Last week in Chicago, our board of directors meeting agenda included a special guest – 2017 FFT Fellow Paula Dell, teacher at Robert Lindblom Math and Science Academy High School in the city’s South Side. Paula used her grant to work with researchers and professors active in current excavation, research and teaching of human evolution in South Africa’s Gauteng Province – also known as the “Cradle of Human Kind.” In addition to sharing about her experiences, Paula also talked about her unique path to becoming both a teacher and an FFT Fellow.

Homo naledi on display at Maropeng. The discovery of this new species has brought much into question of what we have previously thought about human development.

“I came to education and teaching science later in my working career when a friend who worked in CPS told me that they were looking for science teachers,” said Paula. “I was eager to use my science background so I jumped at the chance. What a great job – teaching science and critical thinking to our youth.”

Over the past 14 years, Paula has led student expeditions to Cuba, China and Iceland. She also researched in the Antarctica with a PolarTREC grant, earned her National Board Certification and applied for a Fund for Teachers grant three times before being awarded.

“Each time I improved my proposal with the insight of Martie Sanders, professor for the School of Science Education at the University of Witwatersrand in Johannesburg,” said Paula. “By the time I received the FFT grant, we had been corresponding for three years!” When Paula finally arrived in South Africa, Martie introduced her to Marina Elliott, world-renowned biological anthropologist and lead researcher at the Rising Star dig. Marina spent one morning showing Paula around the excavation, including the cave where the 250,000-year-old Homo naledi was found.

With Marina Elliott at Rising Star.

Paula leveraged her time spent in the field with leading researchers, asking questions, visiting dig sites, and learning about the latest technologies in dating and analyzing the fossils to create a revised, phenomenon-based unit based on the most current scientific understanding. Marina Elliott even Skyped with her students during one lesson. Paula says her biggest accomplishment, however, centers around “the big picture.”

“The relationships with professors and scientists that I formed while in South Africa are real and we have kept the collaboration alive,” said Paula. “We established a network which include teachers in Canada and America. Maintaining an ongoing collaboration with these impressive researchers is so motivating and translating all of that into the classroom is equally exciting.”

After our board meeting, Paula sent a note of thanks and added the following:

“The Fund for Teachers fellowship has been such an amazing experience for me and, in turn, my students and colleagues. I cannot stress enough that the success of FFT is not measured just through analytics, which I think you know. I don’t think the greatest impact is truly quantifiable – how we bring it back to our classroom in a thousand ways, sometimes bold and obvious, sometimes more subtle. I don’t think the majority of FFT Fellows are any less committed than myself or that I am some sort of outlier. My hat is off to FFT for being one of the (too few) entities that truly places trust in teachers to know what is best for our kids. Not a bad rep to have among teachers!”

Paula with staff at the Tanajane Senior Secondary School in Bushbuck Ridge, Mpumalanga Province, after serving as a guest speaker.

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Paula (pictured Skyping with her Chicago students from Antarctica) believes that scientific exploration at all ages is crucial in understanding the world in which we live. She is a strong proponent of teaching science through inquiry, as evidenced by her students’ design of a successful underwater camera system, Fish Spy, recently deployed in Antarctica. 

Fund for Teachers fellowships are NOT vacations. So when a teacher applies for a grant to learn in Hawaii, selection committees raise an eyebrow. The proposal has to be extra convincing that teacher learning and student impact will extend beyond beautiful sunsets and drinks with tiny umbrellas. Christa Phillips’ proposal passed muster.

A first-grade teacher at Marshall Primary School, Christa used her Fund for Teachers grant to compare and contrast the culture, natural resources and geography of Hawaii with Belton, SC, to create an integrated unit that increases students’ curiosity, global awareness, appreciation of diversity, and helps make connections between people and their environment.

At first glance, South Carolina and Hawaii have little in common; however, both are home to endangered sea turtles and both lie on faults in the Earth’s crust. (Marshall Primary School performs multiple earthquake drills throughout the year!) Both states also have petroglyphs dating back thousands of years; Christa photographed the markings carved into lava rock by ancient Hawaiians to compare with symbols created by Native Americans in South Carolina’s red clay. She’ll incorporate all of these topics, as well Polynesian culture and the history behind Pearl Harbor, into a new multi-week course that directly addresses state standards for Science and Social Studies.

