The original long-term target of this project was to produce a webpage with a number of lesson plans aimed at grades 6-13 educators and students, and a photo gallery with explanations. For the scope of this summer's externship, I expected to begin the creation of the webpage, complete five to ten lesson plans, have a good understanding of what is needed for future work (in terms of both manpower and time), and search out further grants to continue the work. In reality I have completed only three lesson plans, but otherwise met my goals for the summer.
At the beginning I thought that during this summer I would be able to produce a larger number of lesson plans for grades 6-13 teachers with a good background in astronomy. However, as I examined the Massachusetts Frameworks and National Science Education Standards, I came to realize that most secondary teachers have a limited background in astronomy, and therefore decided my lesson plans should go further into background material than I originally expected. While I initially intended background material to be cursory, it is now as lengthy as the rest of each lesson. As a result, I have three full lesson plans that I feel could be taught by any grade 6-13 science teacher. Some of these lesson plans are designed for multiple class periods or can be used as labs. In addition to the background and links, each lesson includes a list of topics that students in the course should already be familiar with before attempting the lesson, a list of Massachusetts Science Frameworks and National Science Education Standards addressed, the lesson itself, and any relevant handouts (in multiple file formats). Both formative and summative methods of assessment are provided. Modifications are suggested for students with differing needs, whether the students are more advanced, have learning disabilities, or physical disabilities including visual.
In addition, as I better learned the subject material of Dr. Gutermuth's research, I found that a number of the lesson plans I wished to create specifically involving his work will be more programming-intensive than my current skills allow. Therefore they are on hold until a future time (see Future Goals, below). These computer-based lessons will involve simulations of star formation in which students can tweak the physical parameters of the stars involved and see what the result is in the data that astronomers on Earth would observe.
The lesson plans created in this project will be used directly in Quinsigamond Community College courses that I teach this year, namely SCI 105 (Integrated Science: Earth and Space) and SCI 135 (Introduction to Astronomy). They can be used in courses not taught exclusively by myself: with modifications in SCI 111/112 (Physical Science I/II), PHY 101/102 (Physics I/II), PHY 105/106/205 (General Physics I/II/III), and as supplemental teaching materials in SCI 103 (Earth Science) and SCI 104 (Atmospheric Science).
The wide potential usage of these lessons addresses student success Core Indicator One - Positive Course Completion Rates, Core Indicator Two - Positive Attainment of an Associate Degree or Certificate, and Core Indicator Three - Positive Placement Rates: Job, Military or Transfer, as numerous students will learn exciting aspects of science via these improved lessons, leading to increased student retention. Astronomy is the field of science and physical science closest to gender equity, suggesting that it is comparatively appealing to women. I expect that the increased exposure of women in many programs to astronomy will help the gender imbalance of women in science, addressing Core Indicator Four - High % of Nontraditional by Gender Students Enrolled in our gender-imbalanced programs.
Pre-service teachers and other students in SCI 105 and SCI 135 will have access to the original forms of the lesson plans so they may use the lessons in their future careers, addressing Core Indicator Three - Positive Placement Rates: Job. In addition, material created for this webpage could be used in the future to create an online version of either SCI 105 or SCI 135, which will help us further benefit special population groups, including students with different learning styles (such as students with disabilities, limited English proficient students, and displaced homemakers), or those who require more flexible time schedules (such as economically disadvantaged students with multiple jobs, and single parents).
As is traditional in the teaching field, educators at Qunisig and elsewhere should feel free to make use of the lesson plans whether as is or modified to fit their classroom, and may pass on the lessons to other educators (with credit to Andria C. Schwortz, Quinsigamond Community College).
The limited scope of this project as compared to my initial ambitious goals is what led to the modification of said goals. A project such as HubbleSite.org or Spitzer's Cool Cosmos has taken years to develop and a team of numbers of scientists, educators, and computer graphic designers. By contrast, this project had two people and a goal of 45 hours on-site and 45 hours on my own. I actually spent 7 extended work days on-site (5/22, 5/31, 6/7, 6/14, 6/20, 7/13) for a total of roughly 50 hours, and performed further research, online collaboration, and writing on numerous other occasions throughout the summer. Despite going beyond the recommended time allocations, it has become clear that further time and additional personnel will be necessary to achieve a larger scale scientifically rigorous webpage that will be educational and interesting to both teachers and learners.
As both Dr. Gutermuth and myself wish to continue this project, we feel it is necessary to seek additional collaborators and funding in the future.
A specialist is needed for webpage design to create a unique and coherent identity to the set of pages we produce. While I am capable of applying templates (as I have done here using FrontPage), I do not have the experience to create templates from scratch, and my energies are better spent on creating the content for the webpages.
We may also need an individual who can program Flash animations and games to better illustrate our lessons for the web, and to present some of our ideas in an interactive format. It is possible that the design individual will have experience in this field, or Rob himself may be able to create programs using IDL or another programming language, so a fourth person may not be needed, but we do not yet know for certain.
It would also be beneficial to involve an in-service teacher to try out the lessons in a younger classroom than I have access to and provide feedback on that age group.
In addition to campus sources, I continue to investigate grants from the National Science Foundation (NSF) and the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA). Some of the grant programs we are currently investigating are listed below, with descriptions from their webpages.
IDEAS (NASA) - "The spirit of IDEAS is to provide start-up funding to explore innovative, creative ways to integrate astronomy and space science into United States education and public outreach venues through partnerships between the astronomers/space scientists and education professionals."
Communicating Research to Public Audiences (NSF Division of Education and Human Resources, EHR) - "Requests for up to $75,000 will be considered to support projects that communicate to public audiences the process and results of current research that is being supported by any NSF directorate through informal science education activities, such as media presentations, exhibits, or youth-based activities."
Instructional Materials Development (NSF Division of Elementary, Secondary, & Informal Education, ESIE) - "[S]upports the creation and substantial revision of comprehensive curricula and supplemental instructional materials that are research-based; enhance classroom instruction, preK-12; and reflect standards for science, mathematics, and technology education developed by national professional organizations."
Money from one of these grants would go to support the work of the collaborators, hire consultants or contractors as needed, and obtain web hosting materials and services.