Peter R. Girguis1, Christy Herren2, and Annette deCharon2

Capitalizing on Education and Outreach (E&O) Expertise to Broaden Impacts

1 = Harvard University16 Divinity Avenue room 3085,Cambridge, MA 02138pgirguis@oeb.harvard.edu

2 = COSEE-Ocean SystemsUniversity of MaineDarling Marine Center193 Clark Cove RoadWalpole, ME 04573

The Mandate to Broaden the Impact of Scientific Research

NSF’s 2001-2006 strategic plan*

“Effective integration of research and education at all levels ...quickly and effectively communicated in a broader context and to a larger audience...to broaden participation and enhance diversity in NSF programs”.

NSF establishes “broader impacts” as a criteria by which proposals are ranked.

“broader impacts” is not rigidly defined

Numerous modes of education outreach (E&O)

Not always easy for scientists to choose

* www.nsf.gov/pubs/2004/nsf042/bicexamples.pdf

Objectives of this presentation

1) One scientist’s perspective on participating in E&O at different programmatic “scales”-local, regional, and national

2) Share “lessons learned”

3) Consider factors that influence decisions about participating in E&O programs

Context (i.e. about myself)

- R1 university faculty- personally dedicated to E&O- relatively good access at Harvard to resources ($)- Involved in E&O through NSF, NASA, & private foundations

A scientist’s perspective on E/O participation

Some considerations

As a scientist, I am trained to conduct experiments, analyze data, write research papers

As a university instructor I am trained to teach undergraduates

I have not been formally trained to do outreach, and have learned from those more proficient than me.

Effectively broadening impacts in the sciences is by necessity a joint venture between scientists and educators.

Local Scale E&O: Harvard/CRLS Internship Program

Founded in 2006 by Peter Girguis (Harvard) and Educator Paul McGuinness from Cambridge-Rindge Latin School (CRLS)

Objective: Ad hoc program for high school students from diverse backgrounds; internships with university students and faculty; gain scientific skills and experience

• 3 teachers & 11 high school students have “interned” in the Girguis lab

• All students were women; three students were from underrepresented groups

• Two teachers (Boston and Cambridge public schools) participated on cruises and dove in the Alvin submarine

Peter and Niroshi Senarthe (student) work on a joint research project in the Girguis Lab.

Best attributes

- Direct interactions with high school students in lab and at sea

- Teachers conducted student-designed experiments at sea

- Three students went on to study environmental biology in college

- Four other Harvard labs have “adopted” the intern program

Local Scale E&O: Harvard/CRLS Internship Program

Challenges- I did much of the “heavy

lifting”

- Cost per student, liability

- Limited lab space limits participation

- Ancedotal assessments

- Breadth of impact unknown

"Student internship opportunities in the Girguis lab have given my students, without exaggeration, life changing experiences and given me a way to inspire them with real world 'hands on' and 'minds on' science. .” – Paul McGuinness

Regional Scale E&O: Research and Education: Volcanoes, Exploration and Life (REVEL)

Founded in 1996 by Drs. John Delaney and Veronique Robigou (Univ. of Washington)

Objective: Involve 8-12th grade teachers in research via cruises and

shoreside programs

• 67 science educators have participated in REVEL

• During my expeditions, 3 of 5 educators from underrepresented groups; 4 were women

• Supported by NSF, Univ. of Washington, ChevronTexaco; WA Women’s Foundation

REVEL logo

REVEL 2003

Best attributes

-Develop curricula for their classrooms that are consistent with ocean literacy principles

-Teachers bring these lessons to their classrooms

-Broader impact achieved by working with the science educators

-Feedback from directors

Regional Scale E&O: REVEL

Challenges

- Time invested by scientists

-Coordinating interactions among participants after the expedition

- Different teacher backgrounds

- Challenge developing curricula on board ship

National Scale E&O: Center for Ocean Science Education Excellence – Ocean Systems (COSEE-OS)

Started in 2005, PI = Annette deCharon

Objective: Investigate issues in educational research that pertain to pedagogy, practice, and the learning process

•Use concept mapping to get scientists and educators “on the same page” for complex science topics

•Pilot Scientist for the Research-Based Online Learning Event (ROLE) Webinars

•Writing blogs as follow-up with educators and other scientists

•COSEE Speaker at 2 NSTA conferences (‘08, ’09)

Best attributes

-Collaboratively develop lasting resources for teachers that are aligned with Ocean Literacy Principles

- Products available online at COSEE

-Continued interactions with COSEE-OS; events, educator expertise

- Received evaluation feedback

Challenges

-Learning curve for new pedagogical techniques

-Incorporating ongoing feedback to improve my efficacy in communicating my research

National Scale E&O: COSEE-OS

How do I measure the “impact” of my efforts(For NSF and me...)?