“I have been in the teacher role for nearly two decades. As an FFT Fellow, I became the student,” said Christa. “This new perspective gave me an appreciation for the challenges of my students in seeking knowledge and understanding of the natural world and the diversity within it. It also inspired me to challenge myself to do things I was previously too afraid to do: flying around the world, hiking through a rain forest, driving up steep mountains at high elevations, walking on lava fields, seeing endangered species in their natural environment, and exploring 8 out of the world’s 13 climate zones! I have a new excitement for learning and teaching stemming from this wonderful experience.”

Christa is a National Board Certified Early Childhood Generalist. For nearly two decades, she’s demonstrated a passion for learning- both personally and professionally. Since 2007, she has partnered with the WebbCraft Family Foundation to provide tens of thousands of free books to children in the community. You can see more images from her fellowship on the dedicated Instagram account.

Ed learning procedure to help unresponsive diver.

As we watched Shark Week from the safety of our sofas, FFT Fellow Edwin Yoo (Dorchester, MA) chose to get a little closer to the action. He is currently conducting field research on the Mesoamerican Barrier Reef System in conjunction with Project AWARE, an initiative taking action to create change for the ocean and communities that depend on it. In Utila, Honduras, he is performing citizen science data collection for coral reef health to develop case studies based on theoretical chemical and biological principles associated with diving.

Codman Academy Charter Public School students from Boston’s south side ALL enroll in four-year colleges, despite entering ninth grade two or more years below reading level. Fifty percent of these students sit in Ed’s chemistry and biology courses. Combine a Caribbean heritage shared by the majority of his students with project based learning and the school’s nearby saltwater marshes and Ed’s fellowship hits a sweet spot of engagement.

“I designed this experience around global climate change and how that impacts the biochemistry of the Mesoamerican Barrier Reef system (i.e. effect of temperature on O2 solubility, the effect of increasing concentration of CO2 on acidic levels of oceans that negatively impacts marine life) that protects the coastal cities and communities in the Caribbean Islands and Central America,” said Ed. “The narrative of this abstract chemistry theory becomes more deeply personal as it is an issue that is extremely critical to the families of my students who have connections to this region.”

Ed’s new case studies will support the ecology portion of his biology curriculum, specifically on topics of coral bleaching, sustainable fishing, climate change and invasive species. He is also earning his Divemaster certification that requires familiarity with a hyperbaric chamber used for decompression illness, information also applicable in Chemistry classes. Ed’s long term goal is to offer Codman students “Discover SCUBA” classes at the Dorchester YMCA pool.

“My certification will allow me to support Codman’s Wellness Program, in addition to the sciences,” said Ed. “As a Divemaster, I will be certified to teach snorkeling and introduce SCUBA in a pool setting, providing access to experiences not currently offered in the school and community. SCUBA and snorkeling combine medicine, engineering, marine biology, and chemistry into a single water sport activity. Without professional licensure and training made possible through this fellowship, my students would not likely have any exposure to potential career paths related to marine conservation, medical health industry, and engineering.”

Follow Ed’s learning on Instagram @educationalontogeny. And to get in the mood for Shark Week, enjoy this playlist provided by Discovery Channel.

First responders in Hurricanes Harvey and Irma had no idea they were following the direction of high school students. Working feverishly behind their computers, Leah Keith Houle’s students in Red Bank, TN, created Humanitarian Outreach Team (or “HOT”) maps used by relief organizations attempting to identify safe routes to deliver supplies or evacuate people.

“When all the hurricanes started hitting this year, people came together across the globe to map our devastated cities and islands,” said student Aviana Harris. “By creating HOT maps, we knew we were saving lives. And I was a part of that!”

