ED33B-02
Creating Lecture Tutorials for the Introductory Geoscience Classroom with Data Found on the Digital Library for Earth System Education (DLESE) Website
Lecture Tutorials (LTs) are short, interactive materials used during lectures that guide student learning and challenge students to think about their own misconceptions. They are designed to be used by instructors as a simple way to increase the amount of interactive learning in their classroom. We developed several geoscience LTs, using data sets found on the Digital Library for Earth System Education (DLESE) website when possible, in order to address the problems of student misconceptions and lack of appreciation of science. After a short lecture, the students were given 3 to 4 multiple choice questions about the material covered. They then worked in groups on an LT, participated in a class discussion and answered a second similar question set to test for additional learning. Based on the results of one author's students, the materials were revised and retested with the other's students. Student interviews were conducted to determine the role data sets played in changing student attitudes toward science. LTs in this study were written with two different purposes. One set focused on data interpretation and scientific methods using real-world data sets found on DLESE. We found little to no increase in pre-LT and post-LT performance on the question sets when these LTs were used. The other set of LTs specifically tackled misconceptions about a single geologic topic. Students showed a significant increase in pre-LT and post-LT learning based on the questions sets when these LTs were used. LTs that successfully decreased student misconceptions did not require the use of real-world data sets. We identified several factors influencing student performance on the pre- and post-LT questions, in addition to whether or not the LT focused on including data sets or tackling misconceptions. The distracters in the questions need to include the student misconceptions to verify the students have changed their understanding. This demonstrates a need for a large database of well-written and tested questions to use for evaluation purposes. If lectures are well-designed, effective, and address the focus of the LT, then the increase in student performance on the questions is reduced. However, students still have difficulties with not changing their previously-held conceptions which shows why the LTs are so effective when they address misconceptions - misconceptions cannot be overcome by simply listening to a lecture.
ED33B-03
Critical Elements of Scientist-Teacher Partnerships and Lessons Learned About Partnership Program Design
Partnerships between scientists and K-12 teachers have the potential for long-term impacts, but there are many barriers to forming sustainable relationships between these two work environment cultures. By analyzing data from an NSF GK-12 program that pairs graduate and undergraduate students (fellows) with K-12 teachers, we identified several key attributes of effective partnerships. Our data indicate that communicating openly about goals, roles, and dissatisfaction is the foundation of successful partnership evolution. Although it was possible to develop strong communication, goals, and roles over time, partnership pairs that achieved these elements through deliberate and early action experienced less frustration than those who did not. Undefined goals and roles represented major barriers to partnership formation. Often, dissatisfaction was related to one partner perceiving the other as being uninvested in the relationship. Direct communication about dissatisfaction was rare, but the majority of fellows and teachers who discussed their frustrations benefited. Communicating openly demonstrated partners' desire and commitment to collaborate and led to increased planning time, a shared division of labor, the exchange of scientific and pedagogical resources, and the development of new knowledge and skills. Program design is an influential factor in developing sustainable partnerships as well. We will give examples of how the GK-12 program studied has been modified over the last five years to promote the partnership characteristics that we identified. We will also discuss program elements that facilitate communication, goal setting, role definition, and planning time.
ED33B-04
STEREO-IMPACT E/PO at NASA's Sun-Earth Day Event: Participation in Total Eclipse 2006 Webcast
The Solar Terrestrial Relations Observatory (STEREO) is planned for launch in late Summer 2006. STEREO will study the Sun with two spacecraft in orbit around the Sun moving on opposite sides of Earth. The primary science goal is to understand the nature of Coronal Mass Ejections (CMEs). This presentation will focus on one of the informal education efforts of our E/PO program for the IMPACT instrument suite aboard STEREO. We will share our participation in NASA's Sun-Earth Day event which is scheduled to coincide with a total solar eclipse in March and is titled In a Different Light. We will show how this live eclipse Webcast, which reaches thousands of science center attendees, can inspire the public to observe, understand and be part of the Sun-Earth-Moon system. We will present video clips of STEREO-IMPACT team members Janet Luhmann and Nahide Craig participating in the Exploratorium's live Webcast of the 2006 solar eclipse on location from Side, Turkey, and the experiences and remarks of the other STEREO scientist from the path of totality from Africa.
