Collaborative Research: Teachers on the Leading Edge: Linking K-12 Earth Science Teachers to EarthScope

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EarthScope USArray and Plate Boundary Observatory (PBO) instruments are currently monitoring deformation and seismicity in the Pacific Northwest. Geoscientists are using EarthScope data to advance understanding of the active continental margin at "the leading edge" of our continent. Teachers on the Leading Edge (TOTLE) is a teacher professional development program featuring Pacific Northwest geology, associated geologic hazards, and EarthScope science. TOTLE invites K-12 teachers to become novice geophysicists using EarthScope science to enhance their students' understanding of plate tectonics, earthquakes and tsunamis, and volcanoes. Through this project, TOTLE: (1) introduces 120 K-12 and community college teachers of Earth Science to the EarthScope Project; (2) immerses teachers in inquiry-based studies of active continental margin geology; (3) coordinates with science educators at UNAVCO, the Incorporated Research Institutes for Seismology, and the EarthScope National Office in developing instructional materials that convey the wonder of EarthScope science to K-12 learners and the general public nationwide; (4) forms teams of teacher-learners, led by a community college instructor, that promote integration of EarthScope science into the K-12 curriculum; and (5) provides a template for Geoscience educators to build place-based programs that connect EarthScope science with regional geology as USArray steps across the country. TOTLE provides an example of coordination between K-12 science teachers, university science educators, and federal and state government scientists to develop a science education program that preserves the authenticity of cutting-edge research while making that science inviting, accessible, and useful to K-12 teachers and students.