New, GK-12 Project in Water Resources for Middle and High Schools in Rural Northern Idaho and Eastern Washington

爱达荷大学GK-12项目的目标是提高研究生的沟通、教学、协作和团队合作技能，同时增加爱达荷州和华盛顿州农村初中和高中的探究式科学教学。研究生将来自跨学科学位项目：西部水域-水资源、环境科学和环境工程。STEM的主题将是水资源和环境，作为学习物理、地球和生命科学的背景。这一主题和跨学科方法将提高水资源的实用知识，这是当今世界面临的最引人注目和最复杂的主题之一。研究员将利用他们的研究向学生传达科学概念，将科学内容与与教师、学生和社区相关的当地水资源问题(如含水层枯竭、洪水和干旱，或鲑鱼、水电站大坝和印第安人部落的相互关系)联系起来。该计划将服务于七个农村学区，包括Lapwai(Nez Perce Tribe)区，该地区82%是美洲原住民；所有学校都位于河流流域内，受到西部水域计划的综合分析。五个具体影响是：(A)研究员将在课堂和公共环境中有效地交流科学概念；(B)研究员将成功地将协作和团队合作技能应用于教学和研究；(C)研究员将展示以探究为基础的教学技能；(C)STEM教师将在以探究为基础的教学中展示更多的教学知识、指导技能、信心和能力；以及(E)7-12年级的学生将表现出更多的科学知识、兴奋、自信和职业意识。

The goal of the University of Idaho GK-12 program is to improve graduate Fellow communication, teaching, collaboration, and teamwork skills, while increasing inquiry-based science taught in rural middle and high schools in Idaho and Washington. Graduate Fellows will be from interdisciplinary degree programs: Waters of the West - Water Resources, Environmental Science, and Environmental Engineering. The STEM theme will be water resources and the environment as a context for learning physical, Earth, and life sciences. The theme and interdisciplinary approach will raise working knowledge of water resources, one of the most compelling and complex topics facing the world today. Fellows will use their research to convey scientific concepts to students, linking the science content to local water resource issues (e.g. aquifer depletion, floods and droughts, or the inter-relationship of salmon, hydropower dams, and Indian Tribes) that are relevant to the teachers, students, and community.The program will serve seven rural school districts, including the Lapwai (Nez Perce Tribe) district, which is 82% Native American; all schools are within river basins subjected to integrated analysis by the Waters of the West program. Five specific impacts are: (a) Fellows will effectively communicate scientific concepts in classroom and public contexts, (b) Fellows will successfully apply collaboration and teamwork skills in teaching and research (c) Fellows will demonstrate inquiry-based teaching skills, (c) STEM teachers will demonstrate increased content knowledge, mentoring skills, and confidence and competence in inquiry-based teaching, and (e) grade 7-12 students will demonstrate increased scientific knowledge, excitement, confidence and career awareness.