GK-12 and GeoKids: Bringing Place-Based Science to Urban Philadelphia Children

该项目建立在圣约瑟夫大学（SJU）科学教师与费城博物馆、瓦格纳自由科学研究所（WFIS）以及WFIS工作人员和附近三所费城公立学校校长之间强有力的现有合作基础上。GK-12研究员是攻读生物学、化学或环境科学的硕士候选人或高级本科生。每年，4-8名研究员将与WFIS教育专家、SJU教师和K-6教师合作，为费城最缺乏服务的社区之一的学校的学生开发和展示长达一个学期的主题单元。“GeoKids”结合了一种基于地点的方法，利用当地环境作为资源来教授地球和生命科学，这是一种独特而具有挑战性的学习策略。GeoKids强调动手科学，基于项目的学习，以及阅读，写作和观察等基本技能的发展。该项目包括一年一度的夏季研讨会，研究员、K-6教师以及参与的SJU和WFIS教育工作者审查课程标准，学习适当的内容领域，并更加熟悉目标学校学生的具体教育问题。博士生将与教育评估专家合作设计和管理评估工具。该计划的预期成果包括：开发、测试和记录基于环境的课程，K-6教师有权开发他们自己的基于现场的课程，SJU的教师和研究生致力于提高科学素养，并将GK-12项目的元素纳入SJU现有的服务学习活动中。这项资助活动支持了上海大学正在进行的努力，以加强和扩大化学和生物学的研究生课程。

This project builds on strong existing collaborations between Saint Joseph's University (SJU) science faculty and a Philadelphia museum, the Wagner Free Institute of Science (WFIS), and between WFIS staff and principals at three nearby urban Philadelphia public schools. GK-12 Fellows are M.S. candidates or advanced undergraduates studying Biology, Chemistry, or Environmental Science. Each year 4-8 Fellows will collaborate with WFIS education specialists, SJU faculty, and K-6 teachers to develop and present semester-long thematic units to students attending schools in one of Philadelphia's most underserved neighborhoods. "GeoKids" incorporates a place-based approach that uses the local environment as a resource to teach earth and life sciences, a unique and challenging learning strategy for an inner-city program. GeoKids emphasizes hands-on science, project-based learning, and development of fundamental skills such as reading, writing, and observing. The program includes annual summer workshops where Fellows, K-6 teachers, and participating SJU and WFIS educators review curriculum standards, study in appropriate content areas, and become more familiar with education issues specific to students from the target schools. Doctoral education students will collaborate with an education assessment expert in designing and administering assessment tools. Expected outcomes of the program include: development, testing, and documentation of environmentally-based lessons, K-6 teachers empowered to develop their own place-based lessons, SJU faculty and graduate students committed to enhancing science literacy, and incorporation of GK-12 program elements into existing Service Learning activities at SJU. The grant activities support efforts underway at SJU to enhance and expand the graduate programs in Chemistry and Biology.