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Earth and Space Science

Teaching lost space

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LeAnne Henry LeAnne Henry 835 Points

Im currently receiving my teaching license and I love Earth and Space.  Currently I feel even though it is a standard in my state that this knowledge is lost to just the basic knowledge.  We just landed a rover on Mars and not one student that I work with as a TA even knew about the event. Since our space program was shut down I feel the interest and excitement has been lost.  How can I as new and future teacher bring back the excitement, more knowledge and interest in space? 
Cheryl Manning Cheryl Manning 580 Points

Hi LeAnne,

As a 26 year veteran passionate Earth & Space Science teacher, I am thrilled to learn of your enthusiasm! Welcome to our little club. Even though Earth & Space standards have been in place for high school since 1996, the number of teachers who have degrees in the subject is disappointing. According to the National Science Foundation, only 3% of secondary science teachers have degrees in one of the Earth sciences. Because of this, the class is often taught by people who lack the fundamental knowledge and passion for the subject. There are exceptions of course.

To get started, connect with other Earth & Space science teachers and science researchers. Both the National Earth Science Teachers Association (NESTA is more k12 focused) and the National Association of Geoscience Teachers (NAGT is more college focused) actively promote geoscience education. NAGT has a lot of resources and ways to connect on their website. NESTA has a brand new website. The two organizations cooperate and collaborate on many efforts including the Outstanding Earth Science Teacher of the Year, the Earth Educator Redezvous, Earth Science Week (an effort of the American Geosciences Institute, AGI), and many other endeavors. 

I also recommend checking to see what kinds of supports exist in your state and district. There may be very few, however, you can reach out to environmental consulting firms, local water treatment facilities, state geological surveys, mineral and energy companies, and offices of federal agencies (USGS, USFS, EPA, NASA, NOAA, BLM, DOE, etc) to support your ongoing learning and the learning of your students. 

Good luck to you!

Cheryl Manning, Evergreen, Colorado
Andrew Fraknoi Andrew Fraknoi 730 Points

Dear LeAnne:

It's great that you are enthusiastic about space and I hope you will continue to share that enthusiasm with your peers and your future students. While some parts of our human spaceflight program have been cut back, the exploration of our solar system and beyond is not shut down at all. There are very exciting missions happening right now and on the drawing board. 

Astronomers are working hard to develop startegies to share the excitement of our exploration with teachers and students.  (Interestingly, the immediate past president of NSTA, Dennis Schatz, is an astronomer who has devoted most of his career to developing projects and activities to convey astronomy to students at all levels.)

One organization you should know about is the Astronomical Society of the Pacific, which, since 1889, has devoted itself to astronomy education and outreach.  See the many educational programs and resources at their website: http://astrosociety.org   Check out 'The Universe at Your Fingertips 2.0' -- a collection of hundreds of classroom-tested, hands-on, space activities and resources that I had the privilege of editing.  It is available at: https://myasp.astrosociety.org/product/DV122/the-universe-at-your-fingertips-20-dvd-rom 

Both the NSTA and NASA libraries have lots of good material as well.

Please don't lose your enthusiasm as you finish your certification and get into a position of helping students.  They will thank you all their lives if you open up a fascination for them for the worlds beyond our small planet.
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