Connecting schools with scientists

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Most primary school students are full of wonder and curiosity about the world around them. Our job as educators is to embrace this and encourage further purposeful enquiry. Sometimes, however, we can be ill prepared for the complexity of the questions that are thrown our way, particularly when it comes to science. Just imagine if you had a scientist that you could call upon to answer some of these curly questions, and just how much would students gain from asking this expert?

Speaking the same language

I used to think that, as a teacher of science, part of my job was simply to connect my students with scientists. But this is oversimplifying what is actually a complex interrelationship. Educators and scientists often do not speak the same language. If you were to invite a scientist into your classroom to answer your students’ questions would the responses they give be useful?  Probably not, unless you had spent time preparing both the scientist and your class to ensure you could converse in a common language.

There is an increased drive for schools to connect with their science community. This requires active partnerships where both scientists and educators contribute and recognise each other’s expertise. Even with the ability to connect online it can be difficult to establish connections with the science community, especially if you are trying to contact individuals who are already busy with their normal workload.

An easier way to create these connections in a meaningful way is to use an ‘interpreter’ — a person whose job it is to broker a relationship between experts and schools. I became a virtual field trip teacher with LEARNZ back in 2009, and since then I have facilitated many connections between teachers, their students, and experts out in the field. Much time is spent talking with experts both before and during the field trip to gain an understanding of their work. I can then explain the intricacies of the New Zealand curriculum, the prior learning of students, and how they as scientists can best share their knowledge to engage these students. In this way LEARNZ can take the hassle and hard work out of connecting your class with scientists within the meaningful and relevant context of a virtual field trip.

snowmobiles trekking in Antarctica
Students can see what life is like in places like Antarctica during LEARNZ virtual field trips and talk with scientists working in the field.

Developing these connections between schools and scientists is also of benefit to scientists who want to foster an interest in science, encourage the next generation of scientists, and share their research. Increasingly, this partnership is also required to meet the obligations from those who allocate research grants.

Sparking interest

I used to be a little sceptical of the ‘virtual world’ that the Internet can offer. But, after delivering numerous virtual field trips and participating in webinars and the likes for professional development, I can see that rather than trying to replace reality, virtual applications offer something that would otherwise be inaccessible. Virtual field trips, for example, are not designed to replace actual class field trips, but to engage your students in a novel, yet relevant learning experience.

Recently, I was lucky enough to travel to Antarctica to deliver one such field trip. I have always dreamed of going to Antarctica, and even though this was my second visit to this white wilderness, I was still really excited, as I knew I would be able to share my journey with thousands of students from around New Zealand. Although Antarctica is a remote and inhospitable place, it still captures the imaginations of many people, and as we all contemplate a future affected by climate change, Antarctica remains highly relevant to us all.

A curious penguin visits the LEARNZ team on location
During the LEARNZ Antarctica field trip students met a few local residents as well as scientists.

Antarctica is the perfect place for scientists, as it is largely unmodified by people and, therefore, offers scientists the ideal place to investigate natural processes. Throughout the two weeks that I spent in Antarctica I was able to follow the work of a group of scientists from the University of Otago and the American SCRIPPS institute working on Antarctic marine food webs. I facilitated conversations between the scientists and students back in New Zealand. Students took part in audio conferences and a chat room using Adobe Connect. The daily action was shared through videos, photos, and diaries. Background pages and activities on the LEARNZ website allowed enough domain knowledge to be gained prior to the field trip to allow students to ask meaningful questions yet also spark further inquiry. Two hundred and thirty five classes were enrolled in the trip, and from the evaluations that we have received it seems that students not only learnt a lot, they also really enjoyed the field trip. Students appreciated being able to talk with scientists who understood how to best answer their often challenging questions and were totally engaged by the authentic context of Antarctica.

You can watch a video about why the scientists chose to work out at Cape Bird in Antarctica:

Why Cape Bird from LEARNZ on Vimeo.

