College
Course
Communicating Ocean
Science
Session Descriptions
Session 1: Teaching Ocean
Science
This session begins with students sharing and discussing their
ideas about what is ocean science and what should be included in
teaching ocean science. The goals of the course and the rationale
for teaching
ocean science, including its interdisciplinary nature are discussed.
The students then engage in three different grade-level appropriate
inquiry-based,
hands-on activities: "Seashore Sleuthing" representing
an earth and physical science activity appropriate for K-1, "Oyster
Beds" a nature of science activity for
grades 2-3, and "Red
Fish Roundup" a physical science activity for grades 4-5. Students
then discuss how the exemplar activities differ by grade level and
how the activities differ from the way they experienced science
in elementary school.
Session 1 Power Point Presentation (*.ppt, 5.7MB)
Session 2 The Process of Science
The session begins with students in small groups, sharing
and discussing their ideas about Science. They then analyze
a variety of statements
to generate a discussion about what makes a statement scientific.
The whole class together develops the understanding that science
is based
on testable evidence. They then take part in the "Ice Cubes" activity
from the GEMS unit, Ocean
Currents. This activity demonstrates
the meticulous nature of scientific exploration and debate, and
the use of evidence and
explanation to make hypotheses. Students also reflect on the
principles they discovered by doing the investigation and the
importance of these
principles to ocean sciences. The session ends with a discussion
of the scientific method as an iterative process, which adds to
the body of scientific
knowledge built by the scientific community.
Session 2 Power Point Presentation (*.ppt, 612KB)
Session 3 Comparing Teaching Approaches
The session begins with students accessing prior information
about teaching and learning by thinking back on how different
teaching approaches affected them as learners. They are challenged
to think about
a model for how people learn which can be used to structure
learning in the classroom. They then rotate through four activity
stations focused
on salinity, which illustrate different teaching approaches.
The presenter
then leads a discussion about the stations eliciting their ideas
about the four teaching approaches and how each affected their
interest and
conceptual understanding. Participants then do an activity from
the MARE/GEMS On
Sandy Shores unit
called "Sand on Stage" as
an exemplar of how these teaching approaches can be used effectively
to increase conceptual
understanding. The instructional model known as a learning cycle
is then introduced and tied in to the participants’ experience
with the station activities and "Sand on Stage".
Session 3 Power Point Presentation (*.ppt, 754KB)
Session 4 Building Towards Inquiry
This session starts with an overview of the essential features
of inquiry–what it looks like in an elementary classroom, how
it is reflected in science standards, and the educational advantage
of student-driven learning incorporating subtle shifts towards
inquiry. Much of the session is focused on a kit carousel. The goal
is to allow students to explore the kits and materials associated
with the outreach portion of the course.
Session 4 Power Point Presentation (*.ppt, 820KB)
Session 5 Blank Slates or Clever Minds
The session begins with a discussion that encourages students to think about how people learn and change their ideas. Activities from the GEMS guide Earth,
Moon and Stars are used to
illustrate several ideas and concepts about astronomy-related topics. They then watch
and discuss a 20-minute
video, A Private Universe, which features interviews
of university graduates and faculty, as well as high school
students who
are asked
to explain the phases of the moon and the seasons. After discussing
the video, students brainstorm methods and strategies
for dealing with student misconceptions and are offered further
ideas about how to set-up effective learning situations. They
discuss how these ideas fit in with the Learning Cycle model
highlighted in the previous session. Students are
then given various props to use to describe and illustrate
their
understanding of what causes the tides. Students are challenged
to create a model they can present to the rest of the class
that illustrates how tides are formed.
Session 5 Power Point Presentation (*.ppt, 440KB)
Session 6 Questioning Strategies
The session starts off with an activity in which the students
are asked to notice the different effects of broad and focused
questions with regard to their own thinking and participation
in the discussion.
Two brief role-plays are then acted out, depicting the interactions
between a professor and a student who has come for help
during office hours. One illustrates the "sage on the stage" approach
to teaching, while the second illustrates, the "guide on the
side" approach. During a follow up discussion, students learn
how a teacher’s approach can influence the types of question
s/he asks students. The class is then introduced to the idea of
using a questions "map" to lead successful discussions.
Next the students explore buoyancy and density concepts through
hands-on experiences in "Water, Water Everywhere" and
are then challenged to create 3-dimensional plankton in "The
Great Plankton Race" that will drift as slowly as possible
through the water column. They then refine their plankton based
on observations of actual plankton. Finally, they use what they’ve
learned about questioning strategies to plan a series of
questions they will ask elementary students visiting during
the next session
as they lead them through the same activity.
