EHE News
Sustainable energy sustains student interest in science
Associate Professor Dean Cristol, Teaching and Learning, Ohio State University Lima
Brittany Collier-Gibson, Ohio Director, It's About Discovery
Shaun Blevins, science teacher, Bath High School, Lima, Ohio
Twelve freshmen huddled around five lab stations in their spacious general science classroom at Bath High School. Each small group was building a water wheel, a wind turbine or a solar cell to learn about sustainable energy. Their objective was to investigate the effectiveness of these renewable energy sources.
At first, the ninth graders were hesitant, says Shaun Blevins, their general science teacher at the Lima, Ohio, high school. They had never had this type of lab, and the assembly of energy models was very involved.
Despite the challenges, the students quickly became excited. On the second day of the lab, they arrived motivated and continued building their models. They then used scales to measure the energy output. The students reported that they loved the hands-on learning because they could relate it to their lives and to energy issues in the news.
Blevins and his class are among 1,000 ninth and tenth graders and 14 teachers at six schools in northwestern Ohio and one in Fayetteville, North Carolina, currently taking part in "It's About Discovery," funded by the National Science Foundation. The three-year grant, directed by Dean Cristol, associate professor of teaching and learning at Ohio State Lima, engages underserved, rural high school students in science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) subjects to encourage entry into STEM careers.
Ohio Director Brittany Collier-Gibson says that she, Cristol and the rest of the leadership team chose the Ford Partnership for Advanced Studies (PAS) curriculum, Working Towards Sustainability, because it aligns well with the Ohio academic content standards and promotes critical thinking about STEM-related content. She described more benefits it offers thanks to collaboration at many levels.
Collaboration between teachers, students deepens discussion
Research shows that time for teacher collaboration is essential for successful teaching. To this end, the project employs a wiki, which is an online discussion venue, and videoconferencing, both popular and effective for teacher-led collaboration. The teachers discuss problems and solutions, exchange resources and plan activities using these tools.
Blevins, for instance, planned the alternative energy lab with science teacher Denise Renfro at Douglas Byrd High School in Fayetteville, North Carolina, using e-mail and videoconferencing. They arranged for their students to perform the lab on the same days. After separate class discussions about the results, they linked their students at the two schools by video conference.
"In both classrooms, the kids encountered some of the same problems and benefitted from discussing their solutions," Blevins says. "The Newton scales weren't giving accurate readings, for example, but each class applied a different fix. The students liked seeing and talking to their peers in another state about that and more."
Blevins reports that student motivation increased during the Ford PAS teaching. Students turned in more assignments during the activities. Overall on-task time was higher. Attitudes toward science seemed to improve.
Community partners add value to student experience
To expose his students to role models in STEM careers, Blevins invited Ineos Nitriles, his school's community partner in the project, to the video conference. Ineos is a leading supplier of chemicals for synthetic fibers.
That day, Ineos Director Patrick Conrath asked questions that sparked valuable conversation. "He asked the students why the instructions told them to use the cool, not the hot setting, of the wind turbines, which were essentially hair dryers," Blevins explains. "They began talking about production of heat, electricity, current and power output--all subjects they had learned recently."
The project is gathering data about students' changes in career interests, but Blevins sees examples of their interest regularly. Eric Schnitke, a chemical engineer from Ineos, visited Blevins' class recently to talk about his career path. Afterward, a student asked Blevins for advice about colleges where he could study chemical engineering.
"Until he heard the engineer speak, he didn't believe he could become an engineer. The real-life connection is priceless for these students," Blevins says.
The teacher as facilitator
When it comes to the teacher's role in inquiry-based learning, Blevins sees his goal as helping to guide students to answers, not just give them the answers. Throughout the Ford PAS labs and activities, the students struggled and made mistakes. Blevins told them that was okay.
"I just step them through the problem-solving process," Blevins says. "Eventually, they get to where they're supposed to be. The teacher should be a guide, not a dictator."
It's About Discovery is a partnership between The Ohio State University, the University of North Carolina at Greensboro and Fayetteville State University. Cristol's leadership team includes Christopher Andersen, director of STEM Initiatives, College of Arts and Sciences, and Lynn Sametz, associate director of the Center for Youth, Family and Community Partnerships at the University of North Carolina-Greensboro. Read the introduction to the project when it began.
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