Transcript Document
NH CoCoRaHS for Educators: Integrating Teachers and Students into a Statewide Science Collaboration Mary Stampone1 and Stephen Hale2 1Department of Geography, University of New Hampshire, Durham, NH, 2Leitzel Center for Mathematics, Science, and Engineering Education, University of New Hampshire, Durham, NH How CoCoRaHS Can Integrate Further Abstract • Recruiting more teachers and schools The Community Collaborative Rain, Hail, and Snow Network (CoCoRaHS) is a non-profit network of volunteer weather observers of all ages that contribute thousands of daily precipitation observations (i.e., rain, hail, and snow) from across the US and Canada. CoCoRaHS observations are available to the public through the CoCoRaHS online database and are used operationally by state and federal environmental monitoring agencies, researchers and educators. Despite the importance of climate literacy as a key component in K-12 science education, the education sector (e.g., K12 teachers and their students) are under-represented among the list of contributors to weather and climate monitoring networks. NH EPSCoR has supported the engagement and training of NH teachers, providing teachers with the resources they need to engage their students in the process of scientific discovery as CoCoRaHS participants. To date, teacher training has focused on CoCoRaHS data collection methods, however, future workshops will provide teachers additional training in CoCoRaHS data utilization and appropriate use of the resources available through the Data Discovery Center to develop inquiry-rich learning units for the formal classroom. Therefore, through wide geographically distributed contributions from educators and their students, NH EPSCoR is expanding and completing the picture of NH's daily precipitation regime, which integrates logically with companion hydrological datasets generated through other NH EPSCoR research. • Filling in geographic data gaps with data from schools About CoCoRaHS (http://cocorahs.org/) •Volunteers working together to measure precipitation across the nation •Network of backyard weather observers of all ages and backgrounds •Daily measurement and of precipitation (rain, hail and snow) in their local communities •Activities age-appropriate for grade-schoolers •Low-cost measurement tools •Training and education •Interactive Web-site •Largest provider of daily precipitation observations in the United States • Increasing participation from diverse and underrepresented schools Two Lyme School 6th graders take their turn with precipitation gauge measurements. NH EPSCoR Supported CoCoRaHS Educators Legend: How CoCoRaHS Integrates with Ecosystems and Society Project’s Overarching Goals (Nisbet et al., 2013) Green= Active Yellow= Installing Red= Trained 1. To better understand complex interactions among climate, land use, ecosystem function and society. NH’s CoCoRaHS precipitation volunteers, including educators and students, contribute to … • the database of daily precipitation measurements • our understanding of hydrological interactions with other important ecosystem components. 2. To build capacity for competitive research in interdisciplinary ecosystem-related natural and social sciences 3. To strengthen and diversify the STEM workforce pipeline in NH Approximate Distribution of CoCoRaHS precipitation gauges nationwide. Screenshot includes only stations with submitted observations for 11/14/13. • Bringing key research outcomes from CoCoRaHS data back to the schools Future teacher workshops will provide training for teachers and students to explore and analyze CoCoRaHS and LoVoTECS data. NH’s CoCoRaHS educators are organized as an engaged community of volunteer scientists. This community can be … • leveraged for future interdisciplinary ecosystem research • a piece of research infrastructure, for future grant proposals Official CoCoRaHS precipitation gauge at Plymouth Regional High School in Plymouth, NH (Station ID: NH-GR-35 ). Ms. Ina Ahern uses CoCoRaHS to engage her students. • Going beyond student data collection to student data exploration and analysis NH’s CoCoRaHS educators are … • distributed widely across the state • strongly represented in NH’s under-served regions • receiving training on … o making CoCoRaHS measurements o Exploring and analyzing data Literature Cited Official CoCoRaHS precipitation gauge at the Lyme School in Lyme, NH (NH-GR-29) . Mr. Skip Pendleton has used CoCoRaHS to engage with his grades 5-8 science students. Nisbet, J., K. Gardner, C. Wake, W. McDowell, R. Howarth. 2013. Partnerships for Research and Education. A Strategic Plan for: Interactions Among Climate, Land Use, Ecosystems Services and Society. NH EPSCoR Internal Document. Acknowledgements This research was funded through the NSF NH EPSCoR program, grant number #1101245 . Thanks to UNH graduate student Samantha Roddy for working with CoCoRaHS teachers and developing the map of current CoCoRaHS program teachers.