science. To understand these issues, we need to understand the Earth as a system of systems, and something about the interplay of those systems. The climate and how it changes are the products of the interactions of rock, soil, air, water, and life. Atmospheric dynamics are obedient to the laws of chemistry and physics. We humans are and have long been changing atmospheric chemistry and that is changing atmospheric dynamics. We care about how we are changing what the atmosphere does because our lives—and most life—depend upon it.

Understanding climate and how it changes requires understandings grounded in all the natural sciences. It is about biology, chemistry, physics, Earth and space science, and engineering. But the interdisciplinary nature of climate and climate change stretches beyond the sciences and across all the disciplines. Perhaps the mechanics of climate change can be understood in isolation, but what then is the point? Language, arts, and mathematics are all required for interpreting climate change’s causes and effects, and for communicating those ideas with others. Further, without the context of human history, economics, or culture such understandings are devoid of purpose.

While the psychological and social issues that push most of us to believe things demonstrably false has historically been outside the realm of the science classroom, I suggest that this be re-evaluated. History and literature can also help us to recognize that we have been telling apocalyptic stories for thousands of years—for as long as we have been telling stories—and the end of the world or of civilization has not yet come to pass. This is not to imply that climate change is not a grave threat. It is. Fortunately, history shows us that when existential threats have arisen in the past, we have risen to meet the great challenges. There is reason for hope.

Don Haas
Director of Teacher Programming
The Paleontological Research Institution
Museum of the Earth & Cayuga Nature Center
President, National Association of Geoscience Teachers
Ithaca, New York 

What is the role of climate science in new science standards and what does the statement say about it?

The NSTA position paper on the teaching of climate science is fully in line with the strong emphasis on climate change that appears in both the NRC’s A Framework for K–12 Science Education and in the ensuing Next Generation Science Standards (NGSS). In writing the Framework, the National Academy of Sciences identified a small number of “Big Ideas” to focus science standards. For Earth and Space Science (ESS), one of these Big Ideas is global climate change. In fact, the importance of this topic played a role in the recommendation that students receive roughly a year of geoscience instruction in both middle and high school. In addition, climate change is identified in 8 of the 17 NGSS ESS high school performance expectations and plays a role in many others. Twenty-six states participated in writing the NGSS and a majority have adopted or adapted them, so this NSTA position paper reflects the imperative of states to teach about climate change in public schools. Visit www.nsta.org/climate for links to specific weather and climate performance expectations for elementary, middle, and high school students.

Michael Wysession
Professor of Earth and Planetary Sciences
Washington University
St. Louis, Missouri

NSTA would like to thank all the members of the position statement panel for their time, expertise, and leadership in developing the statement, and also the NSTA members who reviewed and provided feedback during its development.

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

Future NSTA Conferences

2018 Area Conferences

• Reno, October 11–13
• National Harbor (MD), November 15–17
• Charlotte, Nov. 29-Dec. 1

2019 National Conference

• St. Louis, April 11-14, 2019

Follow NSTA

 

This blog post describes steps teachers should take to ensure that laboratory freezers and refrigerators are free from safety hazards. Science teachers should adhere to the following standard operating procedures, via the University of Texas at Austin.

• Designate one employee to oversee the laboratory refrigerator and freezer.
• Do not store food in refrigerators or freezers that store chemicals.
• To avoid biological and chemical cross-contamination, do not store food and beverages with bacteria plates, chemical solutions, and specimens in the same refrigerator.
• Clean out refrigerators and freezers on a regular basis.
• Seal/cap, securely place, and label containers stored in the refrigerator or freezer. Do not use aluminum foil, corks, and glass stoppers as caps for containers.
• Store all liquid chemicals in plastic trays.
• Appropriately label all stored items.
• Regularly review the inventory of refrigerators and freezers to ensure the contents are compatible.
• Know the shelf life and amount of stored chemicals. Each chemical contains decomposition products that could be hazardous over time.
• Power outages and technology failures can affect stored contents. Watch out for unusual odors and vapors from chemicals after such an event.
• Inspect the appliance at least once per month.
• Post an up-to-date inventory on the refrigerator door.
• Properly install the refrigerator, making sure that it is grounded. No extension cord should be used.
• Place the refrigerator and freezer away from lab exits.

Decontaminating fridges and freezers

The following list describes safety protocols for decontamination of the refrigerator and freezer in the event of a spill or break.

