Attention Citizen Scientists--Science for Citizens Now Open for Business!

As promised, Darlene the Science Cheerleader has unveiled her latest web effort to engage the general public in science projects and policy. Science for Citizens.net (SfC) is a place where individuals interested in doing some sort of science project from home can "go shopping" for a project that appeals to them. The site offers projects in a wide variety topics, including animals, archeology, astronomy and space, biology, birds, chemistry, climate & weather, computers & technology, ecology & environment, food, geology & Earth science, insects, nature & outdoor, ocean & water, physics, science policy, and sound.

The site includes a search and advanced search function, with options that allow the user to filter for free or low-cost projects, activities for kids, outdoor activities, "hot projects," or do-it-yourself (DIY) projects that require the participant to build/make something. The page also allows you to sort by level of difficulty and zip code.

Just for grins, and given the interests of this site, it won't surprise you that I looked at "astronomy & space" and "science policy." One project that came up was the "Galaxy Zoo," which is a no-cost effort that allows the participant to classify galaxies according to their shape. Note to Dar: it wasn't immediately obvious where the search results were--they appear beneath the search window. Also, the very first item listed was the "laser harp," which was a "hot project," but not something that's really astronomy space--possibly because SfC doesn't have a lot of projects to recommend yet--but I guess right now the page needs to refine its search engine. I didn't find any projects related to science policy, but I'd be mighty curious to see what those look like. That said, there is a tab for groups or individuals to add a science-from-home project, but you need to become a SfC member to do so. Other tabs, dedicated to video and other resources, do not have content yet, but to be fair to Dar and her partners, SfC is still in its "beta" phase. Presumably the SfC team will be adding content as they go forward.

Other tabs on the page include blogs by the site's creators (Dar and her partners) as well as SfC members. If you have comments related to the theory or practice of being a "citizen scientist," these blogs are for you.

Since the content is still in its embryonic phase, one might ask what the point of SfC is, or who would be interested in using it. I'll answer the audience question first, then get back to the philosophy behind the site. I see SfC as being a great clearing house for parents, students, and even non-child families interested in doing some sort of science project from home--I can see home-schooled kids, especially, finding this site useful as more projects are added.

What has interested me about Dar's work in this area is her belief that the nation is better off having more individuals conversant with, and able to understand and practice, science and engineering. It has become increasingly obvious as our society's technologies progress that more and more social and political decisions will be affected by, or directly related to, science and technology. It would be of great value to our elected officials, and to the citizenry from which they arise, if more people understood how science and technology work, and can make reasoned, informed arguments for or against the use of particular sci/tech. Scientific laws/facts about the world and universe around us are what they are. How we choose to use or act upon them are not neutral--they involve human values and other issues...but, again, if you don't know the science behind something, the most you can offer is a knee-jerk reaction based on emotion or propaganda from someone who DOES or (worse) DOES NOT understand the science and tries to manipulate one group or another based on pure emotion. Dar is trying to combat that sort of demagoguery, and I firmly support her in that quest.

So if you have a need for, or interest in, encouraging your (or your kids') inner scientist, Science for Citizens.net will give you the resources to tap into that interest. And along the way, you just might find yourself becoming better informed about the increasingly complex future that awaits us.

STEM Education for Home-Schooled Students

A few weeks ago, when I was writing about science and math education for 4th and 8th graders, I got curious about home-schooled kids in the U.S. as well. Facebook provided an excellent opportunity to find out, as one of my friends from high school is home-schooling her kids. Essentially I asked her what form of science and math education her kids were getting, as this was of great interest to me from a NASA (day job) point of view and also as it related to STEM disciplines in general. My thanks to J, for providing this great response:

I was in Dallas, TX over the weekend and was talking with some friends who had recently spoken with James P. Dutton Jr. who they say is an astronaut with NASA. (I think he is assigned as a pilot on the crew of StS-131 targeted for launch in 2010.)They said that he and his wife homeschool their children and that he had recently spoke to a homeschool group of children in Dallas. Their son was quite excited about it. Anyway, it got me thinking about your e-mail. I don't know if I can specifically help you in any way.

My older two daughters really enjoy studying math and science. Although there are many excellent curricula available to homeschoolers for these subjects, we are currently using Singapore Math and we use the science curriculum that our local private school uses. We chose Singapore Math as we had the girls professionally tested and since they were performing well in those areas, the specialist recommended it for the girls. She mentioned that students using Singapore Math were consistently the ones who did well in Math and Science competitions. Prior to using Singapore Math, we used Math-U-See and just tried to make math fun doing hands-on math problems around the home. Lots of math games, fun computer games, etc. Both of my daughters love to cook, so kitchen math and sewing math were also favorites.

For science, we have gone completely through the science curriculum used in our private school. Although, I don't think it is a great program that piques my kids' interests, I've followed along with it mainly to ensure that we didn't have any holes in their science curriculum when it comes time in May for their state/national testing. I really feel that the girls love for learning science as well as their love for learning in general has been fostered by materials being presented in "living" ways. By this I mean things like the hands-on science experiments, the many guided nature walks/Jr. Ranger programs at local parks and reserves where they kept nature journals and made observations, science co-ops with other children where they learned biology and chemistry concepts (often led by moms who had degrees in one of the sciences). We had numerous trips to the local Museum of Life and Science along with museums in other areas. On one occasion, I took my older daughter to a weekend science conference. I also have tried to expose the girls to "living books." Instead of watered down books aimed at children. I've tried to find books on whatever topic we are studying that have been written by experts that have a passion for their area of study. When you find books written by experts in their field, that are suitable for children, they are pure gold. They provide so much more interest for the children than a school textbook anyway. (Side note to J: if you're looking for space books for kids by someone who's "been there"--or at least in Mission Control--I recommend the works of Marianne Dyson. -B)

Although I in no way think that everyone should homeschool their children or that homeschooling is necessarily better than public or private schooling your children, I have made some observations in my local community. In my state alone, there are thousands of homeschooling families. Most of these moms are teachers that are keenly aware of their children's learning styles, interested in developing children of good character, have a strong desire to give their children a love for learning and giving their children as many opportunities as possible for educational growth. And they have a strong belief and vision for their children. Homeschooling often allows the children to explore more deeply areas that really interest them. In my experience, homeschooled children are able to communicate with adults as well as children from their peer group.

