Astrobiology Science and Technology for Exploring Planets (ASTEP)

Education and Public Outreach

Introduction

The NAI E/PO Program spans higher education, K-12 education, informal education, and public outreach through a portfolio of projects implemented by the E/PO Leads from each of NAI's teams. Each team has a unique E/PO plan for its five year term. Each team's plan draws strength from the scientific and educational expertise of the team, and significant involvement of team members.

NAI Central provides leadership, coordination, and administration services for this group, as well as supplemental funds for their activities (see below). NAI Central also represents the program within NASA and to the external community, facilitating official communications by serving as a single point of contact on behalf of the larger group. NAI Central's leadership of the E/PO program takes the form of setting the overall direction in alignment with NASA's policies and guidelines, monitoring its progress, and making changes when needed.

The program measures success not only by the quantity and quality of the teams' activities, but also by its ability to effectively leverage funds, partnerships, and expertise. These attributes are enabled by achieving what is perhaps the program's most important metric, the ability to collaborate for mutual benefit. Over the years, the E/PO Leads, a working group of individuals distributed across the country, have emerged as a unified community of astrobiology education professionals who value communicating and collaborating with one another.

Whether communicating one-on-one, as small groups via email, or through monthly teleconferences, the group reaps the benefits of working together. Because E/PO budgets are relatively small, it is vital to achieve maximum leveraging for maximum impact. Coordination has improved projects through the sharing of new knowledge, best practices, and evaluative data, helping the group replicate successful strategies and avoid making the same mistakes twice. Regular communication also facilitates the sharing of information on existing projects and plans for new ones, reducing duplicative efforts, and matching complementary ones.

NAI Central maintains a small E/PO budget with which it supports and supplements the teams' projects. Funds are available exclusively to the E/PO Leads, and an informal proposal and review process is in place to administer the funds. Engaging the E/PO Leads in the review of each others' proposals has contributed to building an active, collaborative community by raising awareness and endorsement of each others' projects. To date, every team has accessed the funds, and a wide variety of activities have been supported, including teacher workshops, exhibit sponsorship, and travel to support emerging collaborations with new partners.

A Portfolio of Projects

The portfolio of projects across the teams represents a variety of working practices which maintain a healthy balance. The projects reflect both community-based efforts seated in the team's local area (Space Day), and broad-scale, national-level opportunities which are often initiated via contact with NAI Central (partnership with the Microbe World radio program). The portfolio includes projects that offer a range of experiences for learners, from exposure to astrobiology (films and television programs), to in-depth examination of scientific concepts (week-long summer institutes for teachers; summer undergraduate internship programs). The portfolio contains projects that are unique to the NAI (workshops for science journalists) with externally developed projects which NAI has leveraged (educator trainings adjunct to the Alien Earths traveling museum exhibit). The projects reflect both focus on a team's scientific specialty (providing microbiology content to the Encyclopedia of Life), and integration across the spectrum of astrobiological investigations (Voyages Through Time curriculum). A balance is also achieved by supporting projects that are accessible by all (interpretive signs in Yellowstone National Park ), with projects that are designed for a specific group (NASA and the Navajo Nation).

Moving the Program Forward

Implementing new assets and extending the life of existing ones is a priority of the NAI E/PO Program. Numerous efforts over the years have resulted in the production of educational materials such as hands-on activities and curricula for use in classrooms. The focus now is to complete those products still currently in development, and implement effective delivery and training mechanisms utilizing available networks and partnerships. Toward that focus, another priority is to continue to cultivate emerging collaborations, both between teams (as in the astroMICRObiology working group), and between NAI and external organizations (as in the American Society of Microbiology partnership).

As closer attention is paid to the evaluative practices of NASA's E/PO projects and programs, the NAI E/PO Program could benefit from examining its own. A comprehensive analysis of if and how NAI E/PO projects are being evaluated has not been done to date. If carried out, the group may find that creating common evaluative tools may be useful, and/or an external program-level evaluator should be engaged.

