Beyond a Field Trip: What Teachers Really Need

1. Beyond a Field Trip: What Teachers Really Need Mariah Grant Education Program consultant Office of Environmental education and public affairs http://www.eenorthcarolina.org mariah.grant@ncdenr.gov

2. Agenda • Present results to the survey • What are the barriers? • What are some solutions? • Discussion • What are your ideas? • What are your success stories?

3. First of all, YOU ARE VALUED!!! • “I think non-formal educators are vital to educating our children. Not only do they give us essential information that teachers can't, but they educate students as to the job opportunities that are out there. A student who loves animals or nature may not know that there is a job that they could do that would incorporate these interests.” • “You help teach our children that the sky is the limit!”

4. About the Survey: Barriers to Field Trips • Purpose • Determine barriers faced by public school teachers • Offer suggestions to help reduce those barriers • Respondents • From NCSciteach and DPI listervs • 827 classroom teachers • 54% K-5 • 22% 6-8 • 22% 9-12 • 2% Other • Question types • Multiple choice, ranking, mostly free response

5. Number of field trips and guest speakers used throughout curriculum

6. Percent of Teachers Responding 2 or More Field Trips or Guest Speakers

7. Teachers ranked the following barriers • Cost of programs for students • Funding- cost to the school system • Too much time away from curriculum • Too much paperwork • Not enough time to develop meaningful lessons • Safety and legal issues • Programs not aligned with curriculum • Unaware of opportunities • Also could mark “Not Applicable”

8. What do you think teachers ranked as the number one barrier? • You probably guessed it!

9. Don’t we all need more money!

10. After money…what do you think came next? …Time away from class …Time burden on teachers to organize Comments: “Administrators are not supportive and only allow 1 per year” “The new curriculum has really left little time to do additional activities outside the classroom.” “New accountability standards put more pressure on test scores which means less time for activities”

11. And the rest…ranked about equal • Too much paperwork • Safety and legal issues • Programs not aligned with curriculum • Unaware of opportunities

12. Percentage of Barriers Marked Not Applicable 80% of teachers consider these to be barriers

13. Teacher Comments to Barriers • “Chaperones are not available; all volunteers must have background checks.” • “I don't always have the time to discover new things unless someone helps me.” • “Most of what's available is for lower grade levels or is more broad and general.” • “For me it is about student behavior.” • “It is hard to pull kids out in upper grades because they have to miss all their other classes and field trips normally only address one subject.”

14. Do teachers even want to take more field trips and have guest speakers? Is this even worth talking about??

15. Would you like to take more field trips and have more guest speakers? YES!!! 97.5%

16. Ideas Please! But first some disclaimers • Everyone is strapped for cash and time these days • Maybe you are already successful at getting school groups in…we want to hear from you! • This is from the teacher’s perspective…hopefully you will find this useful!

17. What can we do to help remove barriers? Mobile Classrooms Virtual Fieldtrips Align to Essential Standards Offer Pre- and Post- Lesson Plans Sliding Scale Cost Help with Paperwork None of the Above

18. Ideas for addressing the cost issue • “Kits that could be borrowed/delivered would be awesome.” • “Maybe if price incentives were given during the months of January and February more schools would be willing to take field trips. Also if indoor "picnic areas" were provided so students would not have to purchase a meal.” • Go to the school: • “Be pre-approved to enter the school, background checks” • Provide links to grant funding…send all teachers to OEEPA Grants page!

19. Ideas for addressing time away from curriculum • “Remember this is often a principal or district level issue; need to prove the value of your program” • “Develop Pre and post assessments to show value of trip” • “Address Principal Meeting to sell value; especially alignment to ES” • “This is really a county LEA issue, work with district leaders” • “Programs that mutually benefit all curriculum areas and meet the common core and essential standards.” • “Teachers are encouraged to plan lessons across the curriculum (lessons that integrate science, math, reading, writing etc). If non-formal educators helped with this it would be amazingly helpful.”

20. What topics would you most like to see covered? Animals ART ChemistryCTEEcology Energy Essential Standards Genetics Human Force and Motion SoilHuman Body Living Organisms Matter Natural Resources Physical Properties Weather Rocks ScienceSocial Studies Water

21. Too Much Paperwork!! • “Would be helpful to have a one page synopsis of what the students will be doing that clearly aligns to the standards so that I could include it with the paperwork” • “Have all forms to be sent home copied and ready to go with full explanation of what they are offering.”

22. Not enough time to develop meaningful lessons • “Provide pre and post activities for students to complete (not just word puzzles, or scavenger hunts but meaningful, higher level thinking questions” • Align lessons with Essential Standards…try to cover as many as possible. Teacher’s can’t take 2 days to cover one standard!

23. Liability and Behavior Issues • “Offer programs that allow smaller groups of children to rotate between groups/activities. Focus on hands-on activities that cannot easily be replicated in the classroom.” • Have employees well trained in behavior management and working with students from diverse backgrounds • Some teachers won’t go on field trips because of one or two students in the class. This is unfair to all children involved. • Can you address this in your outreach to make teachers feel more comfortable?

24. Aligning with Essential Standards • “Create a centralized list of opportunities on the state website aligned by course with a teacher ranking system to identify the best opportunities” • “Many school districts have teachers follow pacing guides. Align program offerings to pacing guides of nearby schools”

25. Unaware of Opportunities • “I coach sports most of the year. I don't always have the time to discover new things unless someone helps me.” • Centralized list- Office of Envr Ed • Send letters or emails directly to the schools • “Talk to individual schools rather than someone at the county office level. Teachers and department chairs often find out too late about opportunities.” • “Send a link to a user friendly website that makes it easy to book a field-trip or guest speaker.” • “Would like to see video tape of "sample" lessons so I feel comfortable because not everyone can talk to 8th graders”

26. More Outreach Ideas… • Promote themselves within the school - offer educator savings days where teachers can explore the opportunities at a reduced cost or for free. • Ex. NRC day for teachers • “Include opportunities and links in pacing guides and curriculum coming from central office. Therefore, when I am learning the standards and developing units of study, I can more readily incorporate non-formal learning opportunities.” • Collaboration with DPI?

27. How to get teachers on field trips during less popular times of the year • Weather, testing, holidays, and getting to know the kids at the beginning of school year are biggest limiting factors for when teachers can take students on field trips. • Discounts in less popular months • Align programming with pacing guides from nearby schools. • If you offer force and motion and they teach it in February, they will come in February.

28. Let’s end on a positive note… • “The centers and museums are doing a great job to make our trips enjoyable and educational.”