Future Focused Science

The Chief Science Advisor’s 2011 report on Science Education for the twenty-first century raised questions about how to ‘engage and enthuse’ more young New Zealanders in science, and whether the science we teach is addressing the ‘serious questions we will face in the future’. If we are able to connect schools and scientists we can ensure that up-to-date scientific knowledge is provided, students’ horizons are expanded, and students can be inspired by role models within the science community. Real-life authentic science can be shared, which allows students to apply their scientific knowledge and knowledge from other domains to address real-world challenges. LEARNZ and other initiatives can help create these connections and ultimately help foster and focus the intrinsic curiosity and capabilities of our students.

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To Sir with love or ‘How to support your child’s teacher’ — a parent’s perspective

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Help your teacher out

I need a disclaimer at the start of this blog post — no, unfortunately I did not receive a fancy holiday that might influence my opinion — my disclaimer is that I am the daughter of a teacher.
So I am biased. I saw my mother leave for work at 7.30am, come home at 4.30pm and then work again after dinner. If I called up at lunchtime I was lucky to find her in the staff room some of the time, most likely she would be on duty or tuning 75 guitars (true story), or having a meeting about class camp.

School holidays would have two parts — week one: ‘recovery week’, and week two: ‘preparation week’ where I would follow my mother to the classroom to put up new images, posters, and ideas for the term ahead, and we stop and chat to the other teachers doing the same.

I always remember complaining about a — paid for — Christmas lunch when my mother reminded me that she had always paid for her Christmas lunch herself, and I am also reminded of her giving up her Saturdays for fundraisers for the school; or, as she put it, “What other job would you have to work in the weekends, for free, to raise money for the basics of your job?” But she did it for ‘her kids’. My brother and I worked out that when she was talking about ‘her kids’ she was meaning the eleven and twelve-year-olds she would have in her class each year.

So I am biased. I also am in awe of the extra work that most teachers do on top of the classroom work. They often coach sports teams, jump jam teams, chess and debating teams, athletics, organise and direct the school production, and are expected to turn up or help with fundraisers, and be away from their family for sports, cultural and school camp trips.

I am a fan of the ‘stool’ approach to a child’s education — that the child, the parent/s and the teacher all contribute and feed into the child’s education. Here is my perspective on how we, as parents, can work with our child’s teacher and with our child to support our child’s learning.

1. Say thank you
It’s kind of obvious, but we sometimes forget to express our appreciation verbally to our children’s teacher; and yet if there’s an issue we are quick to address it. If there is an activity your child is enjoying at school, let the teacher know; or, if the teacher is taking them swimming or on a class trip — thank them. It might be their job, but boy, what a job! We always give an end of year gift (I have made fudge before or bought a box of chocolates) both when I was a child and now to our children’s teacher. If a gift is not financially feasible, perhaps a card or just ‘thank you’.

2. Turn up – meet the teacher
You might think: why should I go to meet the teacher? My child is doing well; I don’t need to. I think it’s important to take every opportunity to meet with your child’s teacher when it’s offered. At parent-teacher interviews I always find new ways to support my child, and it also means that I am strengthening the relationship with their teacher, so that if any issue occurs, it’s easier to discuss. We were offered the opportunity to bring our children with us to the recent meetings. This worked really well, as it felt like we were all a team working together; it was wonderful to see the pride when my son’s teacher praised him (and I wouldn’t have remembered the specifics of it to tell my son as accurately). It was also helpful to work together to discuss areas my son needed to work on, and a plan that involved him as a contributor.

3. Decent night’s sleep on Sunday
My mother could always tell the children who had had late nights on a Sunday — or a big weekend without an early bed time on Sunday to help get back on track; she said they would spend Monday unfocused, being a distraction to others, and then only ready to engage on Tuesday.

4. Prepare your child
A teacher often has over 25+ children to look after, so they don’t have time to tie 25 shoe laces, or put on 25 jerseys, or help 25 children get dressed after swimming. Make sure your child has the skills to help himself or herself. When my oldest son started school we went to the swimming pool three times, and I got him to practice getting dry and dressed by himself so we both knew he could do it when swimming started a couple of weeks after that.

 

I would love to hear from teachers with any further suggestions of how parents can support them to support their child at school.

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