HST CYCLE 9 E/PO GRANTS

The Hubble Space Telescope Cycle 9 Education/Public Outreach Grant Program received a total of eleven proposals representing eight states. There were seven proposals eligible for funding for the HST Cycle 9 E/PO Grant Program representing six states. The total amount of funding recommended is $64,624.

Funded Programs

Curriculum/Product Development

• Accessible Universe: Making Astronomy Accessible to All in the Regular Elementary Classroom - Dr. Bruce Woodgate, Goddard Space Flight Center
• Mapping the Solar Neighborhood - Dr. Meena Sahu, Goddard Space Flight Center
• The Universe Resolved: A NASA Tactile Guide to the Cosmos - Dr. Bernhard Beck-Winchatz, DePaul University

Informal Science Education

• Planetarium Shows and Astronomy: Guiding Children to Scientific Curiosity - Dr. S.M. Kanbur, University of Massechusetts

Public Outreach/Understanding of Science

• Initiating "Universe in the Park" in Minnesota - Dr. Evan Skillman, University of Minnesota
• Low Cost Television as a Hubble Outreach Tool - Prof. Bruce Margon, University of Washington

Student/Teacher Outreach

• An Astronomy Outreach Program for Navajo and Hopi Middle Schools - Amanda Bosch, Lowell Observatory

Planetarium Shows and Astronomy: Guiding Children to Scientific Curiosity
Dr. S.M. Kanbur, University of Massachusetts
Budget: $9,906
Education Category: Informal Science Education

The goal of this project is to use existing equipment and materials to enhance the natural scientific curiosity of schoolchildren, while solidifying the understanding and communication skills of college students. This will be accomplished by visits to rural Massachusetts schools with a portable planetarium, staffed by undergraduate astronomy students. The project focuses on topics from the state curriculum framework for each grade level. We will work with teachers in advance to compile curricular materials, which will assist the school staff in meeting their educational goals. During our visit to the school, we will 1) engage students in active learning inside the dome of the planetarium 2) provide a forum for discussion of a current research topic with a professional astrophysist and 3) demonstrate the use of curricular materials, which will then remain at the school for future use.

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Accessible Universe: Making Astronomy Accessible to All in the Regular Elementary Classroom
Dr. Bruce Woodgate, Goddard Space Flight Center
Budget: $9370
Education Category: Curriculum/Product Development

Astronomy is one of the most publicly accessible of the sciences, with a steady stream of new discoveries, and wide public interest. The study of exo-planetary systems receives both extensive media coverage and is a natural extension of studies of the Solar System at the elementary and middle-school level. Such space-related topics are some of the most popular science curriculum areas at the elementary level and can serve as a springboard to the other sciences, mathematics, and technology for typical student learners. Not all students are typical: 10% of American students are identified as having disabilities which have impacted their education sufficiently that they receive special education services; various estimates suggest that the additional 10% my have milder impairments. Most frequently, these students are placed in comprehensive (mixed-ability) classrooms. Budgetary limitations for most school systems have meant that for the bulk of these children, usually those with comparatively mild learning impairments affecting their ability to access text materials and in some cases to make effective use of visual materials, individualized accommodations in the science curriculum have not been readily available: Time pressures and lack of training on the part of the regular classroom teachers have meant that simple adaptations for science instruction are typically not implemented. We propose developing and piloting a suite of curriculum materials, modified activities, and instructional strategies which can more effectively teach astronomy to children with disabilities in the elementary regular education classroom, incorporating both adapted manipulatives and use of assistive technology.

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Initiating "Universe in the Park" in Minnesota
Dr. Evan Skillman, University of Minnesota
Budget: $3,683
Education Category: Public Outreach/Understanding of Science

A few years ago, the graduate students of the University of Wisconsin started a program of giving public talks followed by observing sessions at the Wisconsin State Parks. Under the administration of Eric Wilcots, this program has grown, and they now give over 30 presentations at more than 20 different state parks each summer. From all accounts, this is a highly successful public outreach program. Here I am requesting funds to initiate a similar program in Minnesota. I would like to start small this summer (with three parks close to the Twin Cities) with a goal of developing a project equal in size to the Wisconsin program. A small grant will allow me the experience to show proof of concept so that in the future I can identify a larger and more permanent funding base.

