http://www.informalearthscience.org/White_Paper_Narrative.pdf
Categories: Biology, Evolution, Geologic time, Paleontology
New technologies, interdisciplinary studies, and urgency of global change make Earth System Science (ESS) one of the fastest evolving areas of science. In order to foster public support of ESS research and gain the societal benefits that accompany it, creating an Earth science literate public is imperative. Museums and science centers are ideal venues from which to educate the public. Yet many museums present out-of-date Earth science information, and many museum professionals are not satisfied with the coverage of ESS in their existing exhibits. The lack both of readily available models of best practices, professional development. and of a community for communication among providers of informal ESS education, has contributed to these problems.
For the past two years, a collaborative of organizations involved in informal ESS education have been investigating the current status and needs of the informal ESS community, through the planning grant, "Collaborative for Excellence in Informal Education (CEIGE)" (NSF 0500002). Through roundtable discussions and a national survey of informal ESS providers, we have compiled a set of recommendations for improving the state of informal ESS education, as well as initiating several programs to help empower informal ESS educators to better serve the public and formal education.
See PDF link for full paper.
© 2008 Earth System Science Informal Education Network. All Rights Reserved.
