See Related: Science Technology
  1. Carolyn Staudt
  2. https://concord.org/about/staff/carolyn-staudt
  3. Curriculum/Professional Developer
  4. Water SCIENCE
  5. https://concord.org/projects/water-science
  6. Concord Consortium, Stroud Water Research Center, Millersville University
  1. Saadia Baloch
  2. Executive Director
  3. Water SCIENCE
  4. https://concord.org/projects/water-science
  5. Machine Science
  1. Melinda Daniels
  2. Dr.
  3. Water SCIENCE
  4. https://concord.org/projects/water-science
  5. Stroud Water Research Center
  1. Steve Kerlin
  2. http://www.stroudcenter.org/about/stevenkerlin.shtm
  3. Director of Education
  4. Water SCIENCE
  5. https://concord.org/projects/water-science
  6. Stroud Water Research Center
  1. Nanette Marcum-Dietrich
  2. http://concord.org/projects/teaching-environmental-sustainability
  3. Teaching Environmental Sustainability - Model My Watershed
  4. Water SCIENCE
  5. https://concord.org/projects/water-science
  6. Millersville University
  1. Jerry Valadez
  2. http://cvscienceproject.ning.com
  3. President/CEO
  4. Water SCIENCE
  5. https://concord.org/projects/water-science
  6. SAM Academy, Concord Consortium, Central Valley Science Project
Facilitators’
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Public Discussion

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  • Icon for: Amy Kamarainen

    Amy Kamarainen

    Researcher
    May 15, 2017 | 09:13 a.m.

    Hello, Water SCIENCE team. This project looks like an exciting way of engaging students in inquiry as well as helping to build understanding of science career pathways. I look forward to hearing more as your project evolves! Can you offer a description of how, if at all, you're connecting students across the regions that are participating in this project? Do students have opportunities to share or compare data from CA, PA, AZ and MA?

  • Icon for: Saadia Baloch

    Saadia Baloch

    Co-Presenter
    Executive Director
    May 15, 2017 | 09:44 a.m.

    Hello Amy,

    There are two major ways that we have connected students across the regions: through shared data visualization and through the videoconference capstone project.

    The shared data visualization is facilitated by the iSENSE system (isenseproject.org), a web system for sharing and visualizing scientific data which is ntended to be a resource for middle school and high school science, math, and engineering instruction. Students can see the data points entered by all other student groups for the various water testing values. They can sort by class, teacher, state, or view all data. I can point you to more specific examples of the data visualization if you like.

    As a capstone project, Zoom videoconferences between pairs of classrooms allowed classes in different states to share their local experiences by presenting a video postcard, and then talking live about their findings.

     
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    Discussion is closed. Upvoting is no longer available

    Carolyn Staudt
  • Icon for: Amy Kamarainen

    Amy Kamarainen

    Researcher
    May 15, 2017 | 10:42 a.m.

    That's great, Saadia. Thanks for sharing more information on the iSENSE system. This looks like a great resource for sharing data. Best, Amy 

  • Icon for: Carolyn Staudt

    Carolyn Staudt

    Lead Presenter
    Curriculum/Professional Developer
    May 15, 2017 | 10:42 a.m.

    Welcome to the Water SCIENCE project! Students used the low cost water testing kits to record data in the field with the Water SCIENCE Monitor app (https://concord.org/water-science/app), also available on the Android platform. It uploaded (or students could manually add data to iSENSE and view their data graphically within the activities on the portal. Students working in the field had an opportunity to also see water scientists ranging from senior research scientist to lab technicians at https://guides.itsi.concord.org/water-science-teacher-guides#water-scientist-videos.

    The incredible Capstone discussions between the varying sites included middle school students that had never seen rain in CA talking with students that had just experienced a significant snow fall in PA. By the time that some of the schools connected this spring, some of the sites in CA were experiencing their first rain in almost 8 years! The rich discussion about watershed and erosion was amazing.

  • Icon for: Sue Doubler

    Sue Doubler

    Facilitator
    Senior Leader
    May 15, 2017 | 09:38 p.m.

