NSF PR 98-65 - October 7, 1998
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Summer Ends, Summer Begins as NSF Sends Teachers to
the Poles
Four teachers have returned from the Arctic, and ten
more are preparing to go to the Antarctic as part
of the Teachers Experiencing the Arctic/Antarctic
(TEA) program funded by the National Science Foundation
(NSF). Through the program, elementary and secondary
school teachers participate in ongoing field research
with NSF-funded scientists, and then bring back what
they have learned to share with students and other
teachers.
"What better way is there to teach through life experience
than with the experience of a lifetime," said Tim
Conner, a teacher from Chenango Forks Central School,
Chenango Forks, New York, and TEArctic program participant.
"TEA enriches the classroom for both teachers and students
alike," said Wayne Sukow, program manager for the
NSF's education and human resources directorate. "We
show our students that science is not just a school
subject, but something that is alive and resonates
with relevance for their lives and their community."
This past summer, four teachers from around the country
worked with researchers in the Arctic. Conner assisted
archaeologists in Deering, Alaska as they excavated
the remains of a 1,000-year-old Ipuitak village. Myrtle
Brijbasi, from Suitland High School in Forestville,
Maryland, studied the effects of oil contamination
on river otters. Tim Buckley of Barrow High School
in Barrow, Alaska, spent time aboard the U.S. Coast
Guard Cutter, Polar Sea, as he worked with scientists
studying chemical and biological properties of the
Arctic pack ice. Donald Rogers, from Rogers High School
in Spokane, Washington, helped study the influence
of Arctic tundra on the atmosphere.
While working in the field, each teacher posted updates
of their journals to the TEA website so their students
could follow along.
As the summer season ends in the Arctic, things are
getting underway for the beginning of the austral
summer research season in the Antarctic. This year,
ten teachers will participate in scientific efforts
at research stations across the continent, including
the South Pole and aboard the research vessel Nathaniel
B. Palmer. From the ice, teachers can share stories
of their Antarctic adventures, both scientific and
personal, with their students through the Internet.
Sue Bowman, a new TEAntarctic participant from Lebanon
High School in Lebanon, Pennsylvania, is busy getting
ready for her trip to the South Pole this January.
As she teaches her own students about polar astronomy,
she works with other teachers in the Lebanon School
District so that their students can also take part
in the experience.
"Our older students are learning computer programs
to conduct studies that will mirror my work at the
Pole, while the younger groups are learning all about
the Antarctic environment and life on the ice," said
Bowman.
With consultation from past participants, and the willing
support of the school's administration, Lebanon High
School is tooling up their curriculum and their computers
to keep track of Bowman's expedition to Antarctica.
"I can't believe the opportunities that TEA has brought
to the kids in our school district as a result of
this trip," said Bowman, "and I haven't even left
yet."
Editors: For a complete list of all the
participants, past and present, in the TEA program,
see: http://www.glacier.rice.edu/
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