• Non-hazardous items: Empty and defrost non-hazardous items. Clean up any spills or leaks of non-hazardous material with soap and water and paper towels.

• Chemicals: Remove all items and defrost. Clean chemicals spills or leaks with the appropriate solvent (e.g., isopropyl alcohol or soap and water and paper towels). Check the Safety Data Sheet (SDS) for each chemical and dispose of used cleaning materials properly.

• Biological agents: Remove all items and defrost. Clean biological agents that have spilled or leaked with a 10% bleach solution and paper towels (one part bleach to nine parts water). Dispose of used cleaning materials properly.

• Combination of chemicals and biological agents: Remove all items and defrost. If any chemicals and/or biological agents have spilled or leaked, follow the aforementioned protocols. Be careful not to combine incompatible substances such as bleach and ammonia. Dispose of the agents properly and used cleaning materials.

• Radioactive material: If a spill involving radioactive material and any combination of radioactive material with chemicals or biological agents should occur, contact your local or state radiation officer immediately.

Cool alternatives

There are several alternative refrigerators and freezers for safer storage of laboratory materials. If you’re planning on storing aqueous solutions and nonflammable and nonexplosive materials, a regular household refrigerator and freezer could suffice in the school science lab or preparation room. If you’re planning on storing flammable or potentially explosive materials, use a lab-safe, explosion proof refrigerator or freezer.

In areas where the air outside the refrigerator could be explosive such as in a chemical storeroom or prep room, explosion-proof refrigerators and freezers provide the best protection. Explosion-proof refrigerators and freezers do not have internal switching devices that can arc or spark as an ignition source. In addition, the compressor and other circuitry are generally located on top of the unit to reduce the potential for igniting floor-level flammable vapors. Special inner shell materials inside explosion-proof refrigerators and freezers control or limit damage should an exothermic reaction occur within the storage compartment involving liquids, gases, or solids with flashpoints of less than 100°F (38°C).

Explosion-proof refrigerators feature enclosed motors to eliminate sparking and bear an FM (Factory Mutual) or UL (Underwriters Laboratory) explosion-proof label. Such refrigerators must meet the requirements for the Class 1, Division 1 Electrical Safety Code (NPFA 45 and NFPA 70) and require direct wiring to the power source via a metal conduit. Storage requirements also apply to any solution or specimen that may release flammable fumes. Explosion-proof refrigerators and freezers cost between $4,000 and $11,000.

Moreover, freezers in science labs should be frost-free, preventing water drainage or damage. The refrigerator or freezer should also meet all applicable codes. For more information, visit: http://productspec.ul.com/document.php?id=SOVQ.GuideInfo.

Follow the signs

Refrigerators and freezers are required to have the following signage.

• “Edible Food and Drink Only” or “Non-flammable/Non-explosive Solutions Only” signs should be placed on the outside of personal refrigerators and freezers. A sign stating “Unsafe for Flammable Storage” should also be present on the exterior surface of the unit.
• Explosion-proof refrigerators and freezers should have signage stating: “Safe for Flammable Storage.”
• Refrigerators and freezers storing radioactive materials must be clearly labeled: “Caution, Radioactive Material. No Food or Beverages May Be Stored in This Unit.”

Free safety signage print-outs can be found here.

More information

Safety Data Sheets (SDSs) provide information relative to the need for cooling or freezing chemicals for storage or extended life. Equally important is information provided on hazardous decomposition products produced over time. Additional information can be secured from manufacturers.

Submit questions regarding safety to Ken Roy at safersci@gmail.com or leave him a comment below. Follow Ken Roy on Twitter: @drroysafersci.

NSTA resources and safety issue papers
Join NSTA
Follow NSTA

How can you use 3D printers in your science classroom?
— S., Alabama

Science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) projects are the first thing that comes to my mind when I think about using 3D printers. You could have students design and fabricate parts for robots and other projects. There are many websites that share object files for printing difficult parts like battery holders, gears, chassis, and so on.

Other physics-related/STEM design ideas:

• Small cars for kinematics and dynamics experiments
• Catapults and trebuchets
• Wind generators: start with windmills then attach them to small electric motors.
• Pan flutes, recorders or whistles. Have students calculate lengths to get frequencies they want.
• Center of gravity: create objects that balance on a point.

