I have one student whose knowledge of Earth and space exceeds the other students in class. I feel like I just keep giving him more work, more extension activities, and I think he is getting frustrated. Do you have any suggestions for how to deal with this? How do I grade this kind of assignment? —S., Virginia
Assigning more work to an extremely bright student is not the answer, so kudos for looking for something else! Run this by your principal for approval: Ask the student to propose a project— either long- or short-term —related to the class. The possibilities are almost limitless: videos, a lesson, models, public displays, reviews, and more. Can you find a geologist, astronomer, or other professional that could act as a mentor or be interviewed? Negotiate a grading scheme with benchmarks and expectations for the final “product” or assessment.
Options to reach a fair grade:
Have the child complete all the work the rest of the class is handing in and use the project as extra credit.
Replace the regular work with this project—this puts the onus on the student to follow through. Align the project with your curriculum and create a rubric to share with the student and his family. If a mentor is involved, you should have a direct communication with him or her about expectations and share the assessment piece. Set the bar high, but make sure he isn’t penalized for pushing himself. If the project doesn’t meet all your expectations, ask yourself, “What grade would I record if any other student handed me this work?”
The Science Center of Iowa in Des Moines began an on-site preschool shortly after its doors opened in 1970, inspired by the founders’ belief in the importance of science education for early childhood learners.
Children have the capacity and propensity to observe and explore the world around them from an early age. To foster these innate abilities, students must be provided with STEM (science, technology, engineering, and math) experiences early in life to begin forging learning pathways in their brains. These learning pathways help the brain channel new information through prior experiences (Harris Helm 2015).
The Science Center of Iowa (SCI) fuses early STEM education for young children with an on-site preschool. The mission of the SCI is to engage and inspire Iowans along their journey of lifelong science learning. SCI believes that science education for early childhood learners is important to the start of that journey, and thus established an active on-site preschool shortly after the museum opened in 1970. Since then, more than 3,000 curious, energetic young STEM learners have experimented, created, and explored both at the SCI Preschool and within the walls of the museum itself. Daily opportunities to interact with exhibits and museum staff makes this preschool unique, and graduates feel a deep connection to the organization and its philosophy of education. In June 2016, SCI Preschool alum Alissa Campbell wrote:
This May, I graduated from Iowa State University with a B.S. in Microbiology and a B.S. in Genetics, both with honors. I am blessed with the opportunity to attend Harvard Medical School this fall. I want you to know that everything you did for this little blue-eyed girl with platinum blonde curls and an obsession with knowing how everything around her worked mattered. Your work contributed to my foundational love of science, and that love will last a lifetime.
SCI and Our Philosophy
A preschool staff member demonstrates how to use a stencil.
SCI Preschool is a state-licensed child care center adhering to National Association for the Education of Young Children (NAEYC) regulations. Four on-site classrooms provide space for three full-day and three part-day classes serving 112 students annually.
Well-educated and caring, certified teachers set the tone for the classroom experience.
SCI Preschool staff fall into one of four classifications: director, master teacher, teacher, and part-time teacher. The SCI preschool director is required to have a master’s degree in education. The director assumes full responsibility for administration of preschool operations, including staff management, parental support, and management of daily operations, as well as serving as a link between the preschool and the science center. The director models and guides teachers in pedagogy and procedures, designs the annual budget and business plan, and coordinates family events, among other programmatic and administrative duties. The assistant director manages schedules, tracks expenses, orders supplies, and teaches a part-time class. Master teachers, who are required to have a bachelor’s degree in education and typically a concentration in early childhood, serve as the lead in their classrooms. Their role includes establishing the classroom environment, creating lesson plans, assessing students and collecting documentation through observation, communicating with parents, and, of course, educating young minds. Teachers and part-time teachers assist the master teacher in the classroom.
Healthy partnerships between parents and the school provide the best early experience possible for a young child. Research indicates that children have a better attitude and tend to succeed more in school when their families are involved in their education. Parents or guardians are also more aware of their child’s social and intellectual state and more confident in their parenting skills and decision-making abilities. Parent involvement also benefits the school, as parents are more likely to heed teachers’ plans and recommendations (Olsen and Fuller 2008).
Creative Curriculum and the Project Approach
The SCI Preschool uses the Creative Curriculum, a developmentally appropriate early childhood curriculum with a framework designed for young children’s optimal learning and development. The curriculum emphasizes the intersection of appropriate environment and schedule with positive teacher and child interactions to support the growth of the whole child in development and content knowledge, including social/emotional, cognitive, physical, language, literacy, math, social studies, science, and the arts. This curriculum, along with the Project Approach method, is implemented in each classroom.
A preschooler creates a model using clay and straws.
The Project Approach is a method of teaching in which the class conducts an in-depth investigation on a particular topic. Children study one topic for an extended period of time, lasting four to eight weeks on average. The selected topic should be broad enough for multiple avenues of expansion, interest, and relevance to the children’s lives. Topics that have been investigated include pizza, juice, ice cream, bees, trains, movies, and shoes. These topics were successful because they were close to the children’s self, meaning that they were related to something that they see or do in their everyday lives. This investigation and engagement guides early learners to explore surprisingly deep concepts. Teachers also integrate content knowledge such as math, reading, and science into their project studies. In project work, the children ask questions and formulate their own plans to find the answers, with the assistance of the teachers. For their projects, students plan interview questions, look at books, draw and write what they observe, and create plans for building structures and play environments. Field site visits and expert guest speakers are often also included in project learning. As the children learn, they will redraw, rewrite and record their findings in the form of posters, murals, artwork, graphs and charts, constructions, models, and journals (Harris Helm and Katz 2016).
