HR: 1340h
AN: OS23A-1287    [Abstracts]
TI: Adult-Rated Oceanography Part 1: A Project Integrating Ocean Sciences into Adult Basic Education Programs.
AU: * Cowles, S
EM: skcowles@comcast.net
AF: National Institute for Literacy, 3240 NW McKinley, Corvallis, OR 97330
AU: Collier, R
EM: rcollier@coas.oregonstate.edu
AF: COAS, Oregon State University, Corvallis, OR 97331
AU: Torres, M K
EM: mtorres@coas.oregonstate.edu
AF: COAS, Oregon State University, Corvallis, OR 97331
AB: Busy scientists seek opportunities to implement education and outreach efforts, but often don't know where to start. One easy and tested method is to form collaborations with federally-funded adult education and adult literacy programs. These programs exist in every U.S. state and territory and serve underrepresented populations through such major initiatives as adult basic education, adult secondary education (and GED preparation), and English language acquisition. These students are workers, consumers, voters, parents, grandparents, and members of every community. They have specific needs that are often overlooked in outreach activities. This presentation will describe the steps by which the Oregon Ocean Science and Math Collaborative program was developed. It is based on a partnership between the Oregon Department of Community Colleges and Workforce Development, Oregon State University College of Oceanic and Atmospheric Sciences, Oregon Sea Grant, and the OSU Hatfield Marine Science Center. It includes professional development through instructor institutes; teachers at sea and informal education opportunities; curriculum and web site development. Through the partnership described here, instructors in adult basic education programs participate in a yearlong experience in which they develop, test, and adapt innovative instructional strategies to meet the specific needs of adult learners. This, in turn, leads to new prospects for study in the areas of ocean science and math and introduces non-academic careers in marine science to a new community. Working directly with instructors, we have identified expertise level, instructional environment, instructor background and current teaching strategies used to address science literacy and numeracy goals of the adult learners in the State of Oregon. Preliminary evaluation of our ongoing project in meeting these goals will be discussed. These efforts contribute to national goals of science literacy for all, by providing learning activities that link ocean sciences with real-life issues relevant to employment, environment and economic concerns.
UR: http://literacyworks.org/ocean
DE: 0800 EDUCATION
DE: 0805 Elementary and secondary education
DE: 0815 Informal education
DE: 0830 Teacher training
SC: Ocean Sciences [OS]
MN: 2004 AGU Fall Meeting