    Water Science Team,

    How many of us as adults really know our own watershed? Love that this is the focus of students' study and that they are also exposed to related careers through videos of scientists. Could you say more about your design for the scientist videos and how the videos are used? Is the educational career pathway part of the video itself?

  • Icon for: Saadia Baloch

    Saadia Baloch

    Co-Presenter
    Executive Director
    May 15, 2017 | 11:30 p.m.

    Hello Sue,

    The educational career pathway is introduced in two different ways: First, the Water SCIENCE activities have several insets with text that introduces different water related careers, and then pose a question about them. For example, there is a description of a "Water Quality Scientist" with Qualifications, Salary, and Coursework info. There is also a question to be answered "Is there a local government agency or company where you could be an intern to explore this career?"

    Then later on when the teacher introduces the Water Scientist videos, each different scientist talks about what area they have a degree in, and what they were interested in that got them to this position.

    Currently the Water Scientist videos were shown after the kids had done all the water testing and filtering activities, but that was due to the timing of their production. They might be fun for the kids to watch earlier on.

  • Icon for: Sue Doubler

    Sue Doubler

    Facilitator
    Senior Leader
    May 17, 2017 | 03:38 p.m.

    Saadia, that's really impressive. How wonderful to include companies where students might be able to intern. I wonder if doing the scientist videos post testing might stick more. Students might see the nuances in what scientists do that might be missed if they haven't experienced the tests themselves. Certainly interesting to try it both ways and see.

  • Icon for: Carolyn Staudt

    Carolyn Staudt

    Lead Presenter
    Curriculum/Professional Developer
    May 16, 2017 | 10:14 a.m.

    Sue, recently with GIS easily available in a web browser, students can quickly see their watershed using Model My Watershed from the Stroud Water Research Center (SWRC) even on mobile devices. This is a tool used in the initial Water SCIENCE activity What affects your watershed? Model My Watershed is also available at https://app.wikiwatershed.org/.

    Anyone in the lower 48 states can use their address of their school and place the address of your school in the Search bar. Select the HUC (Hydrologic Unit Code) 12 basin boundary in the drop-down menu for boundary type. Click the satellite (Google Hybrid or ESRI World Imagery) image overlay. Click on your school to identify your watershed boundaries. You may need to zoom in/out to view all of the businesses, land cover types (farm, turf grass, forest, etc.), and local waterways within your watershed boundary.

     
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    Discussion is closed. Upvoting is no longer available

    Saadia Baloch
  • Icon for: Sue Doubler

    Sue Doubler

    Facilitator
    Senior Leader
    May 17, 2017 | 03:46 p.m.

    Carolyn, just recently was surprised to learn that 40% of the Mystic Watershed is covered in rooftop or concrete. There is so much I don't know about my own watershed.

    It strikes me that the audience for your program (or aspects of it) could be entire communities--adults, young people, town leaders learning together. It is now so easy to study (with data) one's own local environment. Is our view of who learners too limited?

  • Icon for: Carolyn Staudt

    Carolyn Staudt

    Lead Presenter
    Curriculum/Professional Developer
    May 17, 2017 | 08:30 p.m.

    Sue,

    Precisely! The students can become citizen scientists share their results with the larger community. The iSENSE project and Innovative Technology in Science Inquiry (ITSI) portal is free for use by schools so they can display and share data in a secure way. Stroud Water Research Center that has developed Model My Watershed (MMW) with Azavea are supporting GIS in classrooms using the Site Storm model with this NSF-funded project.  Another source of funding is the William Penn Foundation for MMW that has provided additional funding to add the Watershed Multi-year model side of software. The Watershed Multi-year model is specifically used by professionals and citizen scientist groups to look for long term trends. Both of these models are available to the students within the version provided in the ITSI portal. The Water SCIENCE curriculum uses only the Site Storm model at this time.

  • Icon for: Deborah Hanuscin

    Deborah Hanuscin

    Facilitator
    Professor
    May 16, 2017 | 12:51 p.m.

    Great emphasis on related career paths! To what extent are you also addressing how this applies to students' lives outside of careers- e.g., as citizens? Do you have connections to current events or legislative actions

  • Icon for: Nanette Marcum-Dietrich

    Nanette Marcum-Dietrich

    Co-Presenter
    Teaching Environmental Sustainability - Model My Watershed
    May 17, 2017 | 09:11 a.m.