For chemistry, students could create 3D representations of the abstract and unseen aspects of the atomic world. Before you print them, make sure you compare the cost to purchasing molecular kits. In time, you could build up your stock of models so all your students can have manipulatives. Some design ideas:

• Molecular models
• Bohr model representations with perhaps 3D orbitals
• s, p, d, f electron orbitals
• Small containers or coolers to minimize heat transfer.
• Prototype tools to handle simulated dangerous chemicals

A 3D printer can enhance students’ learning of a host of biochemicals, structures and functions in biology, such as DNA, enzymes, replication, transcription, translation, cell membranes, cells, nephrons, and hearts!

Hope this helps!

Introduction

The Go Direct Light and Color Sensor is a powerful and versatile light sensor that measures visible light, the ultraviolet electromagnetic spectrum, and does color analysis. As seen in the video, by using an RGB color sensor, the relative primary colors of light can be detected with this device.

As seen in Image 1., the Go Direct Light and Color connects wirelessly via Bluetooth® or wired via USB to your device, e.g., laptop, etc. Once connected, Vernier’s Go Direct Light and Color Sensor combines the power of multiple sensors to measure light intensity in the visible range and UV portions of the electromagnetic spectrum.

Another excellent benefit of the Go Direct Light and Color Sensor has multiple options to measure light intensity in the visible range and UV portions of the electromagnetic spectrum and can be used for the study of visible light intensity, UV light intensity, and color investigations. Moreover, the sensor connects to the Graphical Analysis 4 app, which facilitates student understanding with real-time graphs of experimental data and intuitive analysis tools.

What’s Included
• Go Direct Light and Color Sensor
• Micro USB Cable

Image 1. Go Direct Light and Color Sensor

Below are samples of how the sensor collects data using the sensor. As you can see in Image 2 and Image 3, the sensor collects data over time and measures Illumance (lux) at differing levels of intensity. Hence, Image 4 shows how descriptive statistics can be displayed from the measurements.

Image 2. Data for Low Illuminance (lux)

Image 3. Data for High Illuminance (lux)

Image 4. Descriptive Statistics

Description

Visible light sensor:
The fast sampling rate for the visible light sensor (1000 Hz) allows you to observe the flicker of fluorescent lamps.

Red, green, blue (RGB) color sensor:
Use the RGB sensor to determine the relative contribution of red, green, and blue light. A built-in white LED provides uniform illumination when the sensor is placed directly on a surface, reducing the effect of variable ambient light.

UV sensor:
Ideal for experiments using sunlight and UV lamps, the UV sensor responds well to ultraviolet radiation in the UVA and UVB spectrum.

The Go Direct Light and Color Sensor can be used in a variety of experiments:
• Explore light intensity as a function of distance.
• Conduct polarized filter studies.
• Observe the flicker of fluorescent lamps.
• Perform reflectivity studies, including color analysis.

Specifications

Visible Light Sensor:
• Wavelengths: 400–800 nm
• Range: 0 to 150,000 lux
• Maximum sampling rate: 1,000 samples/s
UV Sensor:
• Responsive to UVA and UVB wavelengths
• Maximum sampling rate: 1 Hz
RGB Sensor:
• Peak response: 615 nm peak (red); 525 nm peak (green); 465 nm peak (blue)
Maximum sampling rate: 0.5 Hz

Summary

The Vernier Go Direct Light and Color Sensor is perfect for educators who are using technology in the classroom. From our experience, this excellent sensor is user-friendly and enables students to use data collection and laboratory techniques with ease. Moreover, the device is reasonably priced ($79) and supports the NSES Standards for chemistry and physical science.

Price $79

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. Caitlin Baxter is a graduate student in the mathematics and science teaching program at Slippery Rock University in Slippery Rock, Pennsylvania.

I’ve been teaching science for three years. My students seem to see science as an abstract subject and have trouble imagining it. How can I help my students appreciate the lessons more with limited time and resources?
—R., Philippines

I think the way to teach science with less abstraction is to ground your lessons in observable phenomena. Students build up knowledge and understanding by examining and investigating commonplace events. These don’t have to be expensive demonstrations—just simple, everyday observations, pictures or videos. There are many websites that provide these phenomenon and storylines to make just such learning happen. The NSTA Learning Center and NGSS Hub are excellent places to search for these. One example: A time-lapse video of tree shadows moving during the day can be a springboard to investigating the motion of planets. Case studies are similar to using phenomenon-based teaching and there are many websites that provide examples to use in science classrooms.

Inquiry projects allowing students to select their topics are another way for students to dive into a concept and demystify it. They will take ownership for their learning and it will be more meaningful to them.