Enhancing Education With Museum Resources
Small Discoveries includes a kitchen with table, magnetic farm scene, working milk cow, food store, checkout, and many other experiences.
Preschoolers have daily immersion in a STEM-oriented environment through museum exhibits, programs, and shared expertise. Within the Project Approach, the museum’s exhibits act as a continuous field site visit. These visits allow children to play, draw, ask questions, and reflect about what they have learned. SCI’s Small Discoveries exhibit was designed with this type of learner in mind. After viewing this exhibit, preschoolers became interested in the exhibit’s new milking cow. This class of four- and five-year-olds spent several weeks studying dairy cows and milk products, which eventually led them to think about ice cream. Several children posed the question, “What are all the kinds of ice cream?” From there, they asked how Dippin’ Dots were made. Their teacher engaged SCI program staff to help them answer this question.
Expert visitors are another important element of the Project Approach model. Experts interested in and comfortable with working with preschool children can be challenging to find. SCI has a pool of on-site experts on subjects such as chemistry, animals, construction, nature, and other STEM topics. As the preschoolers develop relationships with the SCI program presenters, they become more likely to ask deeper questions and see the staff as science mentors. One program offered to the public is called Fire and Ice. This program includes several experiments that use liquid nitrogen to demonstrate thermodynamics. Program presenters are trained to handle these materials safely and were able to adapt this program to demonstrate how Dippin’ Dots are made.
Shared Staff Development and Expertise
The relationship between SCI and its preschool is one that nurtures collaboration and professional learning that benefits students, staff, and visitors alike. This blended community creates a rich environment of idea sharing, innovation, and support that can be seen in many aspects of the museum.
An SCI staff member answers questions about hermit crabs.
Liesl Downs has worked at SCI since summer 2014. She was initially hired as a camp counselor and was able to join the Preschool team at the beginning of the 2014–15 school year. After earning a bachelor’s degree from Iowa State University in elementary education with a concentration in early childhood and special education, Liesl gained additional critical skills during her time working at the camp that have supported her transition to the preschool. These skills include working with a coteacher, communicating with families, locating resources in the science center, using exhibits to enhance lessons, and building relationships with other staff members.
Originally hired in 2015 as a summer resident maker at SCI, Ellie Willhoit has also worked for SCI as a program coordinator and preschool educator. During her first few weeks at the preschool, Ellie quickly learned strategies for managing groups of students in the classroom. Some techniques were learned through trial and error, whereas some came from interactions with the early childhood director and other preschool teachers. In turn, Ellie also has been a STEM resource for the teachers in the preschool. In Liesl’s classroom, students were working on a project centered around hermit crabs. The goal of this project, like many others, was to cultivate early skills, such as learning to ask questions, recording data, using tools and technology, doing observational drawing (taking notes), designing experiments, and gaining basic content knowledge about living things within a topic that relates to the children’s world. Program staff who work with the museum’s animals came and spoke to the class about the difference between a hermit crab, which is a crustacean, and a snail, which is a gastropod. Students became especially interested in the shell that hermit crabs carry on their backs. Ellie spoke with the class to ask what characteristics they had observed a shell would need to be suitable for a hermit crab to inhabit. She took students’ ideas, designed their shell on her computer, and then brought a 3-D printer into the classroom so students could watch it print. After printing was complete, Ellie showed them how to cut away the support structures to reveal the shell. Students were able to hold the shell and measure it against one of the crabs. They decided the shell was too big and worked with Ellie on a redesigned structure. Liesl, who had never used a 3-D printer before, gained an understanding of how one could be useful in the classroom. Students learned that a 3-D printer can be used to create something that was designed on a computer. A few preschool parents even reported that their students consequently asked for a 3-D printer of their own.
Preschoolers use the GoPro to observe hermit crabs.
The activity later led the class to wonder what hermit crabs did at night after students left. Liesl spoke with SCI staff to find a solution. Having used GoPro cameras for other projects, the education specialist brought a camera into the class. It was set up in the crab’s habitat to livestream the crab’s actions and observe its interactions with its environment. The GoPro allowed the preschoolers to answer their question in an authentic way, like a real scientist would observe and record data.
Challenges Faced
Because the preschool is in the science center, students are out in public spaces more often than children in more traditional preschool settings. Safety is a core value of both SCI and the SCI Preschool. Classrooms are located in a secure wing of the facility with access restricted to preschool staff members. An enhanced security system is in place that can lock down the preschool and notify others in the case of an emergency. When children go into the Science Center, they wear lab coats so that they can be easily identified as students.
Communication can be a challenge due to the nature of a running an early childhood care center. As a result, an increased sense of urgency is placed on communication about shared spaces, staff, and materials. The preschool director attends all SCI leadership meetings and is part of the Science Learning Division of the organization, which, in addition to the preschool, includes internal and external programming, exhibits, and formal education partnerships. The preschool director acts as a constant liaison for increased communication, understanding of differing process, and diligence in safety.
Evaluation
Formal evaluation looks different in settings that are focused on young learners. SCI believes that authentic assessment, as real-time observation, is critical to providing support for continuous improvement. This is replicated in overall program evaluation, which uses a multilayered approach to evaluate the program, teachers, and learners.
