Citation:

Hartley, J. Education modules using EnviroAtlas. Nat'l Science Teachers Assoc Stem Forum & Expo, Kissimmee, FL, July 12 - 14, 2017.

Impact/Purpose:

To communicate educational modules developed at the EPA for lower, middle, and high school students. Modules include an outdoor learning component and emerging technology using EPA's EnviroAtlas online mapping tool. Materials meet state standards for multiple topics within ecology, geography, health, and other fields.

Description:

Proposal #1: Exploration and Discovery through Maps: Teaching Science with Technology (Elementary)Online maps have the power to bring students closer to their local natural environments. EnviroAtlas is an interactive, web-based tool that was designed by the EPA and its partners to provide access to maps that visually show the status of the local environment and social elements of a local area. EnviroAtlas is readily available, only requires an internet browser to use, and can be used by anyone with some introduction, which this session will provide. This session covers an innovative, lesson-plan package encouraging students to explore their local watershed through a hands-on lab, an outdoor component, and an EnviroAtlas web-mapping session. The EnviroAtlas tool equips students with the skills necessary to navigate data in a technologically-groundbreaking and visual format. Students can use EnviroAtlas to explore maps and their features, as well as consider the real-world applications and connections to their local environment using the data available in EnviroAtlas. This session will walk teachers through the lesson package and allow time for open-ended exploration of the EnviroAtlas tool. The lesson-plan package covers NGSS 4-ESS3-2, 4-ESS2-2, 5-ESS2-1 and 5-ESS3-1 and will be led by an EPA Fellow with seven years of public school science teaching experience in both urban and rural settings.This abstract has been reviewed and approved by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency. Its contents do not necessarily reflect the views and policies of the Agency.Proposal #2: What is the Eco-Health Relationship? Using an Online Interactive Tool to Explore How the Environment Affects Human Health (Middle Level)This presentation will guide teachers through a ready-made lesson-plan package that utilizes the Eco-Health Relationship Browser, a tool developed by the EPA to display scientific evidence for the connections between ecosystems, the services they provide, and human health. The free, easy-to-use, web-based tool is highly interactive and allows for independent student exploration. The Eco-Health Relationship Browser displays 4 ecosystems (including Urban Ecosystems), 6 ecosystem services, and 32 health outcomes, providing evidence from hundreds of scientific publications on linkages between variables. The openness of the tool allows for students to explore concepts, collaborate on their ideas for exploration, innovate solutions, and communicate their own personal experiences as well as findings within the tool. This session will both allow for teacher exploration of the tool as well as provide a walk-through of an available lesson plan using the Eco-Health Relationship Browser that has been developed to align with the following NGSS: MS-ESS3-3, MS-ESS3-4. The lesson plan could be applied to any Health, Biology, Earth Science, or Environmental Science courses. The session will be led by an EPA Fellow with seven years of public school science teaching experience in both urban and rural settings.This abstract has been reviewed and approved by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency. Its contents do not necessarily reflect the views and policies of the Agency.Proposal #3: Greenway Case Study puts students in the decision-making role: Using technology and maps to inform development decisions. High school students need to be ready to make decisions in a real-world context. They also need exposure to tools that will equip them for potential future careers. This session will exhibit a learning module that promotes student discovery using available maps and data, engages them to be collaborative decision-makers, and introduces students to the growing field of geospatial mapping. Through this hypothetical case study, which can be completed with or without internet, studentDOES NOT FIT IN WINDOW. PLS SEE ATTACHED DOC

Record Details: