NOAA B-WET: Bay Watershed Education & Training Program Presentation to the Science Advisory Board Working Group on Extension, Outreach and Education May

NOAA B-WET:Bay Watershed Education &

Training Program

Presentation to the Science Advisory

Board Working Group on Extension,

Outreach and Education

May 2007

Science, Service, & Stewardship

Lifelong Learning and the Chesapeake Bay

Experiential Learning in K-12 Classrooms

B-WET

In-Depth Studies in High School

Emerging Scientist Project

NOAA Internships College &

Early Career

Continuing EducationNEMO

Env Science Training Ctr

Chesapeake Bay Interpretive Buoy

System

Volvo Ocean Race Educational

Website & Competition

NOAA @ Nauticus


Primary Education Partnerships• Sea Grant

– Co-located with Virginia Sea Grant at VIMS. Partnering on Chesapeake Bay Interpretive Buoy field project.

– Partnering with Maryland Sea Grant on Chesapeake Research Teacher Fellowship. Also serve on advisory panel for Oxford Environmental Science Training Center.

– Partner in NEMO.

• NERRS– Co-located with Virginia NERRS at VIMS. – NERRS coordinators participate on Chesapeake Bay Education Workgroup.– Partnering to develop Estuaries 101. Chesapeake is sole place-based module

for new online curriculum. – EstuariesLive from NOAA @ Nauticus.– Partner in NEMO.

• State departments of education & resource agencies– Assist in identifying priority areas & serve as panelists for B-WET RFP

• Non-Profits: Chesapeake Bay Foundation, National Geographic, Smithsonian, and local non-profits


B-WET National

• National Program implemented by local NOAA offices

• Goal: Use hands-on learning experiences to increase understanding and stewardship of our marine and coastal resources

• Chesapeake Bay, California, and Hawai’i

• Variations on a theme:

– All programs focus on meaningful watershed experiences

– Specific implementation tailored to local needs

– Built upon established NOAA presence


B-WET National: History

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2,000

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3,000

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4,000

2002 2003 2004 2005 2006

Year

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B-WET Chesapeake

B-WET California

B-WET Hawai'i

• Established by Congress in 2002 in Chesapeake Bay

• Expanded into California (2003) & Hawai’i (2004)

• First federally supported environmental education program to focus on specific geographic areas

• Funding transitioned toNOAA Office of Educationin 2005


B-WET National: Priorities

• Meaningful Watershed Experiences for K-12 Students- Weaves together classroom learning with field experiences- Sustained Activity- Aligns with standards of learning

• Professional Development for teachers– Reinforces a teacher’s ability to teach, inspire, & lead– Teachers learn why and how to use inquiry based learning in their

classrooms

• Community & Adult Education– Provides targeted training on watershed management for decision-

makers and businesses– Leverages partnerships to deliver NOAA messages to communities

and the general public


Meeting NOAA’s Needs: Supporting NOAA Education Plan

• B-WET funds used to identify and fill gaps in teaching/learning materials– Strategy 1: Integrate NOAA science into high-quality materials

• B-WET nurtures a strong network of educators exposed to NOAA resources – Strategy 2: Improve access to NOAA educational resources

• B-WET funds high-quality educator professional development programs– Strategy 3: Support educator professional development programs to improve

understanding and use of NOAA sciences

• B-WET projects target support for under-represented groups/students– Strategy 4: Promote participation in NOAA-related sciences and careers,

particularly by members of underrepresented groups

• B-WET develops and leverages funding from strong local partnerships– Strategy 5: Leverage partnerships to enhance formal and informal

environmental science education

• B-WET undergoes intensive, independent education evaluation– Strategy 6: Build capability within NOAA for educational excellence


Meeting Community Needs: B-WET Chesapeake

• $3.5M administered by the NOAA Chesapeake Bay Office

• Regional Priority: Education funding for Chesapeake Bay Program (CBP) to meet Chesapeake 2000 keystone commitment: “Beginning with the class of 2005, provide a meaningful Bay or stream outdoor experience for every school student in the watershed before graduation from high school.”

