Bridging the Poles Workshop

Improving Polar Education Effectiveness &

Gearing Up For IPY 2007-2010

 

June 23-25, 2004, Washington DC

 

Many thanks to all the individuals who attended this workshop in June 2004 and offered insights and contributions.  The workshop report is completed and attached here in pdf format.   A limited number of copies have been printed and provided to attendees and requesting parties.  We are also currently completing the design of a new website based on the workshop report which should be available by the end of May 2005.  The home of this new website is linked here:

http://www.ldeo.columbia.edu/res/pi/polar_workshop

 

Click here to view or download the final  REPORT

 

 

Specific Workshop Goals:

* Improve the effectiveness of polar education

* Better integrate polar research and polar education

* Build stronger partnerships between Arctic and Antarctic communities

 

Target Audience is Kindergarten Through Gray :

* Elementary school through undergraduate, and the general public

* Engage the next generation of scientists, engineers and leaders

* Inspire and educate the general public

 

 

How:

* Identify strategies to enable polar scientists to conduct meaningful education and outreach

 

*Identify opportunities for educators to include polar research in their classrooms and outreach activities.

 

 

 

Timetable:

Next 5 years, maximizing the educational impact of the International Polar Year in 2007-2009.

 

Workshop Logistics:

The conference is scheduled 6/23-6/25 - for a full day Wednesday, Thursday and a half day Friday.   Friday is scheduled as a wrap up day.  Planning for the report and roll out of activities over the next 5 years will be coordinated and a timeline developed during this last morning.  Workshop participant involvement is crucial in this phase.

 

View agenda

 

View Participants

 

Location:

The workshop will be run in Washington DC at the Marriott Washington Hotel, 1221 22nd St. NW, Washington, DC  20037 -  phone 202-872-1500,  rooms blocked under "Polar Education"  for the nights of  June 22nd-24th.  Breakfast will be provided to all attendees on workshop all 3 days and lunch Wed. and Thurs.

 

Pre Workshop Requests:

WRITE UP:

Participants and interested parties are asked to submit to Margie Turrin (mkt@ldeo.columbia.edu), by June 16th, a one-page write up on their "best polar ideas to inspire and educate the public and the next generation of researchers."  For distributed at the workshop.

 

 

 

SUGGESTED READING:

A reading list is linked for workshop participants covering literature on education, Arctic and Antarctic polar information, existing organizations websites and resources.  Please review this material as best you can prior to the workshop.  Please note this list is not comprehensive.  Instead it is a starting point.

 

Education Resources:

 

Integrating Research & Education - by Bridget Avila, 2003

 

How People Learn: Brain, Mind, Experience, and School  -  National Research Council, J. Bransford, A. Brown and R. Cocking, Eds. 2000

 

Bringing Research on Learning to the Geosciences - Cathy Manduca, David Mogk, and Neil Stillings, 2004

 

Knowing what students know: The science and design of educational assessment, J. Pellegrino, N. Chudowsky & R. Glaser, Eds. National Academy Press 2001

 

Inquiry and the National Science Education Standards, NRC, National Academy Press 2000

 

Boys and Girls Learn Differently: A Guide for Teachers and Parents by Michael Gurian, John Wiley & Sons, ISBN 0787961175, 2002. (not available on line)

 

Catalogue of Pedagogies 

Project Kaleidoscope Volume IV: What works, what matters, what lasts, 2004 catalogue

 

Diversity Resources:

The American Institute of Physics Bulletin of Science Policy News, Number 59, May 10, 2004

 

International Polar Year 2007-2008 Reports:

ICSU-IPY website

 

Full report - A Vision for the International Polar Year 2007-

2008

 

Report  A summary of the ÒA Vision for the International Polar Year 2007-2008Ó---outlines its Òvision of key science challenges, enabling technologies, and public outreach opportunitiesÓ 

 

Arctic Education Ð Distance Learning

On Top of It: Overcoming the Challenges of ICT and Distance Education in the Arctic, New Publication Available from University of the Arctic.   University of the ArcticÕs new publication concerning the potential of information and communications technology (ICT) in bringing higher education to the population in the peripheral areas. Distributor: julkaisu@ulapland.fi

 

Science Resources

Middle School Online Science Modules

Antarctic Exploration Summary of science value

Antarctic Exploration Snapshot of module

 

College Resources

Geoscience: Greenland on Hudson

 

Additional Science & Education Resources

 

Classroom Antarctica- DLESE library collection of Antarctica units

 

Integrating Science & Education -

-integrates and encourages science and education

Science Summit list of the presentations of the Science Summit, the Mathematics and Science Initiative

 

Interdisciplinary Work

Biocomplexity Workshop - Meeting the needs of interdisciplinary PhDs

 

Role of Media

Greenland Piece access to article, video, blog, photos by Andy Revkin, NY Times

Summary Listings of Useful URLs - dealing with Arctic & Antarctic Information

 

Arctic Resources

 

ÒThe Whale and the SupercomputerÓ by Charles Wohlforth.  A good starting point for how we integrate or fail to recognize traditional knowledge in the research in the Arctic.  (Not available digitally)

 

ÒTaken to ExtremesÓ by Darnell & Hoem.  A history of circumpolar education .  (Not available digitally)

 

 

Arctic Science Education Links -

Summary - A summary of various Arctic Education Sites and their URLS

 

 

Links to Numerous Organizations working in the Arctic & Antarctic-

Listing- A summary of various groups & agencies working in both poles

 

 

Workshop Participant recommended sites-

sites

 

 

 

SLIDE:

Participants should prepare one OVERHEAD TRANSPARENCY slide with your ideas for a 3-minute presentation at the workshop. Please do not plan on power point slide presentations Ð it takes too long to set this up.  We will have an overhead projector so print out your slides on a transparency please.

 

Suggested topics:

Media involvement and rollout strategy

Engaging diverse communities

Approaches for effective learning

Remote participatory experiences and use of data/images/animations/models

Programs to feature nationally/internationally over the next 5 years

 

 

REPORT

 

A report will be issued from this workshop.

It will define identify future opportunities and needs for polar education, including needed infrastructure.  The report will include strategies identified at the workshop, summaries of the slides and one-page write-ups by workshop participants, and information contributed by others unable to attend.  The report will be distributed for community review and input this fall.  Anyone interested in submitting concepts to the report please e-mail: mkt@ldeo.columbia.edu

 

 

This workshop is sponsored by the National Science Foundation

 

 

photos courtesy of NSF