These high school students learned how to apply open data sharing for humanitarian efforts based on Leah’s fellowship spent mapping three Caribbean Islands for hurricane preparedness. Her geology students now consider surface shape and topography of areas; ecology and biology students look at water and land interfaces; and scientific research students apply the data to modify maps for first responders. Their 1,000+ hours of mapping directly impact relief efforts ranging from earthquakes in Nepal to hurricanes in the Caribbean to escape routes for Syrian refugees. They’ve even supplied NASA’s Planetary Society with mapping of the Archimedes Crater. The global impact of these students caught the attention of Tennessee education administrators, who asked Leah to create a GIS and mapping technology curriculum that was adopted statewide.

Click here to read how students supported Hurricane Harvey relief efforts and here for the school principal’s review of their work.

Pam Ulicny’s students are capturing lightening in a bottle. Using solar energy kits and curriculum she created, students in the heart of coal country are bringing photovoltaic energy to peers around the world through online tutorials.

In 2013, Pam developed a STEM curriculum for her students to make solar powered lanterns using an upcycled glass or plastic jar. She then manufactured the lanterns as kits accompanied by lab manuals and supplemental activities, which she also wrote. Two years later on a Fund for Teachers fellowship, Pam introduced the project to impoverished youth in South Africa to help them learn STEM/business skills, increase hours of productivity, and eliminate fire hazards related to kerosene lanterns.

Building on Pam’s experiences, her students at Tri-Valley Jr/Sr High in Hegins, PA, now serve as online ambassadors for alternative energy. They regularly host Skype sessions with classrooms across America, providing solar lantern construction tips and educational input for spinoff humanitarian projects. Internationally, students in South Africa, Mali and Nicaragua now build solar lanterns after watching instructional videos Pam’s students research and produce.

“Working on the solar lantern project teaches us not only about solar energy and electricity, but it also helps us to understand the situations people in third world countries are dealing with and appreciate what we have more,” said one student.

The social business enterprise Pam developed to empower South African youth continues to grow, as well. Kwelanga Solar recently hosted its first Cape Town workshop, combining construction of solar lanterns with an English class around the theme of peace. Pam helped secure a $10,000 grant to cover hard costs associated with supplies.

“My fellowship learning in STEM applications, social entrepreneurship and sustainability efforts now impacts students in four countries,” said Pam. “Fund for Teachers helped me accomplish my mission as a teacher: To do the most good and give my students the best tools to succeed.”

For more information on Pam’s fellowship, visit the blog she maintained throughout her time in South Africa.

In support of the recent International Day for the Preservation of the Ozone Layer, we share the learning of Jodie Harnden (Sunridge Middle School – Pendleton, OR) who joined an atmospheric aerosol research project with scientists at NASA Langley to develop a similar student project modeling how authentic science is conducted to collect and analyze data useful to the community.

In emergency medical practices the airway, or being able to breathe, is the first priority, making air pollution a major threat to those who breathe…which is everyone! In my seventh grade science classes we study the structure of the atmosphere and air pollution problems and students learn about different pollutants and how they affect our location. While students do develop an understanding of air quality conditions, they do not have the opportunity to collect their own data and analyze that data in order to answer questions, as scientists would do.

And neither did I – until my Fund for Teachers grant.

One of the challenges of being a science teacher is that I had never been an actual scientist. While I have spent my career learning to be the best teacher I can be, I lacked in experience that relates to the actual processes of scientific research and data analysis. For me to lead students to think and work as scientists, I needed the experience myself. The two-week fellowship collecting air quality data with NASA Langley provided an intensive and exciting opportunity to interact and work alongside actual scientists, followed by developing related classroom applications for students.

I had the opportunity to participate in the data campaign as a volunteer intern under the direction of NASA scientist Dr. Margaret Pippin. My air quality data research took me to sites around Hampton, VA, monitoring aerosols, or tiny solids that are considered pollutants. I became proficient in using the Calitoo, a device that measures aerosol optical thickness, and indicator of particulate matter. I learned what the impact of clouds can be on the accuracy of measurements and established my GLOBE account for submitting my own data.

