Matching Items (12)
Filtering by
- All Subjects: STEM
- All Subjects: Sustainability
Description
As climate change continues to escalate natural hazards around the globe, certain communities feel the impacts of these disasters more so than others. After Hurricane Maria devastated communities in 2017, Puerto Rico struggled to respond to the needs of its citizens, particularly those in rural areas. Many of the regions affected did not have resilient community structures in place to be able to withstand the systemic ripple effects of the hurricane. However, various community endeavors have developed post-Hurricane Maria to foster community collaboration and resiliency, including the development of agricultural tourism, otherwise known as agritourism. <br/>Although agritourism has begun to develop in rural regions of Puerto Rico, including the municipalities of Utuado, Ciales, Florida, and Jayuya, a systems-understanding is lacking of the current agritourism situation in the region and its related capacities, limitations, and opportunities of agritourism. To address this gap, a spatially explicit understanding and map of the underlying tourism infrastructure is needed to support the development of sustainable agritourism in Utuado, Jayuya, Ciales, and Florida municipalities in Puerto Rico. <br/>This report spatially represents the current state of tourism opportunities in the region as a result of asking “What are the spatial networks of gastronomy, accommodations, farms, and attractions that support the development of agritourism in Utuado, Jayuya, Ciales and Florida municipalities in Puerto Rico?” Three steps lead to the spatial representation starting with developing a comprehensive inventory. Second, we visualize the spatial map through Google Maps. Lastly, we explore the larger context of the report through an ArcGIS Storymap. The inventory will help with better understanding the number and variety of tourism resources available. The spatial visualization will help with understanding the distribution of resources and explore potential connections between resources and what relationships could be fostered in the future. Lastly, the ArcGIS Storymap will serve as a framework for outlining the future development of the SARE project. Overall, this report outlines the spatial maps of tourism resources and provides a tool to be used by community partners, tourists, and project partners.
ContributorsCretors, Kasey Ann (Author) / Brundiers, Katja (Thesis director) / Holladay, Patrick (Committee member) / Lazaro, Pablo Mendez (Committee member) / School of International Letters and Cultures (Contributor) / School of Sustainability (Contributor) / Division of Teacher Preparation (Contributor) / Barrett, The Honors College (Contributor)
Created2021-05
Description
This research paper assesses the effectiveness of a remote garden-based learning curriculum in teaching elementary students’ basic systems thinking concepts. Five remote lessons were designed, covering different garden topics, and in order to integrate systems thinking concepts, the Systems Thinking Hierarchical Model was used. This model includes eight emergent characteristics of systems thinking necessary for developing systems thinking competency. Five students were given the remote garden-based learning lessons. Student work was evaluated for systems thinking understanding and student outcomes were compared to anticipated learning outcomes. Results suggest that elementary students are able to understand basic systems thinking concepts because student work met anticipated outcomes for four systems thinking characteristics and exceeded anticipated outcomes for one characteristic. These results are significant because they further confirm that elementary-aged students do have the ability to understand systems thinking and they contribute to a growing movement to integrate sustainability education into elementary curriculum.
ContributorsDussault, Ashley (Author) / Weinberg, Andrea (Thesis director) / Schoon, Michael (Committee member) / School of Sustainability (Contributor) / Division of Teacher Preparation (Contributor) / School of Geographical Sciences and Urban Planning (Contributor) / Barrett, The Honors College (Contributor)
Created2021-05
Description
As an aspiring educator pursuing a degree in education, hours have been spent observing, visiting, and working in classrooms of elementary schools. In this time, it has become apparent that social studies and science are not a priority within classrooms or even schools as a whole. This dilemma caused extreme disconnect, amongst students, throughout the common and crucial science and social studies standards that should be taught and implemented daily by law. These content experiences, especially in science, expose students to skill sets and themes that are highly desired throughout higher education, the career world, and for the well-being and longevity of planet Earth.
As a solution to this problem, I created an after school program to provide staff and myself additional time to implement such curriculum and expand the depth of knowledge that students are exposed to. This positive additional time to the educational day, was able to come to life through a grant that I wrote and received to transport students from their elementary school to a local greenhouse. At the greenhouse, I was able to create a series of lessons focused on the resources needed for gardens and plant production. Through these lessons, I utilized inquiry based lesson plans to provide me with a template that was unique from typical lessons taught at school. Through these hands on experiences in our club, students were able to work at their own pace and learn about resources, soil, water, pollinators, and parts of a flower.
As a solution to this problem, I created an after school program to provide staff and myself additional time to implement such curriculum and expand the depth of knowledge that students are exposed to. This positive additional time to the educational day, was able to come to life through a grant that I wrote and received to transport students from their elementary school to a local greenhouse. At the greenhouse, I was able to create a series of lessons focused on the resources needed for gardens and plant production. Through these lessons, I utilized inquiry based lesson plans to provide me with a template that was unique from typical lessons taught at school. Through these hands on experiences in our club, students were able to work at their own pace and learn about resources, soil, water, pollinators, and parts of a flower.
