ABSTRACT

1. ABSTRACT The long-term goal of the Partnership for Environmental Education and Rural Health (http://peer.tamu.edu) is to develop and disseminate an engaging model for enhancing environmental health science education in rural grades 6-8. This is accomplished through curriculum development, teacher professional development, and scientists’ visits. Three modules, each lasting for two to four weeks of daily lessons and experiments, have been produced and are being tested for the second year in schools. These are: “Water’s the Matter,” “Toxic or Not,” and “Cells Are Us.” Modules include tutorials on common hazards, experiments and learning activities, short biographies of famous scientists, what we know about the subject, how we know, why it is important to know, and teacher pages (with pre- and post tests, explanations, procedures, other resources). Also, an interactive learning activity (Slime Sleuths at Toxic Island) provides a self-paced fun activity to learn about environmental health science. Three additional modules, “Properties of Hazards”, “Organ Systems,” and “Ecosystems,” are in various stages of completion to be field tested this next year. Thirty-three teachers attended a

2. week long workshop at Texas A&M University this past summer. During the workshop, teachers received technology training, reviewed the curriculum, and performed laboratory experiments. An additional 91 teachers received certification for 12 hours of training in water quality testing and classroom experimentation at regional locations throughout the state, and 16 teachers received a one-day workshop in “Cells are Us” or “Water’s the Matter” in conjunction with COEP NIEHS Center in Galveston. A repeat intensive workshop (one week at Texas A&M University) and four regional workshops for teachers are planned for this summer. Scientist visits to public middle schools have provided over 8,000 students in over 50 rural school districts an opportunity to learn about experimentation and environmental health science first hand from a visiting scientist. Likewise, over 600 teachers, teacher aides, and parents have attended these presentations on health and the environment. Scientists’ visits are on-going throughout the school year; but this year, an additional approach, “Wings Across Texas”, allows scientists to fly to rural communities and make presentations at remote rural schools that are generally inaccessible for scientists with limited travel time. One of the presentations, “Water - Our Most Precious Resource,” features real-time experimentation using a video camera, two computers, two projectors, water quality testing instrumentation, and a cast of characters (middle school students). Using an Audience Response System, teams of students predict the

3. effects of acid rain, excess fertilizer, silt, stagnation, and heat on water quality parameters. Both immediate and long-term environmental health effects are considered as the competition builds among groups as the team totals are periodically displayed. The web-based environmental health science curriculum with experiential learning activities, professional development for public school teachers, and scientists’ visits to rural classrooms, are intended toencourage a larger number of rural students (>50% minority) to enter and remain in science academic tracks. NIEHS Grant R25 ES 10443-03 Environmental and Rural Health Education Partnership (Phase 1)

4. Partnership for Environmental Education and Rural Health (PEER) Funded by: The National Institute of Environmental Health Science NIH ES 10443

5. PEER Partners • Faculty Input • Center for Environmental and Rural Health (CERH) • College of Veterinary Medicine • Curricular Development, Teacher Training, and Scientists’ Visits • PEER faculty and curriculum designers of the College of Veterinary Medicine, School of Rural Public Health, and College of Education • Public School Contacts • Texas Rural Systemic Initiative (TRSI) • Mentor Teacher Panel from local schools

6. PEER Long-term Goals: Science • Develop an engaging model for integrating environmental health science in science of rural grades 6th-8th • Publicize new discoveries, show the power of research to help solve public health problems, and increase public awareness that certain behaviors/situations can increase risk of disease and that basic research is needed to improve public health • Increase the number of public school students who enter and remain in academic tracks in science

7. Rural School Emphasis • Public concern for increased numbers of environmentally health-related diseases in certain rural areas (cancer, birth defects, lead poisoning etc.) • Rural schools may be less likely than urban schools to receive state-of-the-art information on environmental health science issues, but may need it most • Rural schools have fewer interactions with college professors that might influence career choices

8. Middle School Emphasis Middle school was chosen as it is the prime development period for social skills and is central to channeling young adolescents into the mainstream of American life by making vast improve- ments in their academic and personal competence (and resulting contribution to society). It is the most powerful venue to ensure our nation’s leadership in math and science, but this period has received little education reform in recent years. Also, this time immediately precedes the ninth grade at which time the dropout rate is greatest.

9. Objectives and Participating School Districts PEER provides engaging curricula and professional development opportunities to teachers in the Texas Rural Systemic Initiative (TRSI) districts. Face to face interactions between environmental health scientists and public school science students is also a key initiative.

10. Web-based Curricula Modules • Modules being tested: • 5 Water Quality Units • 5 Cell Biology Units • 5 Toxicology Units • 5 Organ Systems Units • Modules being developed • Ecosytems • Properties/Sources of Hazards

19. Professional Development: Intensive Workshops • Five-day Intensives for 15 Teachers in ’00 and 20 in ’01 • Evaluate web-based curricula • Water quality measurements and introduction to our state-wide water quality experiment. • Teachers develop Case Study Writing Projectsor web-based science lessons using Trackstar

20. Regional Water Quality Workshops • Five regional professional development 1½ day training workshops in water quality are conducted at various locations throughout rural Texas. This year’s workshops will provided 12 hours professional development to66 rural middle school science teachers.

21. Scientists’ Visits to Schools Schools Requesting Visits

22. Wings Across Texas – Experiential Learning for Middle School Students By using a small, single-engine aircraft, scientists have been able to make scientific presentations at schools that are remotely located.