To be recognized as a recipient of the Robert H. Carleton Award from the National Science Teachers Association (NSTA) was truly the capstone of my professional life. To be noticed at all for one’s passion is always appreciated, but to be named an NSTA Carleton Award recipient is an especially high honor, one for which I am abundantly thankful. I have always valued the opportunities to be so closely involved with NSTA for nearly four decades. Not only has NSTA allowed me to serve in a variety of leadership roles, it has also provided a forum for me to network and learn from others in our nation and, indeed, throughout the world. I have made so many dear friends here. I have learned so much from my colleagues, and I hope my contribution has inspired other to reach for excellence in science teaching and learning. So, I give special thanks to NSTA as well as Dow Chemical Company for sponsoring this Award. Dow has aligned its company with education to advance quality STEM education around the world. And that is so much appreciated.

I also accepted this award realizing that there are others of gifted vision who were deserving of this recognition. When I look at past recipients of this award, I see a collection of remarkable individuals who are legends in our profession. I have been privileged to know most of them and it is humbling to be in their company. They have improved the overall value and effectiveness of our work. I’ve learned so much from them; I owe them a great deal. To be recognized by one’s peers and this prestigious award is truly gratifying and humbling, especially in light of the fact that it has been bestowed on a relatively few in our profession.

It was important for me to accept this award on behalf of all science teachers. As I reflect upon having received this award, I am reminded of the milestones of my journey in building systems of support for the classroom science teacher. In my nearly 5 decades of working in science education, I have come to value, more and more, the wisdom of teachers in shaping our great profession. Our educational system benefits when we incorporate the advice and knowledge of outstanding classroom science teachers when formulating education policy. This is why I appreciate and value so much the work of NSTA in elevating the work and status of the classroom science teacher. NSTA represents the binoculars, the magnifier, and the telescope (all in one) in adding value to our work.  And that alone is enough to be a member of this great organization.

Again, I offer my heartfelt thanks and appreciation to the National Science Teachers Association and the Dow Chemical Company for their continued support in promoting excellence and innovation in science teaching and learning.

Today’s guest blogger is Jack Rhoton, 2014 winner of the NSTA Robert H. Carleton Award

Learn more about the many Awards and Recognitions available from NSTA. The 2015 award applications are open for submission!

Just as hands-on experiments are essential to science literacy, you can increase your professional development with hands-on reading of NSTA’s monthly newspaper, NSTA Reports. Each print issue features pages and pages of information, so give your fingertips a rest from texting and tweeting. NSTA Reports is a 30-minute break with the greatest gathered resources for science teachers and administrators.
1. Advance Directly to Grab Bag
The Grab Bag is packed with free resources, upcoming contests, and enrichment programs for you (and occasionally your students). Get links to resources on topics as diverse volcanoes, animal behavior, engineering design using roller coasters, and so much more. Save this center pullout section for future lesson ideas and investigations.
2. Commentary from Colleagues
NSTA Reports features commentaries from science teachers, experts in the field, and even NSTA leadership. First-person experience with implementing NGSS, integrated curriculum objectives, and scaling assessments are just some of the themes you can expect to read more about in the NSTA Reports commentary column.
3. Get Brain Happy with Science Extras
Much like the Pharrell Williams earworm, sometimes science teachers just want some happy news. NSTA Reports has plenty of fun extras help your brain wonk out on science:

• BRAINSTARTER: Break out a No. 2 pencil—or be confident and go for an ink pen—to challenge your brain with a monthly science crossword. Enjoy puzzles that feature terms like ooze, geochronology and Alderaan in one place!

• Member Poll: Gain insight on important questions and trends from your peers. Do you negotiate grades? How much money does your school district contribute to your PD? The results of the informal polls are discussed and members provide real-life feedback.

• Ms. Mentor: As research continues to show mentors are essential to the well-being of not only new teachers, but also for established educators, getting advice can sometimes help solve a new or lingering challenge. Dedicated to helping educators as they grow throughout their professional lives, Ms. Mentor writes a column for all levels of teachers. Get more now online: www.nsta.org/msmentor

• Blick on Flicks: Ever wonder if the movie Frozen got the science of ice right? Jacob Clark Blickenstaff, PhD, known as “Blick” in the NSTA realm, “lets it go” every month with in-depth, expert commentary on popular videos, clips, movies, television series, and more in this column. Blick carefully points out where “physics is stretched, the chemistry fudged, or the biology twisted on behalf of the story—without losing sight of the fact that movies are meant to entertain.” Get more now online.

• Mark Your Calendar
  The best way to get more out of your membership is to know how to get involved. Want to submit a grant paper or a conference proposal? Want to write for one of the award-winning NSTA journals? This column will help you follow-up on those deadlines.

