Start-up Grant for Continued Research in Science Education

提高公众对科学事业的理解和提高科学素养已被确定为美国的关键目标。科学学习既发生在正式的（如教室）也发生在非正式的（如后院）环境中，这些学习环境之间的结果至少可能存在质的差异。至关重要的是，科学家与专业的科学教育者合作，不仅要确定科学素养的组成部分，而且要了解在这些不同的环境中学习是如何发生的，并帮助将这些信息提供给最终负责正式和非正式环境中人口教育的其他科学家和教育者。该提案寻求资金来继续和完成我作为国家科学基金会pfsmete研究员开始的重要研究，并支持我博士后职位直接产生的另外两个项目的初步研究和开发。对于前者，我提议分析、展示和发表我正在进行的工作，以了解在一个已建立的学生/科学家伙伴关系Forest Watch中最影响学生态度和动机的因素。新项目包括一个名为“邻里守望”的社区数据收集项目对参与者科学素养的影响的研究，以及在保罗史密斯学院开发和实施两门环境教育课程，这将成为自然资源理学学士学位中环境科学教育重点的基石。

Improving the publics" understanding of the scientific enterprise and improving scientificliteracy have been identified as critical goals in the United States. Science learningoccurs in formal (i.e. classroom) as well as in informal (i.e. backyards) settings and thereare likely to be, at least, qualitative differences in outcomes between these learningenvironments. It is critical that scientists collaborate with professional science educatorsnot only to identify the components of scientific literacy, but also to understand howlearning occurs in these different settings and to help provide this information to otherscientists and educators who will be ultimately responsible for the education of thepopulation in both formal and informal settings. This proposal seeks funding to continueand complete the important research that I began as a National Science FoundationPFSMETE Fellow and to support the preliminary research and development of two otherprojects that have resulted directly from my post-doctoral position. For the former, I amproposing to analyze, present and publish my ongoing work on understanding the factorsthat most affect student attitudes and motivation in an established Student/ScientistPartnership, Forest Watch. The new projects include a study of the effects of acommunity data collection program called Neighborhood Nestwatch on scientific literacyin participants, and the development and implementation of two environmental educationcourses at Paul Smith's College that will be the cornerstones for the creation of anenvironmental science education emphasis within the Natural Resource Bachelor ofScience degree.