Integrate the nature of science and how scientists think and work into your teaching. I think people disbelieve scientific claims and call them abstract because they don’t understand how scientists draw conclusions or the continual change inherent in the nature of scientific knowledge. Students should discover that science isn’t magical or arcane, it is hard work and conclusions based on the best evidence.

You can accomplish all these things with the smallest of budgets.

Keep it grounded. Keep it real. And, of course, keep it fun!

Hope this helps!

As academic institutions strive to create stimulating learning environments where students embrace the “sciences” to become critical thinkers and ecologically productive citizens, more and more employers are recognizing they have an essential role in helping to define qualified employees for the future workforce, but several steps in between need to happen in the educational system to help bring this new cadre of scientific literates to fruition.

School district leaders and campus administrators must take the helm and realize that science instruction must be a priority for a sustainable society. Because science understanding is not assessed as frequently as math and reading—and often left out of funding calculations—its importance has been woefully negated, and our workforce is suffering from lack of qualified science-literate candidates. Even more dismal is the rarity of science-literate candidates from underrepresented populations in the global schema. This is not just about ethnicity or low socioeconomic status, but also about access, now more than ever.

Although I continue to witness our society’s wavering commitment to the belief that all students are capable of science learning and pursuing a career in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM), I also see teachers who want to reach all students regardless of race and seek professional development from organizations such as NSTA to improve their pedagogy. What I do not see is an influx of campus administrators seeking opportunities to develop their capacity in science education to support their teachers.

As educators and humans in general, we tend to focus on and assist in areas in which we are strong, confident, and successful. When math or science is discussed, the common comments are “I was not good at that,” or “Those subjects scare me.” Many adults believe science and math are difficult subjects and transfer those beliefs to their children at an early age, inadvertently laying the foundation for barriers for their children. Combined with the negative reinforcement of little or poor experiences with science engagement, they are creating a formula for STEM evasion.

We need what I call “Administrators of Advocacy” to join the charge of science for all. This initiative can only happen by changing the mindset around STEM implementation, integration, and involvement. STEM is not just about exposing students to science, technology, engineering, and math. STEM equates to the enhancement of our students’ skills when these disciplines are practiced:

Science = Critical Thinking
Technology = Engagement
Engineering = Application
Math = Processing

I hope every teacher strives to help their students acquire these attributes. I believe this goal is attainable if campus administrators don’t hide from their own fears of science education.

Administrators of Advocacy can

• Support teachers with funding for supplies and by providing a safe environment to conduct activities.

• Take interest in the science classroom. The constant emphasis on math and reading devalues other subjects. Science can enhance all the learning skills students need to develop. With emphasis on nonfiction reading, writing, problem solving, and critical thinking, along with the use of technology to engage students, a focus on science can increase student achievement.

• Empower teachers to take risks in the classroom. This is vital because opportunities “for all” come with exposure. A science-competent mindset is necessary if we want all students to experience science education. There should be no boundaries to learning based on ethnicity, socioeconomic status, or gender. All children are curious, and it is up to administrators and teachers to keep their inquisitiveness alive.

• Monitor for good science instruction. If teachers realize that administrators expect hands-on activities and opportunities for inquiry, then they are more likely to present all students with a rigorous curriculum of fundamental science understanding that will help all of our students excel in academia and the workforce.

So let us as administrators exert ourselves fully to establish opportunities for our teachers to help students strive to excel in science education, once and “for all.”

Sharon Delesbore, PhD, is a campus administrator at the Ferndell Henry Center for Learning in the Fort Bend Independent School District in Sugar Land, Texas. As an avid science advocate, Delesbore serves as president of the Association for Multicultural Science Education and chair of NSTA’s Alliance of Affiliates.

This article originally appeared in the September 2018 issue of NSTA Reports, the member newspaper of the National Science Teachers Association. Each month, NSTA members receive NSTA Reports, featuring news on science education, the association, and more. Not a member? Learn how NSTA can help you become the best science teacher you can be.

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

Follow NSTA

This week in education news, there’s no way of knowing whether summer STEM camps help nudge more women into STEM careers; education in STEM fields can be the road to economic empowerment for women; Missouri Governor calls on state legislators to tackle STEM education bill is special session; and teachers across the country turn to DonorsChoose to raise money for school supplies and projects.

They’re Fun. But Can STEM Camps For Girls Really Make A Difference?