Previously I had only demonstrated the Calitoo with borrowed units. Now I will be having students collect and submit data on a regular basis to the GLOBE Project. Collecting data for a long-term project is a change from just occasional measurements. Students will now be the scientists,
collecting and submitting the data for use, and have access to the data for future use, as well.

The greatest accomplishment of my fellowship was developing a true understanding of the different stages of scientific research. Data campaigns have a planning and funding period, then, if approved, all participants coordinate for the campaign period (in this case, two weeks), then hope for good weather. Collection days can be very long! After rest and recovery, analysis of the data begins and will be the focus for the next year, prompting future research.

School has started and smoke from regional wildfires has created a difficult situation for many. Outdoor activities have been cancelled as we come to grips with the loss of beautiful forests. We can’t even make aerosol measurements because the smoke blocks the sun. Students are getting an early introduction to the air quality unit. We have begun to enter data into GLOBE, but the smoke prevents the collection of quality data (a good lesson for students!). Normally our rough time is January and February when cold, high pressure settles in to create an inversion, trapping the smoke from wood stoves; however, this year may mark different conclusions. I have taken note of an unusual ozone
concentration near one city west of the Cascade Mountains, a problem we don’t have, but can study from afar.

While there are numerous environmental issues that are worth studying, air quality continues to be a challenge in our area. While the causes may sometimes be out of our control (such as weather and wild fires) awareness and understanding is not. Mitigation of contributing factors that are human-caused are something we will continue to study, learn, and take appropriate action when possible. This August we have experienced a severe air quality issue, something to study further in the fall.

Along with my personal experiences at NASA Langley, I was able to witness the inclusion of student interns in the research process. I came away more convinced that ever that science is a process and something to be understood, not just a set of facts to be learned. The future of science depends on doing science, and I must give my students opportunities to contribute to the field of science. School, in many ways, is an artificial microcosm of life and I will be able to expose students to so much more now that I was exposed to more myself.

A National Board Certified teacher, Jodie is in her 33rd year of teaching science at the middle
level, most of it in Pendleton, Oregon. She thrives on the opportunity to learn, bringing experiences back to the classroom and sharing with others professionally. While it won’t be a problem until retirement, rock collecting is a favorite activity.

Yesterday was National Wildlife Day, created in 2005 and carried forward in the memory of animal lover and conservationist Steve Irwin. Irwin sought to educate the public, especially children, about conservation and endangered animals. FFT Fellow Leanne Mortell and her fellowship in South Africa perpetuates his dream. A kindergarten teacher at Bluff Elementary School in Claremont, NH, she shares below “A Day in the Life” of her Fund for Teachers fellowship volunteering with Wildlife ACT in Hluhluwe-iMfolozi Park in Zululand, South Africa, where she learned data gathering techniques used to monitor endangered animal populations to create a science unit teaching young students the scientific method.

My fellowship to Africa in winter was more than I could ever imagine. I arose before sunrise, gulped down breakfast with a half cup of instant coffee and headed for the truck while loaded down with my camera equipment. Our troop of five volunteers climbed in, wearing multiple warm layers and wrapped in blankets. We headed off with our researcher to be in position before the sun rose to find some of the most endangered species of the animal world.

After six or seven hours of searching for and observing African wild dogs, lions, and cheetahs, we returned to camp for a few hours of food, rest and a review of photos taken from the morning jaunt only to return to the truck for our evening rounds. After dark enveloped us leaving us with no ability to spot any more animals, our troop returned to camp to cook dinner, do dishes and crash into our beds for much needed rest so we could be revived enough to do it all over again the next day. I did this routine for 2 weeks. I loved every minute.

The mammals I saw during our drives left me in awe.  We tracked a pack of African wild painted dogs along dirt roads as they ran through the terrain on a hunt. We found lions resting near the road and observed them for hours as they slept. Elephant herds blocked the road in front of us as we traveled, allowing us to observe them closely as they fed.  We watched rhinos feed with their babies beside them. A cheetah emerged from the grass and jumped on a tree beside our truck. We observed him for thirty minutes before he left to watch impala in the distance. Giraffes fed from the tops of trees, then silently,
with the grace of the finest ballerinas, slipped away.

