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Inspiring Science Education: A Teaching Experience

Join Mr. Christopher Russell and Mrs. Lisa Nowak as they enhance science education by designing engaging activities, dispelling space travel myths, and exploring the scale of the universe. Experience a transformative journey in learning!

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Inspiring Science Education: A Teaching Experience

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  1. GK-12 Teaching Experience Christopher Russell Funded by National Science Foundation Graduate Teaching Fellows Program in K-12 Education (GK-12) DGE 0538555

  2. Graduate Student-Teacher Pairing Mr. Christopher Russell Dept. of Physics & Astronomy Theoretical Modeling of Massive Stars Mrs. Lisa Nowak Delcastle High School Integrated Science Teacher

  3. Role • Assist with Science education in any way possible • Design new activities/Transform old activities • Teach subject matter in my specialty • Facilitate group work • Answer the “I don’t know, let’s ask Mr. Russell.” questions • Increase student appreciation of science • How has science made our lives better? • Why is science funding important?

  4. Scale of the Universe • Misconception of Space Travel • Landed on Moon with Apollo in 60’s/70’s • Pres. Bush: go back to Moon and eventually to Mars • What’s the big deal? • Why not go to other stars & galaxies?

  5. Scale of the Universe Courtesy 20th Century Fox • Misconception of Space Travel

  6. Sun & Planet Sizes Picture • Turn ceiling into Sun • Scale planets onto Sun • Reinforce math & life skills of scale factors • See “life size” depiction of size differences 50 ft. radius

  7. Sun & Planet Sizes Picture • Turn ceiling into Sun • Scale planets onto Sun • Reinforce math & life skills of scale factors • See “life size” depiction of size differences 5 ft. radius

  8. Sun & Planet Sizes • Turn ceiling into Sun • Scale planets onto Sun • Reinforce math & life skills of scale factors • See “life size” depiction of size differences 0.5 ft. radius

  9. Sun & Planet Distance Picture • Turn ceiling into solar system • 56 ft. from Sun to Neptune • Scale planets from Sun • How close is nearest star? • 90 miles away

  10. Wrap-up: Sizes & Distances • How large would the planets be on the distance scale of the entire room? • How far away would the planets be for the three size scales on the ceiling? • More realistic understanding of space travel • Going to Mars is not simple, but not impossible • Never going to be able to visit far reaches of the galaxy

  11. Final Thoughts: GK-12 • Immense respect for teachers • New respect for educational researchers • Hard to create interest in a subject, but relevance to their life is crucial for their engagement

  12. Final Thoughts: My Career • Much more willing to do outreach programs • Much more able to explain why science is important • Better ability to explain science and my research to non-scientists

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