Behind the Scenes

Last week SSEC's Professional Services Division held our first Journal Club meeting. The Journal Club serves as an internal Professional Learning Community (PLC) to keep the Professional Services staff up to date with current research in the areas of professional development, educational policy, standards, and scientific literacy, just to name a few! As this was our first meeting, we decided to start at the beginning with the SSEC's seminal text Science for All Children.

Absolute excitement. That is how I would describe the atmosphere of the Smithsonian's Teachers' Night on Friday, November 15. For those who are not familiar, Teachers' Night is a special night for educators to find new resources to use in the classroom and attend demonstrations showcasing Smithsonian programs and materials.

As the newest member of the SSEC team, I bring a unique perspective to our curriculum and publications department--that of informal science education. I've taught in informal science and environmental education programs for over twelve years, including managing park naturalist programs in Delaware, and starting up and running the Education and Outreach Program at the Smithsonian Environmental Research Center (SERC).

Tim Coffer is a museum specialist in the Department of Invertebrate Zoology at the Smithsonian National Museum of Natural History. Coffer has a B.S. in Marine Biology from the Florida Institute of Technology.

The following blog was written by LASER i3 New Mexico teacher and Site Coordinator Chrissy Romero. Ms. Romero teaches at Gonzales Community School in Santa Fe, New Mexico and has been an immeasurable asset to the LASER i3 project since the first summer of training in 2011. Ms. Romero has  demonstrated exceptional commitment to the program; she has supported and trained her fellow teachers, and she has been involved as both participant and faculty member at leadership development institutes. The SSEC would like to thank Ms.

With less the one week remaining, anticipation is rising for the 2014 4-H National Youth Science Day, taking place October 8, 2014. The seventh annual science event explores the ins and outs of aerospace engineering with the 2014 National Science Experiment, Rockets to the Rescue!

To get you prepped for this exciting 4-H event, here is what you need to know about this year's 4-H NYSD!

The Experiment

The STEAM movement has been making big waves since 2010, but what is it exactly? The answer to this question is simple: STEAM is a movement mounted by advocates for including the arts in an education system that heavily emphasizes STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, Math) fields. This heavy focus on STEM derives from a world economy driven by the growing science and technology sectors.

Back in the early 2000s, one of television's most popular shows was Fear Factor. This show pitted contestants against each other and their fears for prizes and the glory that comes from reality show exposure. Contestants typically submitted to close encounters with God's less cuddly creatures, were challenged to eat items not typically found in restaurants or grocery stores, and were submerged in liquids of dubious origin.

So, what does Fear Factor have to do with LASER? 

"Everything happens for a reason..." I am a firm believer that everything--good or not--does happen to help us through life. I have been very fortunate in my life, but it has not been without some very difficult times. It may not be apparent at the time, but there is meaning behind all that happens to us in life. My becoming involved with the SSEC (NSRC back in the day) was one of these extraordinary events.

After graduating from Duke University cum laude in May 2014, Cathy Wang took a summer internship with the SSEC's Professional Services Division. During her time at Duke, Cathy became interested in the pedagogy behind STEM education In K-8 classrooms while volunteering at Durham Public Schools with the American Red Cross. What follows is the first installment in a blog series detailing Cathy's experiences at the 2014 International K-12 Science Education Institute for Leadership Development and Strategic Planning (SPI).