ContributorsRafidi, Kaitlynn (Author) / Merritt, Eileen (Thesis director) / Walters, Molina (Committee member) / Division of Teacher Preparation (Contributor, Contributor) / Barrett, The Honors College (Contributor)
Created2019-05
Description
This course will cover the history, ethics and impact of the fair trade movement for a variety of stakeholders in the Global South and Global North. We will be participating in various activities that will acquaint us with different topics, including globalization, the gender wage gap, environmental degradation and supply chain management. Guest speakers from the fair trade community will contribute their perspectives regarding the movement. Students will gain an understanding of the tradeoffs of the fair trade movement for the different actors throughout the length of the supply chain. Students will describe the purpose of the fair trade movement and who it seeks to serve. Students will explain what the Fair Trade certification entails for the actors who engage in the system. Students will debate the tradeoffs of the fair trade movement, incorporating the perspectives of multiple stakeholders from both the Global South and Global North. Finally, students will evaluate Fair Trade as a tool for sustainability both socially and economically.
ContributorsSimari, Daniella Jayne (Author) / Eakin, Hallie (Thesis director) / Walters, Molina (Committee member) / School of Life Sciences (Contributor) / Division of Teacher Preparation (Contributor) / Barrett, The Honors College (Contributor)
Created2019-05
Description
STEM has increasingly become a buzz word in the world of education. According to Briener, et. al. (2012), the most common perspective of STEM education is teaching the integrated disciplines of science, technology, engineering, and mathematics as "one cohesive entity" instead of as separate subjects (p. 5). Prioritizing a STEM focus is a tactic many schools are beginning to adapt and one the United States government is financially backing, contributing significantly to the popularity of the movement (Briener, et.al., 2012). Across the nation, schools are making strides towards incorporating more STEM activities, and many school districts are designating entire schools as STEM schools. These STEM schools distinguish themselves with consistent commitment and attention to aspects of the STEM fields within instruction, including research opportunities for students, 21st Century skills, and a variety of learning environments. Bridges Elementary is one such identified STEM school that exemplifies these criteria, amongst others, setting a precedent for STEM schools to come.
ContributorsFefolt, Molly Lynn (Author) / Walters, Molina (Thesis director) / Oliver, Jill (Committee member) / Division of Teacher Preparation (Contributor) / Barrett, The Honors College (Contributor)
Created2018-05
Description
As a Country, the United States is continually falling behind academically when compared to other Nations. Therefore, the purpose of my Honors Thesis is to enlighten others on the importance of incorporating science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) into our classrooms. When students have the chance to partake in hands on, inquiry based lessons, their new knowledge for the subject increases drastically. However, completing STEM lessons in the classroom is a challenging task. For this reason, I have designed a unit's worth of lesson plans, where the unit encompasses science, technology, engineering, and mathematics. These STEM lessons are inquiry-based so that students get an understanding that science is a learning process, not just a group of facts to be memorized. The lessons are written in the 5E format, as this format is based on the way human beings learn. I wanted to make this as easy as possible for teachers to bring inquiry-based STEM learning into the classroom. When students are allowed to take control of their own learning and make discoveries for themselves, they are going to realize the excitement that comes with STEM. This will lead more students to pursue STEM careers, thus helping bring the United States back to a competitive level academically.
ContributorsPiatak, Mary Frances (Author) / Oliver, Jill (Thesis director) / Walters, Molina (Committee member) / Division of Teacher Preparation (Contributor) / Barrett, The Honors College (Contributor)
Created2016-12
Description
This creative project created and implemented a seven-day STEM curriculum that ultimately encouraged engagement in STEM subjects in students ages 5 through 11. The activities were incorporated into Arizona State University's Kids' Camp over the summer of 2017, every Tuesday afternoon from 4 to 6 p.m. with each activity running for roughly 40 minutes. The lesson plans were created to cover a myriad of scientific topics to account for varied student interest. The topics covered were plant biology, aerodynamics, zoology, geology, chemistry, physics, and astronomy. Each lesson was scaffolded to match the learning needs of the three age groups (5-6 year olds, 7-8 year olds, 9-11 year olds) and to encourage engagement. "Engagement" was measured by pre- and post-activity surveys approved by IRB. The surveys were in the form of statements where the children would totally agree, agree, be undecided, disagree, or totally disagree with it. To more accurately test engagement, the smiley face Likert scale was incorporated with the answer choices. After implementation of the intervention, two-tailed paired t-tests showed that student engagement significantly increased for the two lesson plans of Aerodynamics and Chemistry.
