EDC Participates in NSF Video Showcase
In an increasingly data-driven world, it is essential that high school students learn data literacy skills. But that need poses a challenge for teachers: how do you take authentic scientific data sets, and do something creative and meaningful with them in the classroom?
EDC’s Bill Tally believes he has the answer. He is part of an EDC team including the Oceans of Data Institute’s Randy Kochevar that developed Zoom In! Learning Science with Data, an online curriculum platform that helps students develop evidence-based thinking, data analysis, and writing skills.
“Students need a whole new level of data literacy—the ability to interpret, analyze, and communicate about problems using data,” says Tally. “Zoom In! is tackling this need.”
Now, Zoom In! is among the EDC projects featured as part of the 2019 STEM for All Video Showcase, an online exhibition of STEM research projects funded by the National Science Foundation (NSF). The showcase enables policymakers, educators, and the public at large to learn more about federally funded innovations in STEM education.
In all, 14 teams from EDC submitted videos on a wide range of topics, including digital badges, family science, and computational thinking in elementary mathematics instruction. One project that submitted a video was the NSF-funded Science Fairs Under the ’Scope study.
“Throughout the study we heard many peoples’ stories about participating in science fairs, and they often resonated with what we were finding in our research,” says Abigail Jurist Levy, the project’s principal investigator. “The video showcase has inspired others to share their experiences, too. Science fairs strike a chord with many people.”
The 2019 STEM for All Video Showcase took place May 13–20, and visitors to the site were invited to comment and vote for their favorites. The video, “Broadening Participation in PreK-12 STEM Education” from EDC’s Community for Advancing Discovery Research in Education (CADRE) project was honored with awards for “Presenters’ Choice” and “Public Choice.”
All videos featuring EDC staff are listed here.