Karla Bradley Eitel

Technology-Enriched STEM Investigations of Place: Using Technology to Extend the Senses and Build Connections to and between Places in Science Education.

ABSTRACT In this article we explore how reconceptualizing the role of technology in place-based education (PBE) enhances place responsive pedagogies through technology. Combining the strengths of adventure learning (AL) and PBE, Adventure Learning @ (AL@) advances both place responsive education and online learning in science education. This is needed, as the conventional AL model lacks authentic explorations of places that are “local” to the expedition teams and the students following along. The AL@ approach promotes localized authorship and knowledge keeping. AL@ more fully realizes the potential of AL, using PBE approaches that engage students as authors of knowledge through direct field experiences and the creation of digital artifacts of scientific inquiry.

Challenges and successes in engaging citizen scientists to observe snow cover: from public engagement to an educational collaboration

Whereas the evolution of snow cover across forested mountain watersheds is difficult to predict or model accurately, the presence or absence of snow cover is easily observable and these observations contribute to improved snow models. We engaged citizen scientists to collect observations of the timing of distributed snow disappearance over three snow seasons across the Pacific Northwest, U.S.A. . The primary goal of the project was to build a more spatially robust dataset documenting the influence of forest cover on the timing of snow disappearance, and public outreach was a secondary goal. Each year’s effort utilized a different strategy, building on the lessons of the previous year. We began by soliciting our professional networks to contribute observations via electronic or paper forms, moved to a public outreach effort to collect geotagged photographs, and finally settled on close collaboration with an outdoor science school that was well-positioned to collect the needed data. Whereas the outreach efforts garnered abundant enthusiasm and publicity, the resulting datasets were sparse. In contrast, direct collaboration with an outdoor science school that was already sending students to make weekly snow observations proved fruitful in both data collection and educational outreach. From a data collection standpoint, the shift to an educational collaboration was successful because it essentially traded wide spatial coverage combined with sparse temporal coverage for dense temporal coverage at a single, but important location. From a public engagement standpoint, the partnership allowed for more intensive participation by more people and enhanced the science curriculum at the collaborating school.

Increasing Active Participation and Engagement of Students in Circle Formations

Participation and engagement are important factors in students’ academic achievement and in increasing interest and motivation in the learning process. This study evaluates participation and engagement in circle formations in both outdoor and indoor education settings. Over a four-week study period, four instructors collected data on different circle formations. The four circle formations tested are: instructor and students standing (allstanding); instructor and students sitting (all-sitting); instructor standing with students sitting; instructor sitting with students standing. Results from 86 observation forms show that students had the greatest active participation and engagement in the all-sitting circle formation. The traditional learning arrangement, with teacher standing and students sitting, had the lowest level of student participation and engagement. Eye level of instructor and students was thought to be a major factor influencing participation and engagement in the learning environment. Results obtained from this study will help inform educators in both traditional classroom and outdoor learning environments on effective teaching practices for increasing student participation and engagement.

Engaging youth in physical activity and STEM subjects through outdoor adventure education

Physical inactivity and academic underperformance in STEM (science, technology, engineering, and mathematics) subjects are complex youth issues requiring multifaceted solutions. This exploratory study investigated a novel outdoor learning approach to addressing both issues through an outdoor adventure education (OAE) STEM education programme designed to enhance student engagement and self-determination in STEM subjects and physical activity. Twenty-two high school (secondary school) students participated in a five-day alternative spring break snow science programme that integrated STEM topics with winter outdoor activities (i.e., snowshoeing, downhill skiing, and snowboarding). Results indicated that the OAE STEM programme provided an autonomy-supportive learning climate characterised by experiences of optimal engagement (i.e., flow) and self-determination (i.e., autonomy, relatedness, and competence). Findings suggested that OAE STEM programmes have the potential to enhance high school/secondary school students’ engagement in both physical activity and STEM education. Implications for research and practices that blend STEM education with OAE are explored.

Adventure learning as a curricular approach that transcends geographies and connects people to place

Effectively communicating scientific research has taken on greater importance as climate change impacts the world we live in. It is increasingly incumbent upon the science and education communities to produce and deliver curriculum that is timely, accessible, and scientifically accurate. In the summer of 2012, scientists and educators worked together to develop and conduct the Adventure Learning @ Greenland (AL@GL) project, which explored the capacity of hands-on and web-based climate science education experiences that occurred in Greenland and the US. The Adventure Learning approach and associated framework was used to design the learning experience during AL@GL activities. Participating students were from Greenland, Denmark, and the US; these students included participants who were diverse, rural, and traditionally underrepresented. Participating students worked closely with educators and scientists to learn about an atmospheric observatory at Summit Station, located on the Greenland Ice Sheet. The purpose of this article is to inform readers in how they may use Adventure Learning and the newly developed curriculum model called Content, Transition, Inquiry, and Synthesis for the education and outreach of research projects.