Session 6 Power Point Presentation (*.ppt, 234KB)
Session 7 Questions Lab
In this session the course participants practice their questioning
skills with actual elementary student volunteers who are
invited to attend the class. The session begins with a "tape recorder" to
initiate the interaction between the course participants and the
volunteer students. The participants then use the question plans
crafted during the previous session, to lead the students through
the buoyancy/density/plankton activity. As the participants observe,
the presenter gathers the elementary students and leads a debrief
of the activity, in order to demonstrate effective discussion-leading
techniques. The presenter then introduces an open-ended, exploration
activity using live rocky seashore organisms with the whole group.
The course participants again use questions to guide the students’ investigations.
The presenter asks the elementary students to share phenomena
they witnessed during their live animal investigations,
and to share
their explanations to model discussion techniques, which
lead to increased student understanding.
Session 7 Power Point Presentation (*.ppt, 264KB)
Session 8 Promoting Discussion
This session is focused on how to respond to students’ answers
to questions, and introduces a variety of practical
discussion leading strategies. Through a series of role plays,
strategies are modeled and background information supporting their
use are
provided. The session closes with a science lesson "Oil
on the Beach" focusing on human interaction
with the environment, which includes exemplars of good
questioning
techniques. The students
experience the activity as their students would, while
also trying to analyze the
various strategies used
by the instructor.
Session 8 Power Point Presentation (*.ppt, 316KB)
Session 9 Assessment
In this session, the instructor provides participants
with information about testing and assessment. The
session begins with the students
themselves taking part in a group assessment activity.
The discussion following this "carousel of concepts learned" activity
brings out the instructional goals behind its design. Next they
participate in a discussion about the value of the two kinds of
driving tests given at the Department of Motor Vehicles–a
multiple choice test about the laws related to driving and a performance
test in which a person must actually drive. The discussion leads
to the conclusion that different kinds of tests test for different
kinds of knowledge–and both kinds are important. Students
learn that current educational practice strives for a balance of
a variety of testing methods. After this experience, they are given
a collection of actual student papers to see what they can learn
about students’ knowledge by examining the student
work. The whole group then discusses their experience
with being assessed
in college.
Session 9 Power Point Presentation (*.ppt, 1.2MB)
Session 10 Designing a Lesson
In this session, the class focuses on the "Application" phase
of the overall learning cycle of the course, as
they practice planning lessons incorporating the many concepts
addressed. They view one
of the Minds of Their Own videos, in which
Harvard graduates and middle school students demonstrate
a commonly held misconception
regarding photosynthesis. The interviewer in the
video asks question to find out why they hold these
ideas, and provides opportunities
for students to re-examine their thinking. After
a discussion about the strategies used in the video,
the class meets in expert groups
to review one aspect of teaching that has been presented
in the course. They are then given a list of ocean science concepts to review and discuss.
They are challenged to choose one of the concepts and to come
up with a hands-on activity designed to get students
to question these misconceptions about the concept. The session
ends with a discussion about ocean misconceptions
they have encountered or that
they think others have.
Session 10 Power Point Presentation (*.ppt, 1.4MB)
Session 11 Creating an Inclusive Learning Environment
This session delves into the realm of diversity
in the classroom and how to address the needs
of all
students.
The emphasis
in this session is on language acquisition and
developmental issues.
The
MARE/GEMS activity "Apples and Oceans" is presented entirely
in Spanish to illustrate techniques designed to increase all students’ comprehension
of high–level science concepts. (There are two versions of
this session–the language acquisition session and an alternate
session focusing on cultural differences.)
Session 11 Power Point Presentation (*.ppt, 1.1MB)
Session 12-14 Students Present Their Designed
Lessons
Session 15 Wrap up–Rocky Seashore Field Trip (optional)
Additional Content Information:
Here are some topics we have addressed through adult learning activities and activity exemplars that students may use in their outreach activities.
1. Physical oceanography:
a. Water density, stratification, and global ocean circulation
b. Earth, Moon, Sun and tides
c. Light in the ocean
2. Geological oceanography:
a. Plate Tectonics
b. Continental margins and ocean basins
c. Topography of ocean floors
d. Coasts: estuaries, marshes, and sandy beaches
3. Chemical oceanography:
a. Seawater chemistry and salinity
4. Biological oceanography:
a. Structure and function of planktonic invertebrates
b. Structure and function of benthic invertebrates
(survey of organismal diversity)*
c. Structure, function and evolution of fishes
d. Ecology of rocky intertidal environments
e. Ecology of sandy beach environments
f. Ecology of open ocean environments
g. Ecology of kelp forest environments
5. Interdisciplinary:
a. Human impacts on marine environment
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