The NAEYC requires robust evaluation for their accredited programs; including conducting a self-study and assessment and meeting the highest program standards for quality and early learning. The accreditation process consists of an on-site review, program portfolio assessment, and parent feedback evaluation. In addition to the NAEYC evaluation, a quarterly family survey is conducted to assess curriculum impact, teacher and director quality interaction, and facility/environment. The SCI Preschool believes that parents are their child’s first and most important teachers, and as such, they are valued as true partners in the preschool program. Feedback is analyzed and examined by SCI’s executive team and the preschool’s Parent Advisory Committee. In the 2017 survey, results showed that 98% of responding families believed that communication was ongoing and clear and that staff had knowledge and expertise that was current with best practices for high-quality care. Families indicated they would like their children to have more opportunities for learning in physical fitness, languages, and art. We included these elements in our plan for the future, along with an action plan to incorporate adult volunteers with expertise in these three areas to lead lessons each month.
Learners are evaluated using Teaching Strategies Gold, an online observation-based assessment approach aligned with the Creative Curriculum, to analyze each child’s progress in the development of social, physical, language, cognitive, science, math, literacy, and arts abilities. The results are shared twice a year in parent–teacher conferences, which include discussion about assessments and goal setting. The SCI Preschool uses these assessments to guide daily instruction and provide extra support for children’s individual needs. According to 2016–2017 school year assessments, the percentage of SCI preschoolers who reached kindergarten readiness targets in all learning domains increased from 80% in the fall to 95% by spring.
Comparison With Other Science Center Preschools
Although the Science Center of Iowa is one of the longest-running preschools based at a science center, it is not the only one. Over the years, SCI’s preschool has received numerous inquiries from museums, cultural institutions, and science centers across the United States, all of whom were seeking to emulate our model. Other institutions have asked for information about SCI Preschool’s structure, security, procedures, and routines, and they have also requested to observe our spaces and speak to our administrators. At the Orlando Science Center (OSC), an on-site preschool was opened in 2009. OSC operates four preschool classes with a maximum capacity of 72 students, frequently operating with a waitlist. The OSC Preschool is an approved voluntary prekindergarten provider in the state of Florida, which allows children who are four years old by September 1 to be eligible for state funding for preschool. According to Heather Norton, vice president of education at OSC, “Our STEM preschool allows us to foster a love of science at a very early age and capitalize on the natural curiosity of young children.” In 2015, the Indianapolis Museum of Art’s (IMA) preschool opened with a commitment to serve diverse families in a museum setting. Annually, the IMA program welcomes children ages 3–5 for part-time and full-day experiences. The organization is focused on maintaining a needs-based scholarship component to reach children in poverty.
Preschoolers engage in an activity about circuits.
Preschools within science centers and other cultural institutions are still uncommon, but their popularity is increasing. Heidi Davis-Soylu of IMA believes that the arrangement is mutually beneficial to both the preschool and the institution: “Preschoolers bring a terrific energy to the building and have helped unite departments internally, such as the relationships they have built with security guards.”
Preschool and SCI Sustainability
SCI believes that the primary role of a preschool is to support the first steps in a child’s journey of learning. All preschool families are required to purchase memberships to the Science Center of Iowa, which supports the museum as a whole. The museum becomes a place for the entire family to enjoy. Children have access to their school and have opportunities to share their learning spaces and work with their families any day of the week. Museum research shows that “the primary catalyst for causing an individual to visit a museum in the present are events that happened in the past,” which is to say that positive first experiences at a museum generally entice visitors to return (Falk 2009). In this sense, the preschool can be seen as an investment by SCI in the center as a whole.
The SCI Preschool also partners with Des Moines Public Schools through the Statewide Voluntary Preschool Program (SVPP). These partnerships keep SCI Preschool enrollment consistent and accessible. This program, specifically for four-year-olds, promotes the availability of early childhood education for all students. The partnership provides families with funding for 10 hours of preschool per week during the school year. In addition, SVPP provides access to support for needs such as speech therapy, behavioral support, and developmental delays. This partnership aides in financial and resource sustainability of the SCI Preschool and allows access to families who may otherwise not be financially able to attend.
Fueling a Lifelong Commitment to Science
Sustained engagement is a concept that museums of all kinds are working to establish and maintain. To achieve sustained engagement, museums must seek new ways to stay relevant, attract and retain visitors, and secure their position as important cultural institutions (Everett and Barrett 2009). Through its on-site preschool, SCI strives to establish a personal connection with students that is unique and ongoing throughout different stages of life. Nearly 25% of preschool families maintain their membership for more than five years after their child’s graduation. Of those, approximately 20% continue to purchase memberships to SCI for 10 years or more. This shows a lasting connection between Preschool families and the museum.
Rhiley Binns, a current SCI programs coordinator, attended the SCI Preschool as a young child. Rhiley continues to feel a personal connection to the museum where she spent so much time during her youth. She thinks of SCI as “her school.” Rhiley studied science throughout her life and earned a bachelor of science in biology. During her summers, she led summer camps as a seasonal camp counselor at SCI. Upon graduation, she gained nonprofit experience and eventually became a full-time SCI employee. Rhiley now works as a programs coordinator specializing in astronomy and occasionally works in the preschool, helping young minds grow and develop in a STEM-rich learning environment. Perhaps right now at the preschool, Rhiley is working with a future scientist, business leader, SCI staff member, or a curious learner who will continue to be amazed and ask questions that can be answered at a local science museum.
