We will provide innovative ways to teach about climate change and its consequences for the environment to middle school and high school teachers and their students. We will cover climate change at a global scale, regional, and local impacts on climate due to changes in land-use and water use along the Colorado Front Range. The project integrates Earth science content and NASA datasets (e.g., NDVI, EVI, snow cover, evapotranspiration, land surface temperature, etc.) into professional development workshops, instructional materials and course modules. Our model employs direct engagement of faculty, graduate students, and upper-division undergraduates with in-service teachers and K-12 students.

We will carry out the following project goals and objectives:

Goal 1) Improve the science content knowledge and preparedness of middle and high school teachers. Objective 1.1) Recruit teachers, students and research faculty to partner in workshops focused on climate change, NASA data acquisition, data analysis, and interpretation. Objective 1.2) Provide summer research experiences for teachers that include working with NASA datasets in a research context. Objective 1.3) Conduct workshops for teachers that focus on science inquiry and content, and effective uses of NASA datasets. Objective 1.4) Develop a seminar series for the teachers, undergraduates and graduate students that stresses the implications of the climate on regional planning and public policy.

Goal 2) Increase the science content knowledge of middle and high school students. Objective 2.1) Develop and infuse instructional modules based on the workshops, research experiences, and NASA datasets into existing courses. Objective 2.2) Place graduate students in classrooms to work the teachers. Objective 2.3) Work with school counselors to encourage student participation in challenging science courses. Objective 2.4) Recruit middle and high school students into the existing enrichment programs at CSU.

Goal 3) Increase the awareness, opportunities and participation of middle and high teachers in content-based professional development activities. Objective 3.1) Conduct grant writing workshops that partner K-12 teachers with graduate students and science research faculty. Objective 3.2) Establish a clearinghouse of current research opportunities for K-12 school teachers to connect teachers to research opportunities. Objective 3.3) Coordinate research funding requests to state and federal agencies to include K-12 school teachers as research assistants and fellows on research teams.

The project includes evaluation by the project leadership and external evaluation by a team with experience in evaluation of education initiatives. All elements will be aligned with Colorado science content standards and evaluated using measurable benchmarks.