As far as resources that I can give you, I might need some clarification as to specifically what you are looking for. I guess if I was trying to get information out to homeschoolers in my state, I would post on the state's homeschool Yahoo group. There events and information are posted and received by thousands of homeschoolers who read it on a daily basis. I think home-school families would be very excited to receive educational info/material or know of a talk for children by someone from NASA.

Another very effective way to reach homeschoolers would be to speak to some of the larger co-ops in different states. One of the large home school co-ops in my area is called S.E.E.K. It meets at a nearby church and has over 400 people involved in it. Every week they have educational classes that the kids are involved in, some of them being focused on science. A science lecture given to some of the larger co-ops would be effective. Also, sometimes the museums in our area have special field trip events/days/science camps for homeschooling families. Each state also has usually has at least one annual home school conference. Huge events with lots of guest speakers and a plethora of booths and curriculum. Ours is every May over Memorial Day weekend. That might also be another idea to get information out. Personally, I would love to see more math and science folks (and space geeks such as yourself:) take their area of expertise and tailor it in a fresh way to children. More "living books!!!" In the homeschool arena, if you create books that aren't abridged, watered down twaddle with lots of cartoons, and elementary vocabulary, you're likely to be a very successful author. Also, one side note, many homeschooling folks are also people of Christian faith. Books written by scientific experts who are also Christians or homeschooling parents would be especially well-received. Same applies to guest speakers. The James P. Dutton Jr. that I mentioned at the beginning of the e-mail would be an example.

To follow up on J's very helpful email, below are some additional science, math, or other education:

• Basic resources for home schoolers: http://www.homeschooldiscount.com/
• Recommended by Jerry Pournelle, a class developed by Roberta Pournelle to teach your kid to read. http://www.readingtlc.com/
• Math Resources: http://home-educate.com/resources/math.shtml
• Science Resources: http://www.homeschool.com/resources01/science.asp
• ScienceCheerleader.com has a "Project Finder" application for people looking to do science at home.

And I'm posting these again for some low- or no-cost alternatives to full-up college education adults can use to "get smart" on science, technology, history, and other disciplines:

• The Teaching Company
• Free Online Courseware from Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT)
• Engineering Textbooks from the Department of Energy

If your school(s) aren't cutting it, don't just sit there and let your kid's future but shortchanged!

Science Education Online

I sent the following science links to my buddy Darlene, the Science Cheerleader, and she suggested that I make a posting that included them. Far be it for me to argue with a nice lady who sends me free stuff. I have added a few references for reasons explained below.

http://www.teachspace.us/
http://www.knowledgeadventure.com/school/
http://web.mit.edu/newsoffice/2004/missmass.html
http://www.whizkidsfoundation.org/
http://wtp.mit.edu/eecs/
http://www.eskimo.com/~billb/home.html
http://homeschooling.gomilpitas.com/directory/Sciences.htm
http://homeschooling.about.com/od/science/Science_Resources.htm

The point of these links was to provide some alternative sites for interested folks to find science education information online. The internet is awash in such resources. Such resources might become increasingly necessary (here's where I get on my personal soapbox) if more people home school their kids. And why would they home school? Because of the state of mathematics and science education our taxpayer-funded schools.

The future, whether we like it or not, will become ever more dependent upon automated, computerized electronic technologies, biological technologies, and robotic and nanotechnologies. All of these will require students who are literate in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) subjects. We are doing children no favors by de-stressing grades and emphasizing self-esteem and "creative math." Consider the following quotations from "A Nation at Risk," a report on the state of the U.S. educational system in 1983 (waaaay back in the Reagan era, when I was still in the throes of junior high), and contemplate the fact that the situation has not greatly improved:

Our Nation is at risk. Our once unchallenged preeminence in commerce, industry, science, and technological innovation is being overtaken by competitors throughout the world.

What was unimaginable a generation ago has begun to occur--others are matching and surpassing our educational attainments.

If an unfriendly foreign power had attempted to impose on America the mediocre educational performance that exists today, we might well have viewed it as an act of war. As it stands, we have allowed this to happen to ourselves. We have even squandered the gains in student achievement made in the wake of the Sputnik challenge.

• International comparisons of student achievement, completed a decade ago, reveal that on 19 academic tests American students were never first or second and, in comparison with other industrialized nations, were last seven times.
• Some 23 million American adults are functionally illiterate by the simplest tests of everyday reading, writing, and comprehension.
• About 13 percent of all 17-year-olds in the United States can be considered functionally illiterate. Functional illiteracy among minority youth may run as high as 40 percent.
• Average achievement of high school students on most standardized tests is now lower than 26 years ago when Sputnik was launched.
• Over half the population of gifted students do not match their tested ability with comparable achievement in school.
• The College Board's Scholastic Aptitude Tests (SAT) demonstrate a virtually unbroken decline from 1963 to 1980. Average verbal scores fell over 50 points and average mathematics scores dropped nearly 40 points.

*