Amber Forrest (amber.forrest@sciowa.org) is director of early childhood at the Science Center of Iowa in Des Moines, Iowa. Jolie Pelds (jolie.pelds@sciowa.org) is director of innovative STEM teaching at the Science Center of Iowa in Des Moines, Iowa. Renee Harmon (renee.harmon@sciowa.org) is vice president of science learning at the Science Center of Iowa in Des Moines, Iowa.
Everett, M., and M.S. Barrett. 2009. Investigating sustained visitor/museum relationships: Employing narrative research in the field of museum visitor studies. Visitor Studies 12 (1): 2–15.
Falk, J.H. 2009. Identity and the museum visitor experience. Walnut Creek, CA: Left Coast Press.
Harris Helm, J. 2015. Becoming young thinkers: Deep project work in the classroom. New York: Teachers College Press.
Harris Helm, J., and L. Katz. 2016. Young investigators: The project approach in the early years. New York: Teachers College Press.
Olsen, G., and M.L. Fuller, eds. 2008. Home-school relations: Working successfully with parents and families. Boston: Pearson Education.
The Science Center of Iowa in Des Moines began an on-site preschool shortly after its doors opened in 1970, inspired by the founders’ belief in the importance of science education for early childhood learners.
The Science Center of Iowa in Des Moines began an on-site preschool shortly after its doors opened in 1970, inspired by the founders’ belief in the importance of science education for early childhood learners.
As many high schools begin adopting curricula that include the study of microorganisms, biosafety must be addressed for a safer lab experience.
Biohazards are biologically derived infectious materials, which may present a risk to other living things. Such hazards can enter the body through such places as the eyes, mouth, lungs, and open wounds. Unlike chemical hazards, biohazards can reproduce and spread infection throughout the body. Categories of biohazards include
• human, animal, and plant pathogens: bacteria, fungi, viruses, parasites, rickettsiae, chlamydiae, toxins;
• human and animal blood, blood products, tissues, and body fluids;
• cultured cells and potentially infectious agents within them;
• allergens;
• recombinant DNA products; and
• clinical, necropsy, and surgical specimens (e.g., tissues, fluids).
Biosafety in the lab
Biosafety protocols developed by the Center for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) can reduce or eliminate teachers’ and students’ risk of exposure to potentially hazardous agents. The four biosafety levels (BSLs) consist of combinations of laboratory practices and techniques, safety equipment, and laboratory facilities and are specific to operations performed, transmission of infectious agents, and laboratory functions. The BSLs are described as:
• BSL1: No known or minimal potential hazard of exposure to infectious agents.
• BSL2: Moderate potential hazard with low risk of exposure to infectious agents.
• BSL3: Moderate risk of exposure to agents that can cause serious or potentially lethal disease.
• BSL4: High risk of exposure to dangerous agents that cause life-threatening disease.
K–12 science teachers should only conduct activities with BSL1-level hazards, whereas college instructors can use higher level biohazards. This designation is based on safety equipment, practices, facility design, and construction. Laboratory work using BSL1 hazards is done with defined, characterized strains and non-disease-carrying microorganisms (e.g., Bacillus subtilus, Naegleria gruberi).
Working with a BSL1-level hazard only requires handwashing after use of the biohazard. Lab work at BSL1 is generally conducted on open bench tops using standard microbiological protocol. Students must have special training in microbiological laboratory protocol, with oversight by the science teacher.
Recommended protocols
Although organisms at BSL1 pose a low risk for laboratory use, most microorganisms used in the microbiology are capable of causing an infection. To minimize the risk of infection, teachers should follow the best practices and train students in the proper handling of microorganisms.
Personal protection requirements
• Wear indirectly vented chemical splash safety goggles when handling liquid cultures, when performing procedures that may create a splash hazard, or when spread plating (a method for isolating and enumerating microorganisms in a mixed culture and distributing it evenly on a slide).
• Wear closed-toe shoes.
• Wear gloves when the student’s hands have fresh cuts or abrasions, when staining microbes, and when handling hazardous chemicals.
• Clean hands thoroughly prior to and immediately after handling microorganisms and any time that microbes accidentally touch the skin.
• Wear laboratory coats.
Laboratory physical space requirements
• Require all laboratory space to include:
o nonporous floor, bench tops, chairs, and stools.
o sink for hand washing.
o eyewash station.
• Keep personal belongings away from the work area.
• Use a working and validated autoclave.
Stock culture requirements
• Only use cultures from authorized, commercial, or reputable sources (e.g., an academic laboratory or state health department).
• Do not subculture unknown microbes isolated from the environment because they may be organisms that require BSL2 practices and facilities.
• Obtain fresh stock cultures of microorganisms annually to be certain of the source culture, minimize spontaneous mutations, and reduce contamination.
Guidelines for biosafety in the lab
• Do not handle personal items (e.g., cosmetics, cell phones) while in the lab.
• Do not put pipette in mouth.
• Label all containers clearly.
• Keep door closed while the laboratory is in session.
• Use leak-proof containers for storage and transport of infectious materials.
• Arrange for proper decontamination and disposal of contaminated material (e.g., in a properly maintained and validated autoclave) or arrange for waste removal in accordance with local, state, and federal guidelines.
• Sweep any glass with broom and dustpan.
• Notify instructor of all spills or injuries.
• Document all injuries according to school, university, or college policy.
• Use only institution-provided marking pens and writing instruments.
• Teach, practice, and enforce the proper wearing and use of gloves.
• Advise immunocompromised students (including those who are pregnant) and students living with or caring for an immunocompromised individual to consult physicians about participation in the laboratory.
