Kids as Urban Scientists: Mapping the Biodiversity of the Philadelphia Promise Zone

该项目将推进“面向学生和教师的创新技术体验”（ITEST）项目的努力，通过为来自STEM领域代表性不足群体的市中心学生提供身临其境的实地体验，更好地理解和促进提高学生在科学、技术、工程或数学（STEM）领域追求职业的动机和能力的实践。高年级学生将使用数字数据收集工具绘制当地社区的生物多样性地图，该项目将把生物多样性活动与职业意识和指导机会交织在一起。数字徽章将用于证明学习成绩，并为参与项目的学生和教师提供认可。该项目由三个部分组成：a)开发一个以生物多样性为重点的课程模块，供学校或校外学习环境使用；b)在生物多样性测绘活动中与学生一起工作的大学理学院教师或学生的职业意识和指导活动的整合；c)为学校教师和校外教育工作者提供专业发展机会。该项目将吸引400名4-6年级的市中心学生，以及来自费城承诺区的80名教师和校外教育工作者。费城承诺区是美国最贫困的地区之一。每个年级的课程模块将设计用于学校课堂或OST环境，学科内容将与相关学科核心思想和下一代科学标准（NGSS）的科学实践保持一致。每个年级的课程模块将包括课堂学习活动，数据收集的现场部分，以及学生小组通过海报，视频或其他视觉表现形式展示他们的发现的最后环节。混合方法研究方法将用于寻求与三个研究问题相关的发现：A)哪些连贯的经验有效地支持四年级，五年级和六年级的学生？知识发展（例如，生物多样性内容知识与科学实践相结合），对stem相关工作和今天和未来工作的动机和职业意识？b)什么样的专业发展模式和认可系统可以有效地吸引教师和OST提供者向四年级到六年级的学生展示下一代科学知识、教学法和职业意识？c)承诺区四、六年级学生作为信息提供者和城市科学家与科学家导师互动的活动在提高职业意识和理解STEM工作特征方面的效果如何？

This project will advance efforts of the Innovative Technology Experiences for Students and Teachers (ITEST) program to better understand and promote practices that increase students' motivations and capacities to pursue careers in fields of science, technology, engineering, or mathematics (STEM) by providing immersive field experiences for inner-city students from groups underrepresented in STEM fields. Upper elementary students will use digital data collection tools to map biodiversity in local neighborhoods, and the project will interweave the biodiversity activities with career awareness and mentoring opportunities. Digital badging will be used to certify learning accomplishments and provide recognition for students and teachers engaged in the project. The project consists of three components: a) Development of a curriculum module focusing on biodiversity for use in school or in out-of-school learning environments; b) Integration of career awareness and mentoring activities by college science faculty or students who will work with students during the biodiversity mapping activities; and c) Professional development opportunities for schoolteachers and out-of-school educators.The project will engage 400 inner-city students in grades 4-6 along with 80 teachers and out-of-school-time (OST) educators from the Philadelphia Promise Zone, one of the highest poverty areas in the country. The curriculum modules for each grade will be designed for use in either a school classroom or an OST setting, and the disciplinary content will be aligned with relevant disciplinary core ideas and science practices of the Next Generation Science Standards (NGSS). The curriculum modules at each grade level will include classroom learning activities, a field component for data collection, and a final sessions where teams of students present their findings through development of a poster, a video, or some other visual representation. A mixed-methods research approach will be used to seek findings related to three research questions: a) What coherent set of experiences effectively support fourth, fifth and sixth grade students? knowledge development (e.g., biodiversity content knowledge blended with science practices), motivation and career awareness about STEM-related work and jobs of today and the future? b) What professional development models and recognition systems can effectively engage teachers and OST providers in demonstrating Next Generation Science knowledge, pedagogy, and career awareness for fourth through sixth grade students? and c) How effective is the activity of Promise Zone fourth-sixth grade students as information providers and Urban Scientists interacting with scientist mentors towards increasing career awareness and understanding characteristics of STEM work?