The $100,000 gift from President Donald Trump, plus $125,000 from Steuart Walton, scion of the Walmart family fortune, enabled the Smithsonian Institution’s National Air and Space Museum to offer a high-end version of a growing phenomenon: summer camps that give young girls a chance to explore technology-dependent careers in which women are heavily underrepresented. The premise for the camps is that hands-on activities led by women already working in STEM fields will get girls excited about science and broaden their professional horizons. Educators say having role models and building self-confidence—the Smithsonian camp was called She Can—are essential precursors for girls to pursue a STEM career. Read the article featured in Science magazine.

The 2 Stages Of Successful Early STEM Education Revisited

I have been in education for 18 years and my strongest belief is that all children deserve a fresh start when they begin each school year. My classroom is a safe environment where students feel it’s acceptable to try, even if they’re not going to be successful the first time–and that certainly applies to STEM education. Read the article featured in eSchool News.

Women Around World Can Be Empowered With Education

Education in STEM fields can be the road to economic empowerment for women around the world. But unfortunately, girls often face significant barriers that restrict access to STEM education. According to a United Nations study of 14 countries, the percentage of women graduating with a bachelor’s degree in a field related to science is 18 percent. For women graduating with a master’s in a field related to science it is just 8 percent. While women represent 40 percent of the global labor force, they are often in lower wage jobs. Read the article featured in The Hill.

Study: Elementary Educators’ Effectiveness Varies By Subject

Just because an elementary teacher is rated highly in one subject doesn’t mean he or she is as effective an educator in other content areas, according to a new study in AERA Open, a journal published by the American Educational Research Association. Read the brief featured in Education DIVE.

Workforce Development Takes Lead In Special Session As Legislature Debates STEM Education Bill

Missouri Governor Mike Parson is pushing forward with STEM education, calling state legislators back to tackle the issue in a special legislative session. Read the article featured in The Missouri Times.

How Public School Teachers Are Crowdingfunding For Supplies And ‘Dream’ School Projects

Many public school teachers across the country are looking to go above and beyond to educate the next generation, and they’re turning to DonorsChoose to raise money for school supplies and projects. Read the article featured on ABC News.

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.

Follow NSTA

At Paterson Great Falls National Historical Park in Paterson, New Jersey, students work
on a physics activity as part of Batter Up!, an event—developed by TRT Christine Gish
and colleagues at Paterson’s JFK High School STEM Academy—that incorporates
science activities to teach about the Negro Baseball Leagues. Photo courtesy of Ranger Tyler Stone.

“I [couldn’t] believe I was getting paid for this,” says Eric Riemer, fourth- and fifth-grade science teacher at Park City Elementary School in Park City, Kentucky, of his experience this past summer as a National Park Service (NPS) Teacher Ranger Teacher (TRT). Riemer, who was a TRT at Mammoth Cave National Park in Mammoth Cave, Kentucky, maintains that for TRTs, “a day at the office can be really fun!”

K–12 educators serving as TRTs spend 4–6 weeks learning about the  resources and educational materials available through the NPS and enhancing their teaching with NPS-based science, technology, engineering, and math (STEM) education resources and the use of primary sources and place-based learning. TRTs also take an online graduate course through the University of Colorado Denver, for which they earn three graduate credits in experiential learning, and receive a $3,000 stipend after completing the program. The graduate credits earned are in experiential learning because “the NPS has cultural resource– and natural resource–based parks, and participating teachers have science and social studies backgrounds. We needed a course that is relevant to both fields,” explains Linda Rosenblum, the program’s national coordinator.

TRT benefits STEM teachers because “they can develop relationships with parks in their geographic area, learn about educational programs for students, and engage with real-life scientific data,” she contends. Teachers and students can do citizen science activities, “gathering data a park can use in an ongoing resource management program” that involves monitoring climate change, wildlife, water quality, weather patterns, and other scientific areas, says Rosenblum.

Educators can learn more about the program by visiting http://teacherrangerteacher.org and see www.nps.gov/teachers for content created by TRTs, according to Rosenblum. 

Incorporating NGSS 

As a TRT, Riemer says he worked “to correlate NGSS [Next Generation Science Standards] with environmental education programs offered both at [Mammoth Cave] and in schools across the region.” He led summer camps for elementary and middle level students at the park. “We did a lot of cool activities and went in the cave almost every day…We did cave surveying using [tools like] inclinometers and compasses to find points in the cave and see how [scientists] map caves,” he reports.