• Keep note-taking and discussion practices separate from work with hazardous or infectious material.
Training practices
• Conduct extensive initial training of handling biohazards for instructors and student assistants.
• Require students and instructors to safely and responsibly handle microorganisms.
• Inform students of safety precautions relevant to each exercise.
• Emphasize to students the importance of reporting accidental spills and exposures.
Document practices
• Require students to sign safety agreements about the hazards of the organisms they will handle throughout the course.
• Maintain student-signed safety agreements at the institution.
• Prepare, maintain, and post proper signage.
• Document all injuries and spills. Follow the school’s policy, if available.
• Make Safety Data Sheets available at all times. Follow institutional documentation guidelines regarding number of copies.
• Post emergency procedures and updated contact information in the laboratory.
• Maintain and make available (e.g., in a syllabus, laboratory manual, or online) to all students a list of all cultures (and their sources) used in the course.
Blood borne pathogens
The Occupational Safety and Health Administration (29 CFR 1910.1030) requires employers to have an exposure control plan in place if exposure to blood borne pathogens is likely. Blood borne pathogens include viruses, bacteria, and parasites present in blood or other body fluids. Students can be exposed to the pathogens via laboratory work. For the high school science laboratory, an exposure control plan must be in place.
Submit questions regarding safety in K–12 to Ken Roy at safesci@sbcglobal.net or leave him a comment below. Follow Ken Roy on Twitter: @drroysafersci.
As many high schools begin adopting curricula that include the study of microorganisms, biosafety must be addressed for a safer lab experience.
Biohazards are biologically derived infectious materials, which may present a risk to other living things. Such hazards can enter the body through such places as the eyes, mouth, lungs, and open wounds. Unlike chemical hazards, biohazards can reproduce and spread infection throughout the body. Categories of biohazards include
House Education and Workforce Chair Virginia Fox introduced a bill to reauthorize the Higher Education Act (HEA) last week, and her committee will be meeting to mark up the bill on Tuesday, December 12.
H.R. 4508 (115), the “Promoting Real Opportunity, Success, and Prosperity though Education Reform (PROSPER) Act,” would change how students apply for federal aid for college, and streamline the information about colleges that the federal government would provide. Most notably for K-12 educators, the bill would make changes to teacher education by repealing HEA Title II, eliminating the Teacher Quality Partnership (TQP) grant program (currently funded at $43.1m), and eliminating the Title II data reporting.
Currently the bill has no Democratic cosponsors. A Democratic version of HEA reauthorization is expected out after the markup next week. Senator Lamar Alexander, chairman of the Senate Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions Committee, has indicated that Senate legislation to reauthorize HEA will be a priority early in the New Year.
Budget Deal at Year’s End? New StopGap Measure Keeps Govt Open till Dec. 22
On Thursday, December 7, Congress passed another stopgap funding measure that will keep the government open until Dec. 22 in the hopes that leaders can agree to a budget deal by year’s end. The prior spending agreement was scheduled to expire on Dec. 8.
Leaders from both the Senate and House are meeting with President Trump to hammer out a final budget deal and overall spending levels, including the possibility of raising or eliminating the sequestration budget caps currently on many domestic programs.
NSTA joined education colleagues last week in a letter to senators asking them to “raise the sequester-level discretionary caps and ensure that any increases in the defense spending caps are matched with equal increases in the Non-Defense Discretionary (NDD) spending caps” and to “make critical investments in education programs such as the Student Support and Academic Enrichment (SSAE) Grant Program under Title IV-A of the Every Student Succeeds Act (ESSA).”
Issues such as the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals program, and the final push to finish the tax plan (see below) are also in play during these budget negotiations.
The stopgap measure will provide funding for the federal government through Dec. 22, meaning that a pre-Christmas, close the government budget showdown is likely. Stay tuned.
What’s in the Tax Bill for Education?
Congressional negotiations continue over the two versions of the tax bill; here are the key differences in the House and Senate bills on education programs:
Deduction for school supplies: The House plan eliminates the provision that allows K-12 teachers to deduct up to $250 that they spend on their classes. The Senate bill would allow teachers to deduct up to $500.
Expanding 529s: Both the House and Senate plans would expand section 529 college savings accounts to cover K-12 expenses of up to $10,000 per year. The Senate plan would allow 529s to pay for children to attend public, private and religious K-12 schools, and cover the costs of home schooling. The House version does not include home schooling.
Taxing graduate students: The House plan calls for taxing as income tuition that is waived for graduate students working as teaching or research assistants. The Senate plan has no such tax.
Deduction for student loan interest: The House plan would scrap a deduction for student loan interest; the Senate version protects this deduction.
Taxing endowments: Both the House and Senate bills have language that would create new taxes on private colleges and university endowments. The House plan would tax endowment incomes at schools that have $250,000 per student, which would affect approximately 60 to 70 colleges. The Senate plan would target half as many, setting the threshold at schools with $500,000 per student.
And finally, Change the Equation, which started in 2010 as a CEO-led effort to improve STEM education and was part of President Obama’s “Educate to Innovate” campaign, will cease operations at the end of the year.
The group announced last week that WestEd and Education Commission of the States will assume and continue two signature CTEq products: WestEd will lead STEMworks, a nationally-recognized initiative to identify and scale the most effective STEM education programs; and Education Commission of the States will lead and expand Vital Signs, the state-by-state data on the condition of STEM education.
Stay tuned, and watch for more updates in future issues of NSTA Express.
