Snow: Museum Exhibit, Educational Outreach, and Learning Research

雪为全世界约20亿人提供水，并通过其高反照率和绝缘特性在地球气候中发挥重要作用，因此全球雪资源的持续变化构成了现实和极其昂贵的社会适应/减缓问题。该项目的目标是(1)为公众创造机会，了解雪在气候、水资源和人类生活中的重要作用，以及(2)更好地了解文化如何影响非正式的科学、技术、工程、数学（STEM）学习。可交付成果包括：(a)在阿拉斯加开展一项外展计划，将访问33个偏远的土著村庄；(b)俄勒冈科学与工业博物馆（OMSI）制作的一个2000平方英尺的雪博物馆展览，并在奖项有效期内在另外两个博物馆展出；(c)学习研究，该研究将研究文化与雪的广泛关系如何影响博物馆展览期间的学习。这些组成部分中的每一个都将在工作过程中进行评估。该巡回展览预计将在八年内每年在三个博物馆展出，预计累计观众将超过一百万。对雪的关注将突出地球系统中一个迷人但未被重视的部分。该项目旨在教育公众关于雪的知识，并使公众在面对与雪有关的潜在昂贵和困难的社会决策时更加知情和深思熟虑。通过信息展示、图形、模型和其他材料，该项目将吸引阿拉斯加传统上服务不足的社区（在土著/偏远村庄），这些社区与雪存在着强烈的文化联系，以及美国各地的社区，这些社区与雪的联系可能或强或弱。在这种文化梯度中，该项目将通过口头访谈和调查公众对各种类型和设计的非正式科学学习（ISL）展示的反应，试图隔离和控制文化与个人对材料反应的影响。非正式学习理论规定使用前端探索个体参观者与内容的关系来指导展览设计。本项目的研究目标扩展了这一方法，包括文化参与对主题的影响，以开发更通用的工具来指导和改进设计过程。该项目由阿拉斯加费尔班克斯大学与OMSI（俄勒冈科学与工业博物馆）、COSI（科学与工业中心）的终身学习小组（领导这项研究）以及评估人员Goldstream Group合作领导。该项目由推进非正式STEM学习（AISL）计划资助，该计划旨在推进非正式环境中STEM学习的设计和开发的新方法和基于证据的理解。这包括提供多种途径，扩大STEM学习经验的获取和参与，推进非正式环境中STEM学习的创新研究和评估，以及发展参与者对深度学习的理解。该项目得到了极地项目办公室的共同资助。该奖项反映了美国国家科学基金会的法定使命，并通过使用基金会的知识价值和更广泛的影响审查标准进行评估，被认为值得支持。

With snow providing water for about 2 billion people worldwide and playing a major role in the Earth's climate through its high albedo and insulation properties, on-going alterations in global snow resources pose real and extremely expensive societal adaptation/mitigation problems. The project goals are to (1) create opportunities for the public to learn about the vital role that snow plays in climate, water resources, and human lives, and (2) produce a better understanding of how culture affects informal Science, Technology, Engineering, Mathematics (STEM) learning. The deliverables include: (a) an outreach program in Alaska that will visit 33 remote native villages, (b) a 2000 square foot museum exhibit on snow produced by the Oregon Museum of Science and Industry (OMSI) and exhibited at two additional museums during the life of the award, and (c) learning research, which will examine how the wide variation of cultural relationships to snow impacts learning during museum exhibits. Each of these components will be evaluated over the course of the work. The travelling exhibit is expected to be shown at three museums per year for eight years, with an anticipated cumulative audience of over one million.The focus on snow will highlight a fascinating yet under-appreciated part of the Earth system. The project aims to educate the public about snow and to produce a more informed and thoughtful public in the face of potential expensive and difficult snow-related societal decisions. Through informative displays, graphics, models, and other material, the project will engage traditionally under-served communities (at Native/remote villages) in Alaska, where a strong cultural connection to snow exists, as well as communities across the U.S. where the connection to snow can range from strong to weak. Across this cultural gradient, the project will explore through oral interviews and surveys the public response to various types and designs of informal science learning (ISL) displays, attempting to isolate and control for the effect of cultural vs. individual response to the materials. Informal learning theory specifies using front-end exploration of individual visitor-content relationships to guide exhibit design. This project's research goal expands that approach to include the effects of cultural engagement with a topic to develop more general tools to guide and improve the design process. The project is led by the University of Alaska Fairbanks in collaboration with OMSI (Oregon Museum of Science and Industry), and the Lifelong Learning Group at COSI (Center of Science and Industry), which leads the research, and the Goldstream Group, the evaluators. This project is funded by the Advancing Informal STEM Learning (AISL) program, which seeks to advance new approaches to, and evidence-based understanding of, the design and development of STEM learning in informal environments. This includes providing multiple pathways for broadening access to and engagement in STEM learning experiences, advancing innovative research on and assessment of STEM learning in informal environments, and developing understandings of deeper learning by participants. The project has co-funding support from the Office of Polar Programs.This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.