<a href='http://cse.ssl.berkeley.edu/impact/'>http://cse.ssl.berkeley.edu/impact/</a>
ED33B-05
Using the Magnetopause Standoff Distance as a Topic for an Undergraduate Physics Lab
Integrating current space physics concepts and research into the general physics classroom at the undergraduate level is a challenge for space physics researchers. Much of the difficulty of this transition lies in finding problems that undergraduates will be able to comprehend, despite the fact that they likely have not had any exposure to plasma and space physics. The standoff distance of the magnetopause is one space physics problem which allows for relatively simple analysis. At a basic level, the magnetopause standoff distance can be modeled as being caused by a pressure balance between the dynamic pressure of the solar wind and the magnetic pressure of the magnetopause. This simple model can be used as a jumping off point in introducing students to more complicated theories concerning the magnetopause location, to global simulations that show the magnetopause location, and to spacecraft data showing magnetopause crossings. In this paper we present our experience with using the magnetopause as a subject for lab for sophomore physics majors. Our students examine standoff distance in simulation results using the BAT-R-US global MHD from the University of Michigan which we run at NASA's Community Coordinated Modeling Center. The students also analyze data from several spacecraft to find magnetopause crossings.
ED33B-06
DSPRU Project at NSU: Evolution of Basic, Mantle-crust Granitoid Ore-magmatic Systems Resulting in Pt-Cu-Ni, Cu-Mo-porphiric and Epithermal Au-Ag Ore-bearing Mineralization.
Education and Human Resources are one of the most important priorities of the Russian Government policy nowadays. This work covers the principally new Project of the Ministry for Russian Science and Education: 'Development of Scientific Potential for Russian Universities' (DSPRU). The purposes of the Project are:\\ 1) to involve university students to research in most urgent problems of fundamental science;\\ 2) to enhance the professional development of Russian educators;\\ 3) to interest the most perspective researches in education process at Russian universities;\\ 4) to broaden the educational process involving to the Project foreign students, educators and researchers.\\ All the State Universities in Russia could participate in the Project (with the exception of Moscow State University, whose employees were the Project experts). At Novosibirsk State University (NSU) research teams of 13 Departments applied for the Project. Only 5 Projects turned out to be successful. From the Department of Geology and Geophysics 9 Projects were applied and the only one won: 'Evolution of Basic, Mantle-crust Granitoid Ore-magmatic Systems Resulting in Pt-Cu-Ni, Cu-Mo-porphiric and Epithermal Au-Ag Ore-bearing Mineralization'. The team of the above-mentioned Project includes:\\ - nine university educators\\ - five researchers from the Institutes of Siberian Branch of Russian Academy of Sciences\\ - four PhD students\\ - eight undergraduate students. The expecting results of the Project are:\\ 1) obtaining new data for natural objects covered by the Project (Siberia, Mongolia, China, South Africa, Morocco);\\ 2) creation of mathematical models of evolution for fluid ore-magmatic systems of various geochemical character and productivity;\\ 3) improving the education process at the Department of Geology and Geophysics of NSU (creation of new courses and publications, professional development of the educators, participation of students and young researchers in scientific conferences). The work was supported by the Ministry for Russian Science and Education, Grant DSP.2.1.1.702.
ED33B-07
A History of Precession Dissipation Energy
I am not an historian, but here are a few of my remembrances of my 78 years. Precession theory and application had its formal beginning by Euler in 1758 to define rotation of rigid objects. A short burst of interest, theory, and application for precession and planetary motion and gyroscopes started around the1800s. Precession theory blossomed in the 1960s by the Soviet-American contest for space exploration and the contest for a geodynamo model. Precession interest then followed separate paths. Aerospace research introduced precession dissipation energy by America's 1958 satellite (Explorer I) where an instability was seen. Its antennae dissipated energy by material hysteresis. Liquid dissipation in precessing satellites became a major difficulty for designers, and physical experiments became the prime solution. Precession dissipation energy rates are difficult and expensive to measure, see Vanyo, "Rotating Fluids …", 1993 Butterworth-Heinemann (2001 Dover), p.318. Geophysical research introduced nutation and precession by luni-solar forces. Luni-solar precession dissipation energy had become the criteria for adequacy for a geodynamo. Roberts and Busse both examined viscous models, but an attempt by Malkus (1968) for a viscous and magnetic model did not success. A precession model by Vanyo-Likins (1972) derived an aerospace application for dissipation energy. Rochester et al (1975) and Loper (1975) claimed that precession energy was inadequate for a geodynamo, but formal criteria were never published. The 1975 papers by Rochester et al and Loper were in error. Their estimate for precession energy rate is off by 4 magnitudes. New research now supports energetic precession geodynamo models, e.g., articles for precession experiments that have adequate geodynamo energy rates, articles for core-mantle motions that show geomagnetic CMB patterns, articles for viscous-electromagnetic analyses that show precession core-mantle coupling, and articles for computer simulations that have achieved laminar and turbulent precession geodynamo models. Please, by e-mail, ask for a survey of solutions and problems.