Jodi Peterson is the Assistant Executive Director of Communication, Legislative & Public Affairs for the National Science Teachers Association (NSTA) and Chair of the STEM Education Coalition. Reach her via e-mail at jpeterson@nsta.org or via Twitter at @stemedadvocate.
The mission of NSTA is to promote excellence and innovation in science teaching and learning for all.
House Education and Workforce Chair Virginia Fox introduced a bill to reauthorize the Higher Education Act (HEA) last week, and her committee will be meeting to mark up the bill on Tuesday, December 12.
Ed News: TFA, Alternative Programs Marginally Better Than Traditional Teacher Prep
This week in education news, study finds that alternative teacher preparation programs are slightly better than traditional programs; Idaho education leaders are working with a consulting firm to gather data and feedback about testing; Colorado unveils plan to tackle teacher shortage; efforts to reduce standardized testing succeeded in many school districts in 2017; according to a new survey most students report feeling engaged in school and take pride in their work, but engagement drop as students get order; and public education in more broken than ever.
Students whose teachers were trained in alternative teacher preparation programs such as Teach For America tend to perform slightly better academically than students whose teachers had traditional teacher training, according to a recent meta-analysis. The study aims to put to rest a long-held debate about whether alternative route teacher training programs, which tend to provide a quick path to the classroom for people who already have a bachelor’s degree, can sufficiently prepare new educators. Read the article featured in Education Week.
Idaho education leaders are teaming up with a consulting firm to stage a yearlong conversation about testing. Created this summer by Superintendent of Public Instruction Sherri Ybarra, the Assessment Task Force is an approximately 20-member group that is gathering data and feedback as the state braces to launch a new science test. Read the article featured in Idaho Ed News.
It’s well known that there are disturbing, pervasive disparities for needy students in their science and math experiences: They attend schools with less lab experiments, have access to fewer rigorous classes, and have less hands-on teaching. But there hasn’t been an agreed-upon definition for what specifically constitutes a “STEM desert”—and especially, where they’re located across districts and neighborhoods. Now, the National Math and Science Initiative is hoping to create such a definition—and use it to better target its work and that of others in the STEM education space. Read the article featured in Education Week.
To combat a shortage of teachers in Colorado, state education officials unveiled a sweeping strategic plan proposing ways to attract, keep and better pay educators. More than 30 strategies are spelled out, ranging from student loan forgiveness and housing incentives to coming up with extra pay to attract educators to stretched-thin rural areas. Read the article featured in Chalkbeat.
Ask teachers what they actually do to renew their licenses every five years, and you are likely to get an elaborate description of their decision process, not a simple answer. There are, in other words, considerations of location and convenience. There’s the variability of what each school district offers—or can afford to offer—in the way of professional development. There are the costs, not just money but time as well, of attending conferences and courses. Beyond that, there’s the desire to learn something relevant to the job. Read the article featured in TEACHER.
Parents, students and public education advocates have been telling policymakers for years about the many problems with excessive high-stakes standardized testing, including narrowed curriculum and evaluation systems that assessed teachers on the scores of students they didn’t have. While there is still a great deal of it in districts around the country, 2017 saw some reductions in the amount of testing as well as the high stakes attached to student scores. Read the article featured in the Washington Post.
Across all grade levels, the majority of students feel engaged, according to data released by the San Francisco-based nonprofit YouthTruth Student Survey. The survey also found that less than half of secondary students feel that what they’re learning in class helps them outside of school, with high school students feeling slightly less positively than middle school students. Read the press release by YouthTruth.
The ultimate dream of public education is incredibly simple. Students, ideally, would go to a classroom, receive top-notch instruction from a passionate, well-informed teacher, would work hard in their class, and would come away with a new set of skills, talents, interests, and capabilities. Over the past few decades in the United States, a number of education reforms have been enacted, designed to measure and improve student learning outcomes, holding teachers accountable for their students’ performances. Despite these well-intentioned programs, including No Child Left Behind, Race To The Top, and the Every Student Succeeds Act, public education is more broken than ever. Read the article featured in Forbes.
Students who are blind rarely major in math or science, and Emily Schlenker understands why, from personal experience. A pre-med major at Wichita State University, Schlenker was born without sight. But that hasn’t slowed down her fascination with organic chemistry. What has repeatedly snagged her ability to study it, however, has been when homework assignments include charts and graphs that her screen-reading software can’t process. Read the article featured in EdSurge.
Stay tuned for next week’s top education news stories.
The Communication, Legislative & Public Affairs (CLPA) team strives to keep NSTA members, teachers, science education leaders, and the general public informed about NSTA programs, products, and services and key science education issues and legislation. In the association’s role as the national voice for science education, its CLPA team actively promotes NSTA’s positions on science education issues and communicates key NSTA messages to essential audiences.
The mission of NSTA is to promote excellence and innovation in science teaching and learning for all.
What if you could challenge your fifth graders to develop an economical, eco-friendly wind farm? With this volume in the STEM Road Map Curriculum Series, you can!
Wind Energy outlines a journey that will steer your students toward authentic problem solving while grounding them in integrated STEM disciplines. The series is designed to meet the growing need to infuse real-world learning into K–12 classrooms.
What if you could challenge your fifth graders to develop an economical, eco-friendly wind farm? With this volume in the STEM Road Map Curriculum Series, you can!
Wind Energy outlines a journey that will steer your students toward authentic problem solving while grounding them in integrated STEM disciplines. The series is designed to meet the growing need to infuse real-world learning into K–12 classrooms.
