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John Moore remembers the snow story well.
Several years ago, he led an Upward Bound expedition up Trail Ridge Road. Upward Bound is part of a Colorado State University program that serves high school juniors and seniors from low-income areas.
One student, who lived in Denver, marveled at the scenery.
“Oh, my God,” she said. “I didn’t know that the white stuff up here was snow in the summertime.”
Though he’s on the phone, you can practically hear Moore shake his head as he shares the anecdote.
“She looked at the mountains all her life, but didn’t connect the fact that there was snow on the mountains in the summertime,” he said. “That’s a metaphor for a lot of issues.”
Now, Moore is leading a group of educators and researchers hoping to expand basic scientific literacy programs to help students like Denver girl prepare not just for college, but for 21st-century jobs.
Moore directs CSU’s Natural Resource Ecology Laboratory and is leading a $12.5 million, National Science Foundation-funded effort to expand teacher training in science, technology, engineering and math in school districts around the country.
It’s part of a growing movement in public education, where American schools have seen precipitous drops in student performance in math and science.
One Fort Collins principal said focusing on scientific literacy is key to developing “21st-century learners,” and it goes beyond standard assessment tests.
“It’s about how to work in a collaborative environment, and science lends itself to that. It’s about how to be critical thinkers and make judgments,” said Mary Kay Sommers, principal at Shepardson Elementary School and past president of the National Association of Elementary School Principals. “The world is exploding with information very quickly, so the skills that children need today are different than the ones we needed when we were growing up.”
Science, technology, engineering and math programs, or STEM programs, are getting attention from state and national education groups interested in preparing a modern workforce.
Colorado is one of six states to receive a $500,000 grant from the National Governor’s Association to establish STEM centers, including a group in Northern Colorado.
Sommers said the movement is gaining steam; rarely a day passes when she doesn’t receive an email related to STEM.
Moore, who spearheaded efforts to get the science foundation grant, already participates in the NSF-funded Long-Term Ecological Research network, or LTER, which partners with K-12 math and science teachers around the United States.
With the new grant, four LTER stations, including some in Colorado, will partner with 22 school districts, focusing on middle schools and high schools.
Teachers will work at research sites with scientists and attend seminars based on themes of the carbon cycle, water and biodiversity.
The idea is to increase teachers’ knowledge of math and science subjects and let that experience trickle down to students, Moore said.
He’s considering a stipend to get teachers out of classrooms and into the lab, but they’d maintain interaction with their schools throughout the year so they can infuse their knowledge into the curriculum. When a teacher can talk in the first person and start a lesson by saying, for instance, “When I was up in the Arctic...” that’s when students really become enthusiastic about learning, Moore said.
The environment in schools across the country was ripe for a program like this. Teachers have expressed a desire to see how their subjects are practiced in the field, and test scores in the four fields have lagged nationwide.
While the program focuses on middle and high school students, Sommers said elementary educators are always looking for ways to make education relevant to students.
Last week, she visited a kindergarten class in which a student had gone above and beyond in her assignment, impressing her teacher.
“She stood up and she said, ‘I just can’t stop learning!’ And it was just the most precious comment, but it’s that enthusiasm that you want all kids to have beyond kindergarten. That’s the only way our country is going to be able to survive,” she said.
Sommers said STEM programs are about connecting kids to areas that are important and intriguing to them.
“Sometimes that’s just about opening doors,” she said.
Several years ago, he led an Upward Bound expedition up Trail Ridge Road. Upward Bound is part of a Colorado State University program that serves high school juniors and seniors from low-income areas.
One student, who lived in Denver, marveled at the scenery.
“Oh, my God,” she said. “I didn’t know that the white stuff up here was snow in the summertime.”
Though he’s on the phone, you can practically hear Moore shake his head as he shares the anecdote.
“She looked at the mountains all her life, but didn’t connect the fact that there was snow on the mountains in the summertime,” he said. “That’s a metaphor for a lot of issues.”
Now, Moore is leading a group of educators and researchers hoping to expand basic scientific literacy programs to help students like Denver girl prepare not just for college, but for 21st-century jobs.
Moore directs CSU’s Natural Resource Ecology Laboratory and is leading a $12.5 million, National Science Foundation-funded effort to expand teacher training in science, technology, engineering and math in school districts around the country.
It’s part of a growing movement in public education, where American schools have seen precipitous drops in student performance in math and science.
One Fort Collins principal said focusing on scientific literacy is key to developing “21st-century learners,” and it goes beyond standard assessment tests.
“It’s about how to work in a collaborative environment, and science lends itself to that. It’s about how to be critical thinkers and make judgments,” said Mary Kay Sommers, principal at Shepardson Elementary School and past president of the National Association of Elementary School Principals. “The world is exploding with information very quickly, so the skills that children need today are different than the ones we needed when we were growing up.”
Science, technology, engineering and math programs, or STEM programs, are getting attention from state and national education groups interested in preparing a modern workforce.
Colorado is one of six states to receive a $500,000 grant from the National Governor’s Association to establish STEM centers, including a group in Northern Colorado.
Sommers said the movement is gaining steam; rarely a day passes when she doesn’t receive an email related to STEM.
Moore, who spearheaded efforts to get the science foundation grant, already participates in the NSF-funded Long-Term Ecological Research network, or LTER, which partners with K-12 math and science teachers around the United States.
With the new grant, four LTER stations, including some in Colorado, will partner with 22 school districts, focusing on middle schools and high schools.
Teachers will work at research sites with scientists and attend seminars based on themes of the carbon cycle, water and biodiversity.
The idea is to increase teachers’ knowledge of math and science subjects and let that experience trickle down to students, Moore said.
He’s considering a stipend to get teachers out of classrooms and into the lab, but they’d maintain interaction with their schools throughout the year so they can infuse their knowledge into the curriculum. When a teacher can talk in the first person and start a lesson by saying, for instance, “When I was up in the Arctic...” that’s when students really become enthusiastic about learning, Moore said.
The environment in schools across the country was ripe for a program like this. Teachers have expressed a desire to see how their subjects are practiced in the field, and test scores in the four fields have lagged nationwide.
While the program focuses on middle and high school students, Sommers said elementary educators are always looking for ways to make education relevant to students.
Last week, she visited a kindergarten class in which a student had gone above and beyond in her assignment, impressing her teacher.
“She stood up and she said, ‘I just can’t stop learning!’ And it was just the most precious comment, but it’s that enthusiasm that you want all kids to have beyond kindergarten. That’s the only way our country is going to be able to survive,” she said.
Sommers said STEM programs are about connecting kids to areas that are important and intriguing to them.
“Sometimes that’s just about opening doors,” she said.
Learn More
STEM advocates will hold a series of meetings this spring to convene interested parties for a Northern Colorado STEM Compact. For more information, visit coloradostemeducation.com.The public is invited to the following events in and around Larimer County:
» Loveland Community STEM Convening Event
6:30-8:30 p.m. Tuesday, March 31
Thompson Valley High School Auditorium, 1669 Eagle Dr., Loveland
» Fort Collins Community STEM Convening Event (Advance Registration Required)
Held during 21st Century Framework Conference
11:30 a.m. to 1:30 p.m. Friday, April 3
Hilton Hotel, 425 W. Prospect Road, Fort Collins
» Greeley/University of Northern Colorado Community STEM Convening Event
4-6 p.m. Thursday, April 16
Northridge High School, 100 N. 71st Ave., Greeley