In the future, the value of the NAI E/PO group to its members can increase by accessing one another's expertise and resources more often. Specifically, knowledge in the latest science education research and policy can be regularly shared, with follow-up discussions on how that knowledge can directly improve programs. Several teams have included in their teacher programs information and best practices in the teaching of evolution in the classroom. Because of the intimate link between evolution and astrobiology, the NAI E/PO Program could benefit from supporting these efforts, and growing them across the teams.

Many of NAI's teams host week-long, summer workshops for teachers. Over the years, a network of educators highly trained in astrobiology science concepts and classroom materials has emerged. The NAI E/PO group could identify and support those teachers who have potential to be leaders in astrobiology education. A coordinated effort could help them extend their training by taking advantage of NAI workshops and courses in which they've not yet participated. Also, experiences could be developed for these “Astrobiology Educators” such as special advanced-level workshops, support for workshops which they would lead, and/or sabbaticals or field work with NAI scientists. Ultimately, these teachers could become a powerful arm of the NAI E/PO Program by leading projects of their own.

Another possible future direction involves identifying interested PI's from NASA's Exobiology, ASTEP, and ASTID programs, and integrating them into the activities of NAI's E/PO Program as described below. Coordinating this effort may bring in new funds with which to leverage and expand existing projects, and provide the opportunity for NAI E/PO Leads to take a proactive, leadership role in the emergence of astrobiology projects with new scientist partners.

The list below outlines selected NAI E/PO activities and partnerships as carried out by both NAI Central and the teams. Detailed descriptions of all NAI E/PO projects can be found in NAI's Annual Report ( http://nai.nasa.gov ). More information can be obtained by contacting NAI's E/PO Coordinator, Daniella Scalice at 650.604.4024, or daniella.m.scalice@nasa.gov .