What if you could challenge your fifth graders to develop an economical, eco-friendly wind farm? With this volume in the STEM Road Map Curriculum Series, you can!
Wind Energy outlines a journey that will steer your students toward authentic problem solving while grounding them in integrated STEM disciplines. The series is designed to meet the growing need to infuse real-world learning into K–12 classrooms.
What if you could challenge your fifth graders to develop an economical, eco-friendly wind farm? With this volume in the STEM Road Map Curriculum Series, you can!
Wind Energy outlines a journey that will steer your students toward authentic problem solving while grounding them in integrated STEM disciplines. The series is designed to meet the growing need to infuse real-world learning into K–12 classrooms.
My middle school students are creating organism presentations. How much scaffolding should I give them? — P., New York
Students take more interest and greater ownership when they come up with project ideas themselves and teachers provide, as you realize, a scaffold. I have found this guidance results in higher quality presentations and a better learning experience.
First, make sure to specify what must be included in the presentations and share your grading rubric. I would implement benchmarks with deadlines for completing research, presenting a storyboard, and other milestones. Make sure to set a time limit for the presentations.
Take the time to teach them how to use presentation software or applications. Remind them that they are the presenters, not the slides, so they should:
Limit the amount of text on any slide— just a few points in large, easy-to-read fonts.
Not simply read the slides— face the audience and refer to notes as they elaborate on the points. Most programs allow the creation of a presenter’s version.
Use clear, large graphics that everyone can see.
Draft scripts and rehearse presentations.
If your students are making posters, consider going electronic. Have the students make the text and pictures all fit on one slide. Instead of printing large posters, they can share PDFs on a shared drive and maybe include peer evaluations. Electronic posters are also easier to grade than a large pile of paper!
There are many rubrics out there for assessment of posters and presentations that can help you with grading.
Hope this helps!
Graphic credit: FriendlyStock (Own work) via Wikimedia Commons
The Mel Chemistry Starter Kit is equipped with all the materials needed to conduct beginner type experiments. MEL Chemistry is a subscription service that offers monthly delivery of safe chemistry experiments for kids. The subscription will be most beneficial for those who want to gain more knowledge about science. This beginner science kit is perfect for the classroom. It allows experiments to be conducted by students as they watch for certain reactions. The starter kit includes the main chemistry tools that you will need to conduct experiments. When you purchase the starter kit, you will also receive the first two experiment sets as well. The sets are “Chemistry of Monsters” and “Tin.” These sets come with instructions and chemicals to perform four different experiments. Each experiment includes step-by-step instructions along with safety procedures to follow as well. The MEL Science team has done a great job searching for both interesting and safe experiments for students. Best of all, the ingredients and instructions are shipped to your door.
Chemistry of Monsters
Set contents
Hexamethylene-tetramine ×3
Sodium hydrogen carbonate ×3
Aluminum foil ×5
Double-ended measuring spoon
Funnel
Note paper ×10
Plastic ring
Plastic stirring rod
Press mould
Thermochromic sticker ×4
Experiment card ×2
Instructions
As mentioned, the starter kit comes with the first two experiment kits too and provides a brief summary of the four experiments that are included in the kit. Each experiment can be explored by using the links associated with each experiment kit below:
Tin dendrite begins to grow as the electric current flows from the battery through the clip towards the other clip. The metal crocodile clips are acting as electrodes by allowing the electric current to flow through them. The tin crystals form in the petri dish as the current flows. This process is called electrolysis and is a chemical reaction induced by an electric current. Tin has special properties allowing it to form crystals that are visible. Here is the chemical reaction when the tin reduction takes place.
Sn2+(solution) + 2e- Sn(solid)
This photo was taken with the LIEQI microscope attachment and comes with the science kit. Moreover, this attachment and can be connencted to any smart phone. It clips onto the camera magnifies without using a microscope.
Burning is the oxidation reaction of a substance, which removes electrons; breaking bonds to oxidize molecules. At first during the experiment, the sugar cube would not catch on fire on its own because sugar takes time to oxidize. However, once the cube was covered in ash, it caught fire and burned. The ash acts as a catalyst and to increase the rate at which sugar burns. This is because the ash contains sodium and calcium salts that bolster the combustion of the sugar cube reaction.
In this experiment, a fuel of sugar and sodium hydrogen carbonate is mixed together with hexamethylene- tetramine, forming a burning snake-like object. The snake is made of carbon that is the product of the heated sugar. During the reaction, carbon dioxide and water vapor is given-off that causes the snake to grow. Here are the three chemical reactions that occur in the formation of the “snake.”
The zinc metal reacts with the tin chloride to form tiny crystals on the surface of a zinc pellet. The tin precipitates and forms these crystals creating the tin hedgehog. The process of the needle-like structures growing in the solution is called crystallization. Here is the reaction that takes place.
SnCl2 + Zn Sn + ZnCl2
Conclusion:
Each experiment is designed to show a different chemical reaction and we found that they worked very well. Hence, there is no doubt that the Mel Chemistry Starter kit is excellent and will no doubt be useful for teaching chemistry lessons. Here is a link to find out more information about what “Mel Science” has to offer science teachers:
Price:
A monthly package of two boxes costs $49.90 and includes free shipping. Your credit card is charged for the monthly sets several days before delivery and the starter kit and a reagent pack come free. You can cancel the subscription at any time.