Amazing; experience of a lifetime; a childhood dream come true. These words only scratch the surface of the emotions I felt during this fellowship to Africa. Populations of many African mammals are dangerously low. Through our morning and evening drives, I witnessed many of these species roaming freely in their natural environment while collaborating with researchers working to protect them from their greatest threat – humans. This work wasn’t glamorous, nor did it seem heroic; it was hard work under difficult conditions. Yet, these people were working at it every day, living on the reserve to gather needed scientific data. And their work is making a difference. Numbers of African wild dogs and white rhinoceros are slowly on the rise. Although cheetah numbers are down, our data collection will allow more to be brought into the reserve to aid in genetically diversifying the population there to continue to promote the species. The beauty of these creatures is beyond words and now, after my fellowship, thought of loosing them brings a rising panic from deep inside. However, the knowledge that there are teams of people working these long hours under tough conditions to prevent their extinction brings admiration.

I am inspired students to help students realize that we have a gift freely given to us and we need to learn all we can to protect it. To let them see the images of these animals through my photographs and bring them outside to their own piece of the world to see it’s beauty and teach them ways to learn about it, protect it, and love it as I do is a privilege.

I now plan to educate my students on authentic methods of scientific research. Bringing the classroom outdoors will expose them to learn about their own neighborhood in a new way and help them connect to nature.  By providing them the instruction, modeling and practice they need to feel proficient at these skills will give them the confidence and desire to continue to learn and expand their knowledge.

Thank you, Fund For Teachers, for this rare opportunity.  I will share with my students how to observe animals, record their numbers and learn ways to identify each one. I hope to instill in my students the desire to learn how to care for the land for the benefit of all and I look forward to sharing with my
colleagues about this amazing opportunity through your organization to learn in hopes that they will be inspired to apply for their own chance at an adventure.

Leanne has worked as an educator, occupational therapist and principal. She uses these experiences to reach out to all her students to inspire in them the quest of knowledge of the world around
them and to use their unique talents for the benefit of all.

Supriya Kotagal reclaimed her time in an airport to send us these beautiful images and update from her fellowship. Supriya used a Fund for Teachers grant to explore the methodology and best practices of community-based efforts in the Maldives and Solomon Islands to mobilize youth in island nations and Brooklyn confronting climate change.

“My hope,” she wrote in her proposal, “hope is that my fellowship experience will enable me to leverage both of these foci as my students engage in their design thinking work. Ultimately, I hope that ideas generated in my classroom around climate change can begin to be applied to the pressing issues that impact the neighborhood our school serves. I hope to mobilize my own students to be natural drivers of change in their community by creating a student advisory board or governing organization with my colleagues where youth weigh in on key problems and solutions that can better their neighborhood and school experience.”

Read more about her learning that will precede student advocacy.

As I type this, I am at the airport in Abu Dhabi waiting for my connecting flight to take be back to New York City. I think this is probably the perfect time to reflect on the experience and provide you with some closing thoughts and some of my favorite videos from my time abroad:

Through my Fund for Teachers fellowship, I set out to document the impact climate change is having on small island developing states in the Indian Ocean – specifically the Maldives
and Zanzibar. Providing tangible examples of how climate change is impacting ecosystems and people is incredibly important to me as a science educator. We are living in a time when the impacts of climate change are deemed “debatable” by some and my goal was to make this environmental crisis as tangible as possible for my students. I did this by collecting qualitative data in the form of interviews, photographs, and film clips in order to create “Country Kits” that will enable my seventh graders to explore climate change more deeply. As part of my “Country Kits” I am also producing several  mini-documentaries that help explain different environmental issues and innovative solutions I encountered along the way.

Another aspect of my fellowship was to explore sustainable, community-based efforts that empower youth to tackle the very real challenges of climate change and to use this information to engage my students in thinking more globally about the environment. In the Maldives, I partnered with a sea turtle rehabilitation center called Naifaru Juvenile which seeks to spread awareness about the endangered sea turtle population and create sustainable solutions to protecting beaches and improving waste management–both environmental issues that stem from climate change and directly impact the sea turtle population. I met some amazing young activists who helped organize and participate in a festival bringing awareness to their local community. I was able to interview young people who are developing ways to improve environmental outcomes in their community. One young woman I met started a fashion line where she develops bags and purses from the trash she finds on the beach!