ContributorsHunt, Allison Rene (Co-author) / Belko, Sara (Co-author) / Merritt, Eileen (Thesis director) / Ankeny, Casey (Committee member) / Division of Teacher Preparation (Contributor) / Harrington Bioengineering Program (Contributor) / Barrett, The Honors College (Contributor)
Created2017-12
Description
This project examined the need for Science, Technology, Engineering, and Math (STEM) activities within a specific modality (centers) and their potential influence on elementary students with a particular emphasis on gender. STEM is an interdisciplinary curriculum that seeks to seamlessly incorporate science, technology, engineering, and math. Due to the increasing demand for STEM professions and proficiency within each aspect, the education system and individual educators require lessons and modalities that motivate learning in each of these areas. Administrators and teachers need creative ways to provide effective STEM implementation. Currently, the education system as a whole lacks creative and motivating material for these four domains. Not only this, but there has been a misunderstanding in regard to what effective STEM implementation entails, as well as a dearth of classroom ready lessons for educators. As a result, this thesis project developed a way to implement STEM through the use of learning centers. Learning centers are defined as designated areas within a classroom that allow easy access to a variety of learning materials. Within these centers are activities that reinforce concepts by using inquiry-based learning. Learning centers are effective in developing additional concepts or providing students with a greater breadth of knowledge on a concept. This thesis project developed three STEM learning center activity boxes and two STEM learning center outlines. Creating effective STEM learning centers and outlines was a multistep process. The first step was to develop a 3E lesson plan for each activity. Once the lesson plans were revised and complete, the creation of the three activity boxes was next. To create the activity boxes, all the required materials and worksheets were gathered and printed. From there, the next step was to implement the learning centers in a classroom to observe the results and propose any modifications. Afterwards, a reflection detailing the results and modifications was made. In the end, the goal of this project was to develop easily implemented STEM activities for my future classroom. Coming up with a creative way to get kids curious and excited about STEM is key in building STEM awareness. Not only did my project create STEM activities I can implement, but it also allowed me the opportunity to share my activities with other teachers. As a result, influencing the spread of STEM amongst future and current teachers.
ContributorsSchott, Nicole Elizabeth (Author) / Walters, Molina (Thesis director) / Oliver, Jill (Committee member) / Division of Teacher Preparation (Contributor) / Barrett, The Honors College (Contributor)
Created2018-05
Description
Clean and accessible drinking water is a crucial and limited resource. As the world's population grows and demand increases, water resources will become more limited. This project aims to educate students on water resources, drinking water, and how biomimicry can allow society to improve its water usage. The project consists of a ten day unit plan which addresses several water topics such as: the various uses of water, water distribution, where drinking water comes from, the water treatment process, and more. After establishing background knowledge on water and surrounding issues, the students will be challenged to design a water bottle using biomimicry. Biomimicry is looking at nature to draw and inspire solutions to human problems. This unit has been optimized for use by elementary teachers. The ten day unit consists of a lesson summary, objectives, standards, and recommended activities for each day. Of the ten days, three lesson plans were fully developed using the 5E format. The research supporting this project is compiled in the following report.
ContributorsSalik, Rachael (Co-author) / Burke, Aurora (Co-author) / Walters, Molina (Thesis director) / Larson, Kelli L. (Committee member) / Civil, Environmental and Sustainable Engineering Programs (Contributor) / Division of Teacher Preparation (Contributor) / Barrett, The Honors College (Contributor)
Created2016-12
Description
In recent education trends, an emphasis has been placed on teaching students in STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics) disciplines. Many researchers have advocated for integrating Arts education as well, changing STEM education to STEAM (STEM + Arts) education. This paper describes an original 8th Grade physics curriculum integrating Science, Technology, Engineering, Arts, and Mathematics (STEAM). The curriculum was designed to teach core science concepts through inquiry and dance activities. The curriculum uses the 5E inquiry format, specifically using dance and movement activities to elaborate on the learned science content. The unit curriculum is designed to be implemented in an 8th Grade science classroom based on best practices in Science Instruction and Dance Education. The curriculum was not implemented as a research study this year, but is designed to support research in the future. The curriculum was however presented to Term 6 Pre-service Teachers in Mary Lou Fulton Teacher's College at ASU, whom evaluated the effectiveness of the lessons and offered feedback. This paper includes a review of current literature on STEAM education and dance integration, rationale for the curriculum's 5E Format and dance integration, the entire physics unit curriculum in 5E format, Pre-service Teacher feedback, and implications for a future research study with the unit curriculum.
ContributorsHarris, Carson Donald (Author) / Chen, Ying-Chih (Thesis director) / Atkinson, Laura (Committee member) / Division of Teacher Preparation (Contributor) / School of Film, Dance and Theatre (Contributor) / Barrett, The Honors College (Contributor)
Created2016-12