Edwin P. Christmann is a professor and chairman of the secondary education department and graduate coordinator of the mathematics and science teaching program at Slippery Rock University in Slippery Rock, Pennsylvania. Caitlin Baxter is a graduate student in the mathematics and science teaching program at Slippery Rock University in Slippery Rock, Pennsylvania.
This week in education news, North Dakota’s superintendent is requesting teachers to review new academic standards; California teachers find new science standards fun, but expensive; four New York students injured in a chemistry experiment gone wrong; several Wisconsin school districts are trying a new method of evaluating what students learn; Veteran astronaut Dr. Bernard Harris named new CEO of NMSI; new Gallup poll reveals that superintendents have a hard time finding quality teachers; Houston-area administrators are using physical activities to better engage students in STEM courses; and Ohio high school students may soon be allowed to replace the Algebra 2 graduation requirement with an advanced computer science course.
North Dakota’s superintendent is asking teachers statewide to review academic standards for science, health, early learning and the arts as the process for drafting new benchmarks gets underway. State Superintendent Kirsten Baesler is asking teachers who specialize in science, health, the arts or early learning to apply to serve on one of the four content committees that will draft standards. Read the article featured on WRAL.com.
With their emphasis on hands-on experiments, California’s new science standards have turned classrooms into noisy, messy laboratories. That’s been popular with students and teachers who say it’s a more effective way to learn science than studying textbooks and memorizing facts, but the cost of all those underwater robots and exploding chemicals has left some teachers wondering how they can successfully implement the standards with ever-restricting budgets. Read the article featured in Ed Source.
In Florida, some say global warming and evolution are a hoax and should not be taught in textbooks unopposed. Others say their local school’s textbooks shortchange Islam’s role in the world, while their opponents argue it’s the danger posed by Muslim terrorists that’s underexposed. Under a bill passed by the Florida Legislature this year, any district resident — regardless of whether they have a child in school — can now challenge material as pornographic, biased, inaccurate or a violation of state law and get a hearing before an outside mediator. Read the article featured in the Tampa Bay Times.
A chemistry experiment gone awry sent four tenth graders from a Catholic school in the Bronx to the hospital after they were singed by a flame. Sister Patricia Wolf, president of the school, said that an experienced chemistry teacher was showing students a procedure that involved alcohol and a metal when the flame got out of control. Read the article featured in The New York Times.
As our economy evolves, we must evolve with it, developing a workforce prepared to meet the demands of a new economy. Now is our chance to build a workforce ready to succeed over a lifetime, not just over the next three to five years. At the heart of the opportunities and risks we face in a new global economy is the increasing value of skills rooted in STEM. Indeed, 10 of the top 14 fastest-growing industries require STEM training. To keep up with the projected growth in demand for STEM jobs, America will need an additional 1 million more college graduates with STEM training by 2022 than we’re on track to produce. Read the article featured in The74million.org.
Several Wisconsin school districts are trying a new method of evaluating what students learn. It’s called “standards-based grading,” and it’s different than the typical A-F grading system people may be used to. Advocates believe the new approach will replace the old system. But, in order for the practice to catch on, it will take a shift in mindset from both parents and educators. Read the article featured on WUWM.com.
Veteran astronaut and STEM education advocate Dr. Bernard A. Harris, Jr. has been named the new chief executive officer of the National Math and Science Initiative. Dr. Harris is a founding member of the NMSI board and has served in that role for 10 years. He succeeds Matthew Randazzo, who recently was named president and CEO of The Dallas Foundation. Randazzo will assume this role in mid-2018 and will remain a NMSI board member. Read the press release posted on News9.com.
Concerns around finding highly-qualified teachers and principals plague today’s district superintendents, according to a new Gallup poll. Two-thirds of district superintendents in a new survey said the quantity of new teacher candidates is decreasing, and 43 percent said new principal candidates are decreasing. Read the article featured in eSchool News.
Despite modest gains in degree attainment in science, technology, engineering and math, women and minorities remain grossly underrepresented in the fields, according to a new report. Women are also less likely to enter STEM occupations after earning a STEM degree as are blacks, Hispanics and Native Americans, according to the report, which was prepared by the RAND corporation and commissioned by the American Petroleum Institute. Read the article featured in U.S. News & World Report.
Administrators from the Houston area discovered a more effective way of teaching terminal velocity and gravity—by keeping students afloat on 150-mph winds inside a vertical tunnel. The experience—hosted by the indoor skydiving facility iFLY—is one of many physical activities that schools use to better engage students in STEM courses. Read the article featured in DistrictAdministration.
High-quality STEM education not only has the potential to foster curiosity and creativity in students, it is critical for U.S. economic growth. But both words and plans are insufficient without follow-through. To best promote student success in STEM, we need both adequate funding and implementation of smart and equitable policies by all states and the District of Columbia. Read the article featured in Education Week.
Should students be allowed to take computer science instead of Algebra 2? Ohio schools could be heading in that direction. House Bill 170 would let high school students replace the Algebra 2 graduation requirement with an advanced computer science course. Students could also choose to take computer science in place of some other science courses. Read the article featured in Education Week.
Stay tuned for next week’s top education news stories.
The Communication, Legislative & Public Affairs (CLPA) team strives to keep NSTA members, teachers, science education leaders, and the general public informed about NSTA programs, products, and services and key science education issues and legislation. In the association’s role as the national voice for science education, its CLPA team actively promotes NSTA’s positions on science education issues and communicates key NSTA messages to essential audiences.
The mission of NSTA is to promote excellence and innovation in science teaching and learning for all.
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My middle school students are creating organism presentations. How much scaffolding should I give them?
