K-12 Outreach

3-year Education and Public Outreach (E/PO) grant by NASA

ESR has been awarded a 3-year Education and Public Outreach (E/PO) grant by NASA to develop a “Global Climate Change Institute for K-12 Educators in the Pacific Northwest”. The award is a supplement to an existing NASA science grant to Laurie Padman for studying tides and other processes in the Antarctic using NASA’s Ice, Cloud and land Elevation Satellite (ICESat) and other satellite altimetry data.

The new institute will develop materials and programs for enhancing the ability of Pacific Northwest K-12 educators to present the science of global climate change effectively in their classrooms. The supplement will fund development of a web site of climate change materials appropriate to different levels of K-12 education, present annual summer workshops for teachers interested in improving their skills in this area, and sponsor classroom visits to assist teachers in transitioning this material to their students. Given the broad range of class ages, the institute will also develop and present techniques to incorporate climate change science into math and reading curricula, especially appropriate to K-5.

The institute is a collaboration between ESR and Western Oregon University (WOU) in Monmouth, Oregon. Laurie Padman of ESR will provide scientific content for the institute, including liaison with NASA E/PO specialists. Curriculum development, and workshop and classroom activities will be run by WOU faculty, headed by Drs Adele Schepige (College of Education) and William Schoenfeld (Department of Earth/Physical Science). WOU faculty will also advertise the program and provide materials and facilities for workshops.