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An Astronomy Outreach Program for Navajo and Hopi Middle Schools
Dr. Amanda Bosch, Lowell Observatory
Budget: $9,139
Education Categories: Student/Teacher Outreach

The representation of Native Americans in astronomy (and in science in general) is appallingly low: only 0.1 % (3 people: American Astronomical Society 1990 survey). Our proximity to the Navajo and Hopi nations encourages an astronomy outreach program to these people. The education leaders of these tribes are eager to provide their children with as much help as possible to increase their understanding and appreciation of science, and we aim to accomplish this through the learning of astronomy. We have designed a culturally sensitive program that takes into account the specific learning styles of Navajo and Hopi children, and is aware of the special needs of bringing such a program to a large and often remote area. Simultaneously, we will be helping teachers (5th -8th grade) learn about astronomy, giving them information and activities they can use with other classes and share with other teachers. Throughout the year, we will visit classes and perform hands-on activities with full participation from the teacher. After school, we presented these activities to other teachers in the school and the teacher with whom we are working will then act as a resource for them. The classroom activities are drawn from those developed by other programs and will be modified as needed for our program. In addition, we will hold evening star parties that involve the students' families and community.

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Low Cost Television as a Hubble Outreach Tool
Prof. Bruce Margon, University of Washington
Budget: $13,826
Education Category: Public Outreach/Understanding of Science

Large budget television productions on Astronomy, such as Cosmos and The Astronomers, are rare, despite the fact that the pace of progress in our field is very rapid, and public interest is intense. We argue that there is a significant public thirst for modest-budget feature television programs on astronomy, and cite the success of three previous one-hour features that we have produced in-house. We propose here to design, produce, and distribute two more timely programs on recent results from Hubble Space Telescope, on a budget of far less than 1% of that used by commercial networks. Indeed, we plan to produce two further programs for barely more than the cost of any one of our previous three. The identical technical and scientific team will be used as on the three previous programs, so the risk is low and cost estimate realistic. The distribution of the previous programs involved a viewer pool of tens of millions, and there is every reason to expect a similar result with the new production, as the outlets have been querying us for further material. However, our production facilities are self-supporting, and thus the project cannot move forward without external financial resources. We outline several simple techniques planned to assess the impact of the program. The longer-term goal of this project is to interest more traditional commercial outlets into routinizing the production and distribution of this type of programming as a complement to the very elaborate, expensive astronomy productions.

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The Universe Resolved: A NASA Tactile Guide to the Cosmos
Dr. Bernhard Beck-Winchatz, DePaul University
Budget: $10,000
Education Category: Curriculum/Product Development

Space science resources, such as the images available in the HST public pictures archive, are routinely used in many mainstream middle schools and high schools. They provide a rich context for the learning of science that brings currency, relevance, and excitement to the classroom and also supports the national science standards. They engage the imagination of the general public, and contribute to the scientific literacy in our society. However, very few such resources exist for approximately 10 million blind and visually impaired people in the United States. To address the needs of the blind and visually impaired, we propose the development of a space science resource book. It will consist of tactile images based on images found in the HST public picture archive and other NASA picture archives. The images will be supplemented by text in the form of Braille and large print. In collaboration with experienced educators, curriculum developers, and graphic artists, we will develop criteria for selecting suitable images from the HST and other NASA picture archives, as well as techniques for translating them into tactile format. We will apply these in the development of the resource book, of which we will initially produce 400 copies. The resource book will be sold slightly about cost through established distributors, such as ASP, NSTA, museums, and others. Earnings will be used for future updates and the development of the second edition. Hence, after the Cycle 9 E/PO grant pays for the first edition, the project will become self-sustaining.

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Mapping the Solar Neighborhood
Dr. Meena Sahu, Goddard Space Flight Center
Budget: $8,700
Education Category: Curriculum/Product Development

We propose to work with a science teachers who will help us translate the scientific results obtained from HST on the Local Interstellar Medium (LSM) into material that can be understood by the middle school children. We plan to achieve the educational objectives through an innovative science education program called SUNBEAMS which aims at providing teachers from the Washington, D.C. area, with the time and resources to develop curriculum materials based on NASA research and national standards and fosters partnerships between scientists and local teachers. By focusing on the teacher, the Education/Public outreach efforts that we propose here will have a more lasting effect. We have identified a middle school science teacher, Ms. Haroldine Pratt from St. Francis de Sales School in Washington, D.C., who is interested in working with us for a five-week period at Goddard Space Flight Center. Ms. Pratt has already spent time learning about how HST works, basic astronomy and Web-based publishing. Ms. Pratt will work with the scientists in our team to prepare lesson plans based on HST results of the LSM. She will see that the lesson plans fit into the curriculum, are developmentally appropriate and that they conform to National Science Education Standards. The responsibilities of the scientists on our team are to provide background material and information to enable her to become familiar with the science. The SUNBEAMS project has no current institutional funding. Hence, we request a total amount of $8,700 to cover Ms. Pratt's salary for the five-week period, supplies and materials, a 20% overhead, and modest publishing costs.

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