More time?
Every issue of NSTA Reports features more content then you can absorb in 30 minutes. So use extra time to investigate the NSTA Reports archive online and find more resources for the school year ahead.
Learn more about NSTA Reports.
Not a member of NSTA? Learn more about how to join.
Laura Berry of Cogberry Creative is our guest blogger for this series. Laura is a communications professional for the education community.

“To lecture or not to lecture” – that seems to be the question that has received much attention in recent years.  It is similar to topics such as the positive/negative effects of drinking red wine, eating chocolate or eggs in that the pendulum swings back and forth with each and every individual study that is produced and published.  The most recent study is a new analysis of multiple research studies from the University of Washington and recently published by the National Academy of Sciences. This report finds that undergraduate students in classes with traditional lectures are 1.5 times more likely to fail than students in classes that use active learning methods. A great summary of this report appears in Science and titled “Lectures Aren’t Just Boring, They’re Ineffective, Too, Study Finds.”
One article that appeared regarding lectures in the Journal of College Science Teaching focused on Are Lectures a Think of The Past whereas another was titled Effective Strategies for Engaging Students in Large-Lecture, Nonmajors Science Courses.  Another great read on the topic is by Eric Mazur who is at Harvard University where he states that “[t]he trend toward “active learning” may overthrow the style of teaching that has ruled universities for 600 years” in Twilight of the Lecture
Now while these particular examples as well as the report that was produced are focused on lecturing at the college undergraduate level, the reality is lecture happens at all levels albeit in different durations of time and in all subjects. Most times when the topic of lecture comes up as an instructional strategy it is paired with an alternative strategy and over the years educators have encountered peer to peer instruction, cooperative learning, and a variety of other types of presentation and/or engagement styles with flipped learning being one of the more recent ones.
So the question that is posed this month relates to a discussion of YOUR favorite active learning method for classroom instruction or as Mazur hints at your personal style for overthrowing the traditional style of teaching – lecture!  What one strategy or approach to instruction have you found to be effective, engaging, and your tried and true approach? These strategies may have educational research to support their use or simply your own anecdotal experiences and action research within your classroom.
 
 
 

When NSTA member Tina Harris found out that her state’s science standards were going to change the following year, she knew she needed help. As part of the changes, her state required that teachers cover weather and climate in the eighth grade, rather than in the sixth grade. Tina, who at the time was teaching eighth grade, turned to her NSTA membership for content help on weather and climate.
Harris: Our books didn’t have information on weather and climate, and our school district did not want to pay for new books, so we had to create our own curriculum to teach this new subject area. I had been using the NSTA Learning Center since 2009 and I was on it several times a week. So I thought I’d turn to the Learning Center as a resource.
I went into the Learning Center and began working with the Portfolio tool. I set up a plan of action and listed ways to improve my background knowledge on weather and climate. I made a collection of journal articles and went back and read through the articles for lesson ideas and resources. I added helpful professional development resources to the portfolio from outside of the Learning Center. For instance, I completed a short course on weather from the American Meteorological Society.
I read through the NSTA journal articles for lesson ideas and resources I could use in my classroom. I also looked at NSTA conference papers on climate change. The links to the conference papers really came in handy. I ended up having a file in the Learning Center with all of my resources. (Note from NSTA: You can search for learning resources and opportunities by state standards in the Learning Center.) In addition, since I knew about the changes in advance and had about a year to prepare, I attended NSTA Conferences on Science Education and made a point of going to sessions focused on teaching weather at the middle-school level.
I sat down with the other eighth-grade science teacher at my school and we reviewed the resources I collected and discussed how to integrate them into our curriculum. We both felt prepared to cover weather and climate in our classrooms. (Note from NSTA: If your state has recently adopted the Next Generation Science Standards (NGSS), see the NGSS@NSTA Hub, a central online location for NGSS resources with a user-friendly table that breaks down the standards by topic.)
How long have you been a member of NSTA and in what other ways has your membership helped you in your career?
Harris: I have been a member for around 20 years and right now I’m in the process of looking for a new job, so I’ve been using the NSTA Career Center. In addition, I always go to an NSTA regional or national conference. I enjoy reading the “Blick on Flicks” column on how science is represented in movies.
When I teach my college courses, I use the NSTA Learning Center a lot. My preservice science teachers access the articles on the Learning Center. The Learning Center has so many different resources, and the ones I use the most often are the portfolio, the journal articles, the forum, and the conference materials. I don’t think a lot of people know that the conference materials are searchable online and are a valuable resource, as well.
Not a member of NSTA? Learn more about how to join.
Jennifer Henderson is our guest blogger for this series. Before launching her freelance career as a writer/editor, Jennifer was Managing Editor of The Science Teacher, NSTA’s peer-reviewed journal for high school science teachers.