NOAA's Education Program Review and Critique (2010) / Chapter Skim
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2 NOAA's Role in the Education Landscape
2 NOAA's Role in the Education Landscape
Pages 29-50
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From page 29... ...
We provide a general overview of science education in the United States and discuss why it is appropriate for federal agencies, including NOAA, to have a role in supporting oceanic, atmospheric, climate, and environmental education. THE SCIENCE EDUCATION SYSTEM NOAA is one of many agencies, institutions, and organizations working to improve the nation's science literacy and technical workforce.
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From page 30... ...
Establishing standards is a process in which the content of science learning is melded into a montage of learning expectations drawn from a variety of sources; primarily the National Science Education Standards (National Research Council, 1996) , the Benchmarks for Science Literacy (American Association for the Advancement of Science, 1993)
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From page 31... ...
Many federal agencies, including the Department of Education, NSF, the Department of Health and Human Services, the Department of Energy, the Department of Commerce, the Department of Agriculture, and the Department of Transportation, NASA, and NOAA, fund K-12 STEM education programs and research. These agencies share their expertise in science and science education through their involvement in education programs for students and teachers at the K-12 level.
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From page 32... ...
Like the federal government, states also contribute to STEM education through scholarships and fellowships to students in STEM disciplines and support for STEM research in which students participate. However, state governments play a much smaller role in higher education than in K-12 education.
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The reports consistently call for increasing the number, critical thinking skills, and diversity of the students in higher education science and engineering fields. Informal Science Education Institutions Informal education settings are another critical piece of the education system.
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From page 34... ...
These groups fund education activities, advocate, provide leadership, and establish organizations for informal education professionals. For example, in the Chesapeake Bay area a number of local organizations collaborate with NOAA on informal education initiatives and advocate for science and environmental education issues, fund education initiatives, and develop education programs.
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From page 35... ...
, portraitextend below for landscape education, the former has goals and practices that size well beyond the latter, and it would be a mistake to envision environmental education as a subcategory of science education, or vice versa. STEM Education (1)
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From page 36... ...
NOAA's environmental education initiatives align with two common approaches to environmental science education. One approach is to infuse the scientific principles of ecology and the interrelationships among organisms and the physical/chemical world (environment)
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From page 37... ...
NSF funds a range of education programs, including ones that support education research and development, as well as broader impacts in science, engineering, and mathematics research. The programs reach across the STEM disciplines, and some specifically target oceanic, atmospheric, climate, and environmental education.
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From page 38... ...
For example, it runs a program to broaden participation in the geosciences. In addition, the Division of Ocean Sciences, within GEO, supports Centers for Ocean Science Education Excellence, which is a network of coordinated centers that seeks to support ocean education.
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From page 39... ...
EPA also provides a number of other programs for educators and students, including distance education, grant programs that support environmental education projects, student fellowship programs, a student award program, informal science education, and other education programs. A few EPA education projects focus on engaging learners of diverse backgrounds.
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From page 40... ...
DOE education programs support science learning about clean energy research and technologies. These programs support physical science education at precollege, college, and graduate levels.
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From page 41... ...
Federal agencies, education institutions, and private-sector organizations have also collaborated to create literacy principles for ocean science, earth science, and atmospheric science. THE ROLES OF FEDERAL AGENCIES IN SCIENCE AND ENVIRONMENTAL EDUCATION With so many agencies contributing to education on topics related to NOAA's mission, it is critical that each agency has a clear role in education and clear responsibilities for education.
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From page 42... ...
In the areas of education related to NOAA's mission, the role of each agency is unique to the federal mandates that shape its resources and audiences. From the perspective of sharing knowledge about science and encouraging stewardship, federal science agencies have three key advantages to support education systems: access to working scientists and engineers, the knowledge generated through their funded programs, and oversight of national resources (National Research Council, 2008)
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From page 43... ...
Universities and academic research organizations as well as organizations of professional educators, such as the National Science Teachers Association and the Association of Science and Technology Centers, are key resources for knowledge of the specific needs of classroom teachers and planetariums, nature centers, aquariums, museums, and science centers. Experienced curriculum development and professional development organizations know how to produce and disseminate educational materials that are both effective and compatible with national and state science education standards.
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From page 44... ...
Therefore, as an overarching rule, federal agencies should strive to understand and complement what schools, school districts, states, informal education institutions, and other actors in the national education landscape are doing. The assets of the agencies can complement ongoing initiatives in the education landscapes and support initiatives that could not take place without their help.
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From page 45... ...
Such partnerships and coordination with other federal, state, and local entities that manage similar areas for education programs can engage learners with hands-on participation in science and give them opportunities to witness science taking place, as a core part of the activities. Another major asset that NOAA brings to education is the science, engineering, and technology that it supports and produces.
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From page 46... ...
to gather data about the oceans and atmosphere through system atic observations, convert these data into understandings about process via modeling and other interpretive techniques, and develop education materials and train teachers to convey these scientific understandings to learners of all ages. In a connected and parallel effort, NOAA could work with partners to develop stewardship programs to encourage environmen tally sustainable behaviors and decisions, as well as interest in and input into scientific research priorities.
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From page 47... ...
In fact, the idea of environmental justice suggests that minority participation in and knowledge of environmental sciences is a tool for ensuring that minority communities do not suffer disproportionately in decisions about the use of environmental resources and the disposal of pollutants. Finally, there is also an argument that having a diverse scientific workforce has a positive benefit on the outcomes accomplished by science.
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From page 48... ...
As mentioned above, NOAA's education programs must align with the existing education standards in the localities in which they operate. However, NOAA can also play a useful role in major science education efforts, such as the new National Assessment of Educational Progress in science, the revision of the National Science Education Standards (also known as common core science standards)
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From page 49... ...
With so many players involved in science and environmental education at the federal level, there has been a proliferation of differing goals and standards, different methodologies, and even different values, norms, and cultures. Education initiatives are rarely coordinated across agencies, and cross-agency cooperation is limited.
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From page 50... ...
Other agencies may also have the capability of taking a leadership role in these areas, but we did not carefully review the assets of other federal science agencies. We think NOAA has the needed assets and capabilities to be one of the federal agencies that take a leadership role in coordinating federal education efforts.
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