• Astrobiology Summer Workshops for Teachers
  Every summer, several NAI teams produce week-long workshops for teachers, delivering cutting edge science, and training educators in the use of astrobiology curriculum materials.
• Life on Earth…and Elsewhere? NAI's Educator Resource Guide
  This booklet of activities for middle school teachers was originally produced by NAI in 2000. It has been widely distributed and used by the NAI E/PO Leads in their activities over the years, and was recently revised and reprinted. http://nai.arc.nasa.gov/library/downloads/Astrobiology-Educator-Guide-2007.pdf
• Astrobiology Education Poster
  A product requested by the NAI E/PO Leads, this poster was produced by NAI as an easily distributable curriculum insert requiring very little training for teachers. It was also revised and reprinted recently. http://nai.arc.nasa.gov/poster/
• Yellowstone National Park
  NAI is involved with a long term relationship with the Park involving the production of a chapter on thermophiles in the Park's Resources and Issues Guide , several Wayside Sign exhibits installed throughout the Park, and new exhibit development in the Old Faithful Visitor Education Center . http://www.nps.gov/yell/planyourvisit/upload/RI08ch4web.pdf
• micro*scope
  This online catalogue of microbial life displays images and information on over 10,000 microbes. With numerous contributors, it has leveraged into the Microbial Life Educational Resources website, uBio, and most recently, the monumental Encyclopedia of Life project. www.mbl.edu/microscope
• Alien Earths
  A traveling museum exhibit produced by the Space Science Institute. NAI has produced educational trainings and events in conjunction with the exhibit in various locations. www.alienearths.org
• Voyages Through Time
  A year-long, 9 th grade, modular astrobiology and evolution-themed curriculum produced by the SETI Institute. Most NAI E/PO Leads attended the week-long workshop called Astrobiology Summer Science Experience for Teachers, also produced by the SETI Institute, in which they were trained on the curriculum. www.voyagesthroughtime.org
• Astrobiology: An Integrated Approach
  Produced by TERC, this year-long high school curriculum covers the breadth of astrobiology research, and is currently implemented in 400 classrooms nationwide.
• NASA and the Navajo Nation
  A long term collaboration with the Nation toward special educational materials which weave together NASA science and Navajo cultural knowledge. The work continues with the development of a new project focused on the Moon. http://nai.nasa.gov/storyofthestars
• Astrobiology Workshops for Science Journalists
  An innovative approach to education, these workshops have provided journalists from newspapers and periodicals with background knowledge to support their effective future writings about astrobiology topics.
• Astrobiology in Secondary Classrooms
  Now the subject of an NSF educational research grant, this project involves a collaboration between educators from the Minority Institution Astrobiology Collaborative and scientists from NAI toward the production of classroom materials. Partnering with NASA's SEMAA program, the materials are being field-tested in several minority-serving classrooms around the country. http://www.astroclassroom.org/New-Pages/Home.html
• Astrobiology for Teachers
  This online, semester-long course for teachers is offered through the National Teacher Enhancement Network at Montana State University . Two advanced versions of the course are in development due to popular demand. http://btc.montana.edu/courses/aspx/nten.aspx?TheID=162
• astroMICRObiology Working Group
  Several teams across NAI are collaborating toward an integrated teacher workshop designed to unify individual microbiology research themes and educational materials in a common narrative.
• Microbes@NASA
  These classroom materials, developed through NASA's Exobiology and Evolutionary Biology Program, feature hands-on activities and an animation. They are the cornerstone of the astroMICRObiology working group. http://microbes.arc.nasa.gov
• Exploring Deep Subsurface Life
  A suite of classroom activities with multimedia components, these materials have completed their field testing phase, with plans for print production. Training workshops for educators are in development. They will be integrated into the astroMICRObiology initiative.
• BioMARS
  These educational materials feature a multimedia component and are being developed for both classroom and afterschool use. They will be integrated into the astroMICRObiology initiative.
• ICE in the Solar System
  Developed in partnership with the MESSENGER mission, these classroom materials are available on CD, and will be integrated into the astroMICRObiology initiative.
• Are We Alone?
  A weekly radio show produced by the SETI Institute featuring astrobiology topics. The show is delivered via satellite radio broadcast as well as podcast. www.seti.org/radio
• Maine Curriculum Initiative
  An emerging collaborative in Maine involving industry and academic partners in which the Astrobiology: An Integrated Approach curriculum is entering pilot testing in many schools across the state.
• American Society of Microbiology
  A nascent partnership involving the production of astrobiology-themed segments of ASM's MicrobeWorld radio and video broadcasts, as well as possible collaboration on events for teachers such as a one-day special event at the National Association of Biology Teachers. www.microbeworld.org
• Appalachian Cherokee Nation
  An emerging dialogue with the Nation to determine the shape and scope of possible future educational collaborations.
• Astrobiology in Puerto Rico
  A special workshop for teachers was held in Summer 2007 in collaboration with Arecibo Observatory and other academic partners. It served as the catalyst for an emerging astrobiology presence in Puerto Rico . Follow up ideas include translation of some of NAI's classroom materials into Spanish.
• Astrobiology Multimedia Products
  Produced by the likes of PBS, Disney, and a host of others, there now exists a range of astrobiology-themed multimedia pieces including short and long format films, animations, and web-interactives. Titles include “Looking for Life,” “Aliens of the Deep,” “Stromatolite Explorer,” and “Invisible Yellowstone.”
• The Search for Life Beyond our Planet
  This permanent exhibit at the New York Hall of Science receives millions of visitors each year. NAI continues the partnership by supplying classroom materials for use in NYHoS' teacher trainings.
  http://www.nyscience.org/exhibitions/explore_exhibitions/38908
• The Science of Aliens
  This astrobiology-themed traveling exhibit was developed by the Science Museum of London, and a twin version is currently on tour in North America . NAI co-sponsored it at the Whitaker Center for Science and the Arts in Pennsylvania . http://www.sciencemuseum.org.uk/on-line/aliens/index.asp