HR: 1340h
AN: ED13C-0727 INVITED     [Abstracts]
TI: Coupling Immersive Experiences with the Use of Mission Data to Encourage Students' Interest in Science, Technology, Engineering, and Math: Examples from the Mars Exploration Program
AU: * Klug, S L
EM: sklug@asu.edu
AF: Arizona State University, Mars Space Flight Facility, Box 876305, Moeur Bldg. Rm. 131, Tempe, AZ 85287-6305 United States
AU: Valderrama, P
AF: Arizona State University, Mars Space Flight Facility, Box 876305, Moeur Bldg. Rm. 131, Tempe, AZ 85287-6305 United States
AU: Viotti, M A
EM: Michelle.A.Viotti@jpl.nasa.gov
AF: Jet Propulsion Laboratory, 4800 Oak Grove Dr., Pasadena, CA 91109 United States
AU: Watt, K
EM: K.Watt@asu.edu
AF: Arizona State University, Mars Space Flight Facility, Box 876305, Moeur Bldg. Rm. 131, Tempe, AZ 85287-6305 United States
AU: Watt, K
EM: K.Watt@asu.edu
AF: Jet Propulsion Laboratory, 4800 Oak Grove Dr., Pasadena, CA 91109 United States
AU: Wurman, G
EM: gwurman@seismo.berkeley.edu
AF: Arizona State University, Mars Space Flight Facility, Box 876305, Moeur Bldg. Rm. 131, Tempe, AZ 85287-6305 United States
AB: The Mars Exploration Program, in partnership with the Arizona State University Mars Education Program has created and successfully tested innovative pathways and programs that introduce, develop, and reinforce science, technology, engineering, and mathematics - STEM subjects into pre-college curriculum. With launches scheduled every 26 months, Mars has the unique opportunity and ability to have a long-term, systemic influence on science education. Also, because of the high level of interest in Mars, as exemplified by the10 billion Internet hits during the Mars Exploration Rover mission, it is a great vehicle for the infusion of current science into today's classrooms. These Mars education programs have linked current mission science and engineering with the National Education Standards, integrating them in a teacher-friendly and student-friendly format. These linkages are especially synergistic when combined with long-term partnerships between educators, Mars scientists and engineers, as they exemplify real-world collaborations and teamwork. To accommodate many different audience needs, an array of programs and a variety of approaches to these programs have been developed. High tech, low tech and no tech options can be implemented to help insure that as many students can be accommodated and impacted by these programs as possible. These programs are scaled to match the National Education Standards in the grade levels in which students need to become proficient in these subjects. The Mars Student Imaging Project - MSIP allows teams of students from the fifth grade through community college to be immersed in a hands-on program and experience the scientific process firsthand by using the Thermal Emission Imaging System - THEMIS camera to target their own image of Mars using an educational version of the real flight software used to target THEMIS images. The student teams then analyze their image and report their findings to the MSIP website. This project has been in existence for over two years and has been used by teachers and students from across the US. The Mars Exploration Student Data Team Program was created and prototyped during the Mars Exploration Rover mission this past January through April. Over 500 students from 25 schools from across the US participated in real-time data analysis using the Mars Odyssey and Mars Global Surveyor infrared instruments -Thermal Emission Spectrometer - TES and THEMIS to monitor the rover landing sites. This program utilized a virtual team format and allowed high school students to collaborate with other teams that were, at times, thousands of miles away to implement real-time observations. This program will be carried forward to several of the upcoming missions. Finally, the Athena Student Intern Program is the higher end of involvement for students and teachers. These students and teachers were competitively selected to spend a week during the mission operations of the rovers at JPL. All of these programs have a common thread..ownership of the experience. By empowering the next generation of learners with the knowledge that they can be part of their future through such immersive experiences before they reach college, they will be ready to take on harder challenges that will reach higher towards new frontiers
UR: http://msip.asu.edu
DE: 6200 PLANETOLOGY: SOLAR SYSTEM OBJECTS (New field)
DE: 6605 Education
SC: Education and Human Resourcese [ED]
MN: 2004 AGU Fall Meeting