A partnership between University Prep Science and Math High school and the Detroit Zoological Society is providing students with opportunities to explore careers in zoology and conservation. Hands-on learning in the classroom with highly qualified teachers is complemented with regular visits to the Detroit Zoo, local green spaces, and the Belle Isle Aquarium, where students participate in facilitated programming, collect data for individual projects, and engage with content area experts. Over the four years in the Zoology Pathway program, students build their conceptual understanding of science skills through authentic learning experiences and explore topics of their personal interest in depth. This program has the potential to support students from groups who are historically underrepresented in STEM fields, including life sciences, and provide them an advantage as they pursue post-secondary opportunities and future careers with an already established professional network.

TAKEAWAYS:
Partnerships between schools and informal science organizations can support underrepresented students in pursuing post-secondary STEM opportunities. Pairing informal and formal science learning can build interest in STEM content, especially for students who are historically underrepresented in STEM fields. Co-collaboration of learning experiences leads to more robust, long-term partnerships.

SPEAKERS:
Claire Lannoye-Hall (Detroit Zoological Society: Royal Oak, MI)

Informal science can be found every day in the world around us. Visit exhibitors at the Share-a-thon to learn about many of those incredible examples.

SPEAKERS:
Brian Kutsch (National Science Teaching Association, eCYBERMISSION)

Informal science learning opportunities can be so much more than a trip to the zoo or museum. The resources available at informal learning organizations can greatly strengthen or supplement those at formal learning institutions. Collaboration is key to achieving such results. In many cases, those partnerships are strengthened through the creation of formalized teams or committees. Quite often, that’s where the struggle begins. Frequently, teams are not structured to react quickly to changes and they don’t mature in a manner that provides stability as they age. Whether starting from scratch or reenergizing an existing team, it’s important to recruit members with the right skills and resources, engage them effectively and layout a structure that allows them to succeed… even during times when you can’t be there to lead them. The guidance discussed in this session will provide attendees with successful tips and K-12 examples that they can take with them as they improve informal science in their communities.

TAKEAWAYS:
Tips on building teams from scratch, reorganizing existing teams and laying the path for continued success.

SPEAKERS:
Brian Kutsch (National Science Teaching Association, eCYBERMISSION)

Let's discuss the expansion and availability of geospatial data (arcGIS, EJScreen, CalAdapt) to examine environmental justice issues in their own community and create climate resilience action plans for an authentic audience (city council, school district, state lawmakers).

TAKEAWAYS:
Attendees will explore strategies for using geospatial data to examine, interpret, and act on place-based environmental justice issues in their communities.

SPEAKERS:
Nancy Metzger-Carter (Sonoma Academy: Santa Rosa, CA)

Sagan said that when kids are young, they cannot stop asking questions. By high school, they stop asking. This needs to change.

TAKEAWAYS:
Ways we can help students learn and retain science concepts, critical-thinking skills, and inquisitiveness using alternative approaches to teaching.

SPEAKERS:
Juan Bacigalupi (Eagle Hill School: Hardwick, MA)

Enjoy conversation about our research lesson collaboration with the University of Chicago Comprehensive Cancer Center EYES (Educators and Youth Enjoy Science) teacher research experience.

TAKEAWAYS:
Authentic teacher research experiences can catalyze students' career interest, authentic classroom inquiry, curriculum development, and relevant professional learning.

SPEAKERS:
Steven Rogg (Notre Dame College Prep: Niles, IL), Pamela Wagner (George Westinghouse College Prep: Chicago, IL)

We are living in an Age of Misinformation. Developing the capabilities to evaluate scientific information is a key goal of scientific literacy. Moreover, “obtaining, evaluating and communicating information” is a core practice of NGSS. The NGSS standards, however, were developed a decade ago before misinformation became so pervasive and were not developed to address this threat. Much of this misinformation is scientific. Therefore, this session will present a set of ideas and materials about how to address this challenge. These have emerged from a report developed at Stanford University drawing on the expertise of an international group of science educators, scientists and psychologists entitled “Science Education in an Age of Misinformation”. In this session, we will present the main arguments and recommendations of the report. Using a set of practical, web-based classroom examples, participants will work in small groups to trial and discuss the suggested teaching approaches and materials we have developed. Opportunities will be provided for feedback, questions and discussion in a final plenary. What we will present will empower teachers of science with ways they can support their students to avoid being misled by the purveyors of misinformation.