- E&O programs required varying degrees of effort by my lab members and me

- Each program yielded different products

- To determine efficacy, I began recording “subjective” metrics

• Scale of program • Effort/time put in by me • Effort/time put in by lab members• Extent and accessibility of documentation (*if

documented*)• Participation by underrepresented groups and women

- Use data to generate basic assessments about availability to a broader audience

Five basic factors show wide differences per program

0 1 2 3 4 5

Harvard-CRLS program

REVEL Teachers at Sea program

COSEE-Ocean Systems

Harvard Microbial Sciences Teacher Workshop

Life in our Universe radio show (commercial radio)

HHMI Teacher Education Program (educator)

New England Aquarium "Science Lecture Series"

NPR shows (Science Friday; Academic Minute)

International Genetic Engineered Machines (IGEM) m

DIRT the movie (independent film)

HHMI minority mentoring program

Harvard Engineering Holiday Lecture

World Book Encyclopedia contributions

RIDGE Distinguished Lecture Series

Effort by PIEffort by labExtent of DocumentationAccessibility of DocumentationGeographic Impact

0 1 2 3 4 5

Harvard-CRLS program

REVEL Teachers at Sea program

COSEE-Ocean Systems

Harvard Microbial Sciences Teacher Workshop

Life in our Universe radio show (commercial radio)

HHMI Teacher Education Program (educator)

New England Aquarium "Science Lecture Series"

NPR shows (Science Friday; Academic Minute)

International Genetic Engineered Machines (IGEM) m

DIRT the movie (independent film)

HHMI minority mentoring program

Harvard Engineering Holiday Lecture

World Book Encyclopedia contributions

RIDGE Distinguished Lecture Series

Effort by PIEffort by labExtent of DocumentationAccessibility of DocumentationGeographic Impact

My rating (1=least; 5= most)0 1 2 3 4 5

Harvard CLRS program

REVEL at Sea

COSEE-OS

Harvard Teacher Wkshp

SETI life on Earth radio show

HHMI Teacher Ed prgm

New England Aquarium Lecture

NPR Science Friday, Acad. Min.

iGEM program

DIRT! The movie

HHMI minority mentoring prgm

Harvard Holiday Lecture

World Book Encyclopedia

Ridge Dist. Lecture Series

How does the scientist’s effort relate to potential impact?

0 1 2 3 4 5 6

1

1

1

1

1

2

2

2

2

2.5

3

3

4

4

Accessibility of Documentation

World Book Encyclopedia

RIDGE distinguished lectures

Harvard Engineering Holiday Lecture

Harvard CRLS program

COSEE-OS

HHMI mentoring program

DIRT! the movie

REVEL teachers at sea

iGEM mentoring program

National Public Radio*

New England Aquarium Lectures

HHMI education series

Commercial radio shows

Harvard Microbial Teacher Workshop

Accessible documentation is one requirement for broadening impact

Effort and accessibility are not always proportional

This is not a measure of success, but should be considered

Gauging Impact?

Revelations: It’s hard to gauge impact on your own

Regional and national groups (COSEE, REVEL, RIDGE2000) provided a working system to:

- develop content and message- understanding audience- facilitate communication with education network- professional assessment

NOTE: Until recently, I did not understand the value of assessment and did not capitalize on the significance of this feedback

I can see the impact!

I can see the impact!

Parting thoughts (lessons learned by this scientist)

• There is great value in E&O at any scale

• Engaging with well-developed E&O programs is a more efficient means of bringing one’s research stories to the largest audience (but it may not be as personal an experience as local programs).

• Interactions among scientists and educators must be bi-directional!

•Commitment to E&O is growing, so scientists should be better prepared to be in these roles (e.g., we need more training!)

• Funding for E&O in grants should be allocated proportionally; could be mandated by funding agencies? • Greater accountability for E&O by NSF and other funding agencies?

Thank you all for your time

Special thanks

National Science Foundation for support to Girguis, DeCharon

NASA

Howard Hughes Medical Institute for support to Girguis

Harvard University for support to Girguis

My lab group...the best ever!

National Scale E&O: Center for Ocean Sci. Edu. Excellence – Ocean Systems)

http://cosee.umaine.edu/coseeos/webinars

Sustaining presence with webinar, online website and blogs

Lessons learned:Ideas for improving quality and broadening impact1) Each scientists should determine how she or he can best communicate their

research.

2) Avoid re-inventing the wheel; capitalize on existing systems

3) Be receptive to feedback1) NSF-level project?

4) Capitalize on existing, well-developed, programs to refine and disseminate your program.

5) Educators should provide constructive, appropriate feedback1) Scientists will not likely reach your degree of mastery

6) Your project can be local, and your impact national.

7) Better identify and understand the audience1) Do not assume lowest common denominator

8) Take social and economic issues into consideration1) Annelys story?

NSF PIs are not always trained in best educational practices, literacy principles, etc.