• Serves entire watershed: DC, DE, MD, NY, PA, VA, & WV

• Part of a “life long learning” education program delivered at4 field sites around Bay

– Annapolis: Co-located with Chesapeake Bay Program

– NOAA @ Nauticus: Science on a Sphere & Education Resource Center

– VIMS: Co-located with Virginia Sea Grant and NERRS

– Cooperative Oxford Lab: Environmental Science Training Center


B-WET Chesapeake

• Awards:• 1 to 3 year Cooperative Agreements• $10,000 - $200,000 grants

• Eligible applicants:• K-12 teachers & schools, colleges,

State agencies, & non-profits

• Example Projects: • Bay Grasses in Classes, Storm water

Management, Schoolyard Habitat, Fisheries Research, & Riparian Restoration, Watermen in the Classroom


B-WET Chesapeake

• Evolving: Now includes an “Exemplary” category that combines teacher and student experiences

• Responsive to emerging needs of constituents:

• ChART: Searchable online resource for experiences

• FY 2007: Chesapeake Bay Interpretive Buoy System

• FY 2008: Technology-Based Projects

• Leading regional policy efforts:

• Coordinate Chesapeake Bay Program Education Workgroup

• Biennial Chesapeake Bay Education Summits

• Long standing partnerships with state departments of education and resource agencies


Meeting Community Needs: B-WET California

• $2.0M administered by National Marine Sanctuaries Program

• Regional Priority: National Marine Sanctuaries (Cordell Bank, Gulf of Farallones, Monterey, Channel Islands)

• San Francisco Bay area, Monterey Bay area, and Santa Barbara area (continuous coastal counties from Marin to Ventura)

• Other Projects:– Fishermen in the Classroom– Fisheries Curriculum– Adult and community watershed

education


Meeting Community Needs: B-WET Hawai’i

• $1.5M administered by the Pacific Services Center

• Regional Priority: Promoting resilient and sustainable island communities that integrate contemporary science approaches with traditional knowledge and practices

• Serves all of the Hawai’ian Islands

• Using technology to deliver high quality science education– Science on a Sphere: Oahu

(Bishop Museum) & Big Island (`Imiloa Astronomy Center)

– Magic Planet

– Oahu Pilot: Geo-Spatial Technology Activity


Quantitative Results

• Chesapeake Bay– 100,000 students reached– 13,000 teachers reached

• California – 21,000 students reached– 1,000 teachers reached– 660 adults & 4 communities

• Hawai'i– 17,000 students reached– 700 teachers reached


Proving Success: 2-Stage B-WET Evaluation Process

• STAGE 1: Evaluate the effectiveness of the program design

• Goal: To determine if meaningful watershed experiences supported by NOAA B-WET increase the stewardship ethic and/or academic achievement of students

• Method: – Conducted in Chesapeake Bay– Develop a pilot OMB approved study easily modified for all B-WET Programs– Collect survey and interview data from a sample of B-WET Chesapeake providers,

teachers, and students– Compile data into report for policy makers at federal, state, & local levels

• Partnership Effort: Funded by NOAA, Chesapeake Bay Trust & Keith Campbell Foundation


Proving Success: 2-Stage B-WET Evaluation Process

• STAGE 2: Build capacity of grant recipients

• Goal: To refine grant requirements to strengthen the evaluation components of the B-WET program

• Method:– Pilot in California – Develop plan & criteria for evaluating experiences – Offer workshops for grant recipients to build evaluation skills & assist in assessing

impact of their B-WET project – Develop website component to highlight resources, examples of objectives and

outcomes, and example instruments– Gather baseline data from participants in newly funded B-WET projects

• Status:– Completed comprehensive literature review on evaluation– Completed 12 workshops for grant recipients & met with all recipients to develop plans– Developed evaluation website focusing on how to evaluate “meaningful watershed

experiences” (http:www.sanctuaries.noaa.gov/bwet)– Developed a means for evaluating “meaningful watershed experiences” for use by

grant recipients and/or for gathering baseline data on new grants


Evaluation Results: Impact on Students

• Students receiving meaningful experiences increased in environmental stewardship qualities– Intention to Act to protect Chesapeake Bay– Knowledge of issues confronting watershed– Knowledge of actions in which they can engage to protect watershed

• Stewardship qualities were enhanced when students – collected and analyzed data– learned about what they perceived as important to them– learned outdoors– participated in an action project– participated in hands-on learning– spent time reflecting

• Meaningful experiences have the potential to increase students’ academic achievement• Students who participated in a B-WET program in Virginia scored higher on

“Science Investigation” category of state standardized science test• Data insufficient for robust study


Evaluation Results: Impact on Teachers

• B-WET training was rated as “excellent” by the majority of teachers

• Teachers receiving B-WET training:– increased confidence in their ability to deliver experiences– Increased likelihood of implementing experiences

• Teaching practices:– Almost all teachers taught about the Bay after the PD, including large

majority of teachers who had not done so before training– 3/4 of teachers used the outdoors to teach about the watershed– 1/3 implemented complete meaningful watershed experiences

• To further increase and improve their MWEE practices, teachers need:– more funding – collaboration with other teachers– ongoing PD support– flexibility in their curriculum

Documents

NOAA B-WET: Bay Watershed Education & Training Program Presentation to the Science Advisory Board Working Group on Extension, Outreach and Education May