“I learned more tools to extend my classroom beyond the four walls,” says Riemer, and appreciated “going underground when it was 100 degrees outside and feeling a sense of history, wonder, and curiosity.” 

Hannah VanScotter, grades 6–11 science teacher at Jefferson Montessori Academy in Carlsbad, New Mexico, was a 2018 TRT at Guadalupe Mountains National Park in Salt Flat, Texas. As part of her work there, she created a geology interpretive backpack series that teachers can use “to help students learn about the park within the park,” she explains. Each of the three backpacks connects with a different trail and contains “a jump drive with hands-on activities, lesson plans, PowerPoints, and a field guide and geologist tools such as a hand lens,” she relates. “Each trail is tied to a different grade level—high school, middle school, and elementary—and an aspect of NGSS,” she adds. 

The Devil’s Hall trail, for example, is located along a slot canyon—a narrow canyon formed by the wear of water rushing through rock—and its backpack “teaches how a landscape can change with the effects of water,” VanScotter notes. She says she appreciates that as a TRT, she was “able to be creative with the project,” and the program “lets you tailor it to your background and discipline,” in her case, geology.

Jennifer Taylor, former sixth-grade science teacher at Estes Park Middle School in Estes Park, Colorado, was the first TRT at Estes Park’s Rocky Mountain National Park (RMNP) in 2005. Taylor says she “jumped at the chance” because as a new teacher, she “wanted to learn ways to bring project-based learning and place-based learning into the classroom.”

Taylor had participated in her school’s annual sixth-grade field trip to RMNP, but what she learned as a TRT “helped me make the field trip deeper and more meaningful for my students,” she contends. “The students did citizen science–type fieldwork to learn about elk and monitor the impacts elk have on the park, simulating what a resource manager does.”

At the end of the field trip, Taylor’s students examined “six different plans to manage the park’s elk population, and based on what they learned in the field,…[recommended] which one the park should [implement],” she relates. “The experience broadened students’ understanding of the importance of our parks and what rangers do. [They learned] rangers help educate people, and they can also do research.” 

Ron Roskelly, sixth-grade science teacher at Lake City Middle School in Lake City, Tennessee, was a 2018 TRT at Obed Wild and Scenic River in Wartburg, Tennessee. Noting that Tennessee’s new science standards, which support NGSS, will be implemented this year, Roskelly says activities like working with rangers to identify and cut down invasive tree species, helping children test water for macroinvertebrates, and learning about science careers he wasn’t familiar with, such as in hydrology, “let me see the new Tennessee science curriculum in person and get hands-on experience with [it].”

In addition, the TRT online course increased his knowledge of “the history of the parks and how to preserve the area…I’m really going to buy in to [place-based education] this year,” he observes.

As a TRT, Roskelly says he built relationships with the Obed community and with rangers. “I can have the rangers I met come to my class,” he notes. “I want to do more outdoors and take more field trips to local parks to get students excited about science.” 

Integrating STEM

Teachers of other subjects also value the program. Christine Gish, special education teacher at John F. Kennedy (JFK) High School’s STEM Academy in Paterson, New Jersey, was a 2018 TRT at Paterson Great Falls National Historical Park (NHP). Last year, she relates, “I became involved with a group of students and science teachers working with the NPS on an event called Batter Up! We incorporated anatomy, physiology, engineering, and history in an event to teach students about the Negro Baseball Leagues, [baseball playing], [and] integration of baseball and the Civil Rights Movement.” Paterson Great Falls NHP, she adds, includes “Hinchliffe Stadium, one of the few remaining stadiums where Negro League Baseball was played.” 

In this summer’s Batter Up! event, JFK STEM students taught younger students about anatomy and physiology as they batted balls in the batting cage, learning about “muscle movement, muscle memory, and reaction time,” says Gish. For the physics portion, the younger students took turns running bases and calculated the velocity of the runs. JFK STEM students had them compare “what the [velocity was when the] average high school baseball player ran to [the velocity of] what players in the major leagues ran,” she explains. 

Gish hopes to develop Batter Up! into a portable classroom display that teachers and rangers can use. “The TRT program made me want to take this to the next level,” she maintains. 

This article originally appeared in the September 2018 issue of NSTA Reports, the member newspaper of the National Science Teachers Association. Each month, NSTA members receive NSTA Reports, featuring news on science education, the association, and more. Not a member? Learn how NSTA can help you become the best science teacher you can be.

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

Follow NSTA