    Hi Deborah - 

    Great Questions! Giving students knowledge and access to the scientific tools needed to make informed decisions is empowering. One tool that we used in the project is Model My Watershed https://app.wikiwatershed.org/ This free online watershed modeling application gives students the ability to model their watershed and the ability to assess the impacts of their actions.  

    For example in one of the Water SCIENCE classrooms, the students talked about a building project proposed at their school.  The school is considering "paving" the front lawn to increase parking spaces.  One 5th grade student used Model My Watershed to see the impact of this land cover change on the watershed.  Concerned with the result, she returned to Model My Watershed to explore how she could "mitigate" the impact of the additional impervious surface.  She decided that the school's roof often leaks in heavy rain so they need a new roof.  What if they added a green roof to the school instead of a traditional roof?  Using Model My Watershed she modeled how adding a green roof could mitigate the impact of the new parking lot.  She shared this information with her principal.  She had the knowledge and the data to inform her actions.  Now that is exciting science!

  • Icon for: Steve Kerlin

    Steve Kerlin

    Co-Presenter
    Director of Education
    May 17, 2017 | 10:39 a.m.

    Hello Deborah,

    On of the additional features in Model My Watershed is in the layer controls of this web-based GIS. Users can add boundary layers including Congressional Districts and School Districts across the entire lower 48 states. In PA user can also add the PA Municipality boundary layers.

  • Icon for: Deborah Hanuscin

    Deborah Hanuscin

    Facilitator
    Professor
    May 18, 2017 | 09:30 a.m.

    What great tools and resources to help schools tailor the learning to their specific locality! Thanks for sharing!

  • Adrienne Groff

    Graduate Student
    May 16, 2017 | 10:04 p.m.

    What a great project!  Is this project geared to a certain age group?  Also, how are schools able to access this resource?

  • Icon for: Saadia Baloch

    Saadia Baloch

    Co-Presenter
    Executive Director
    May 16, 2017 | 11:23 p.m.

    The project is geared towards the middle school grades, but has been used with kids as young as 5th grade as an afterschool program. The resources are freely available through Concord Consortium's ITSI (Innovative Technology in Science Inquiry) portal https://itsi.portal.concord.org/itsi

    Water SCIENCE is found under the category Middle School Environmental Science https://itsi.portal.concord.org/itsi#middle-school-environmental-science

    The Teacher's Guide for Water SCIENCE, the ability to set up class rosters, and customize activities becomecavailable with teacher login to ITSI.

  • Icon for: Steve Kerlin

    Steve Kerlin

    Co-Presenter
    Director of Education
    May 17, 2017 | 10:42 a.m.

    The web-based GIS Model My Watershed is also free and available for anyone to use, embedded into the curriculum or accessed separately at https://wikiwatershed.org/.

    If teachers are looking for curriculum for high school students they can go to the ITSI portal and also use the High School Environmental Science activities which are part of a related NSF funded project called Teaching Environmental Sustainability - Model My Watershed.

  • Icon for: Pam Pelletier

    Pam Pelletier

    Facilitator
    Director, K-12 STE, Boston Public Schools
    May 21, 2017 | 08:54 a.m.

    I love that this program includes such a meaningful context for student learning AND integrates science and engineering that does more than "engineering as engaging, fun activity" -- something that limits deeper understanding of the interplay of science and engineering. There is an aspect that addresses careers -- but I am wondering if there is any part of the project that leverages culturally relevant connections or teacher support materials that identify culturally relevant pedagogical strategies to help teachers? There is such great opportunity here for discussions of social justice and culturally sustaining practices!

  • Icon for: Dilafruz Williams

    Dilafruz Williams

    Higher Ed Faculty
    May 22, 2017 | 07:18 p.m.

    I love seeing how engaged the students are! You are so right when you say the kids "want to learn." When they find meaning, they appear to be fully engaged. It looks like the adults' enthusiasm is transferring to the students. Thank you for such an important and amazing project. Local, place-based education seems to matter as a lot of literature also tells us.  I wonder what measurement techniques you are using.

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