TAKEAWAYS:
Participants will learn what are the challenges posed by misinformation and what they can do to help science education address this challenge using practical examples of exercises and ionnovative teaching materials.

SPEAKERS:
Daniel Pimentel (Stanford University: Stanford, CA)

A challenge that STEM education presents to educators is how to stay current in an ever-evolving field to accurately represent and engage their students with new topics, activities, and careers. Too often STEM teachers become locked-in on a set of topics, activities, and careers because of the resources and opportunities to which they have access. After-school programs, and their ability to foster partnerships within a school’s larger STEM ecosystem, are one mechanism to open up STEM programs within schools to new topics, activities, and careers while offering avenues for professional growth and learning for the classroom teacher. By introducing the Science Olympiad program and the strategies used by our school participants for over three decades to build partnerships, connect to their STEM ecosystem, and expand learning we intend to help attendees draw parallels to their STEM ecosystems and their after-school programs. Building off of this information, attendees will analyze and discuss ways their STEM ecosystem can contribute to their STEM program, develop approaches for asking ecosystem members for support, and recognize opportunities to grow their STEM program through after-school programs. The session will close with a discussion of attendees’ specific challenges and issues ensuring attendees leave with actionable solutions.

TAKEAWAYS:
The big takeaway from this session will attendees examining their STEM ecosystem to identify potential partners who align with their programming and can support student learning.

SPEAKERS:
John Loehr (Science Olympiad: Oakbrook Terrace, IL)

Toshiba America Foundation wants to work together with teachers who are looking for a better way to engage the community in STEM. Participants will hear from educators that have won money for their school and communities to implement STEM action projects.

TAKEAWAYS:
Participants will learn how they can receive cash awards and acknowledge for STEM action projects.

SPEAKERS:
John Anderson (Toshiba America Foundation: Irvine, CA)

Culturally relevant pedagogy embodies a professional, political, cultural, ethnical, and ideological disposition that supersedes mundane teaching acts; it is centered in fundamental beliefs about teaching, learning, students, their families, and their communities, and an unyielding commitment to see student success become less rhetoric and more of a reality. This session will aid in building awareness and sensitivity to the culture-based genius that students bring to the classroom using science inquiry strategies. Emphasis will be placed on a model for the inclusion of culturally relevant content that accommodates student backgrounds and methods of learning. In this session, we will exhibit how to identify the key characteristics of culturally responsive lessons. Attendees will acquire lesson design methods that employ cultural competence and effective communication. Attendees will use collaborate boards during the presentation to respond and interact. Activities to exhibit how students identify with what they know in the classroom will be utilized to help educators make connections and apply this information when planning lessons.

TAKEAWAYS:
Building awareness and sensitivity to the culture-based genius that students bring to the classroom using science inquiry strategies. Emphasis will be placed on a model for the inclusion of culturally relevant content that accommodates student backgrounds and methods of learning.

SPEAKERS:
Kelly Haynes (Baker High School: Baker, LA), Jennifer Norwood (Instructional Support Specialist), Tara Hollins (Exceptional Student Services Educator: Zachary, LA)

Students find science difficult or non-stimulating particularly when teachers do not consider cognitive, physiological, and socio-emotional disparities in students. Research has shown that engaging the appropriate parts of the brain helps students make a long-lasting, personalized connection to scientific concepts and practices. Studies show that discipline and learning problems in our classrooms may be associated with a lack of student engagement. Engaged students are less likely to be disruptive and are more likely to retain information longer. The focus of this presentation is to equip teachers with the pedagogical skills and strategies needed to drive student engagement and achievement by recognizing and addressing physiological, cognitive, and socio-emotional disparities in students based on an understanding of how a learner’s brain works. Participating teachers will explore the impact of emotions, storytelling, culturally relevant and hands-on learning on the forebrain and consequently on student engagement and comprehension. Teachers will learn to correctly harness the learning power of the forebrain, particularly, those of the hippocampus and amygdala, by appropriately employing suitable learning strategies. These will enhance student engagement, improve learning outcomes and increase academic achievement in the sciences.

TAKEAWAYS:
Teachers will learn to correctly harness the learning power of the forebrain, particularly, those of the hippocampus and amygdala, by appropriately employing suitable learning strategies

SPEAKERS:
Chidi Duru (Prince George's County Public Schools: Upper Marlboro, MD)