Read more about Supriya’s learning on her blog.

In Zanzibar, I explored how the country’s seaweed industry is being impacted by rising ocean temperatures. I met with a seaweed scientist and attended a community festival aimed at promoting the local development of seaweed products as a way of providing supplemental income to seaweed farmers, the majority of whom are women and who have seen recent declines in profit because of climate change. I also met with a collective of female seaweed farmers who are trying to create innovative products from the seaweed they cultivate in order to support their families. Additionally, I formed a valuable partnership with a youth organization called Zanzibar Learning 4 Life that seeks to encourage young people to become environmentally engaged and develop sustainable solutions to the problems that affect their community. I learned of some amazing work and ideas young people are formulating including using discarded plastic water bottles as bricks for water tanks. I hope to develop a deeper partnership with this organization in my classroom and am working on creating a pen-pal partnership between my students and theirs.

I wanted to share with you two mini-documentaries I made. The first [above] explains the seaweed industry in Zanzibar and the changes female farmers are making there in the face of climate change to maintain a profit. The second shares the perspective of youth on the island of Naifaru, the Maldives on the environmental issues impacting sea turtles and what needs to be done.

Thanks again for such an amazing opportunity. I can’t tell you how valuable this experience has been in re-energizing my passion for this work.

Best,
Supriya

(photo below of a group of young girls getting ready to dance at the youth-led “Turtle Festival” in Naifaru, the Maldives)

Supriya, middle school teacher at The School at Columbia University, is a curriculum designer, consultant and educator who has been involved in the field of education for ten+ years. She was a 2007 Teach for America Corps Member, a New York Hall of Science Design Fellow & Master Teacher, a New York Public Library Cullman Fellow in Creative Writing and currently teaches a STEAM* science course in New York City. Through her experiences, she understands education to be a powerful and transformative tool in uplifting individuals and communities.

Frank Mangan and Brandon Hubbard-Heitz (The Howard School – Chattanooga, TN) are assessing the past and present effects of people’s interaction with the Alaskan wilderness to empower students to embark upon future conservation work in their contexts.

You can follow their learning on Twitter and read more about their adventure below…

“Late in life, noted naturalist John Muir traveled to Alaska. As he sailed along Alexander Archipelago, he wrote,“To the lover of pure wildness Alaska is one of the most wonderful countries in the world. No excursion that I know of may be made into any other American wilderness where so marvelous an abundance of noble,newborn scenery is so charmingly brought to view…”

Today especially, Alaska stands out for its 54 million acres that have been set aside as national parks, a vast expanse of wilderness that can only be appreciated by the naked eye. Even so, Alaska’s history is also a decidedly human tale of exploitation as much as conservation, abuse as much as preservation. From the migration of humans across the Bering Strait to the gold rush to the ExxonValdez, Alaska is a microcosm of the human-nature relationship within American history. Thus, it offers itself as an excellent starting point for an exploration of this dialectic that has defined the American people’s relationship with their land.

Unfortunately, this relationship often goes unexplored by students at the urban high school in which we teach. The school primarily serves children of color, many of whom lack the resources to explore the local,state, and national parks near their neighborhoods. According to the Outdoor Foundation, only 8% of black adolescents and 12% of Hispanic adolescents participated in outdoor activities in 2015, miniscule numbers compared to 71% of their white peers.As America grows increasingly diverse, this gap portends significant consequences not only for communities of color, but for the earth itself. The damaging effects of human-caused climate change are increasingly manifest and necessitate an “all hands on deck” response – one that is only possible if all people, including our students, become advocates for conservation.

Our self-guided fellowship into Alaska’s wilderness will enable us to report back to our students not only its beauty, but also the imperative to preserve that beauty. As a U.S. history teacher and an English teacher who teach juniors, we will equip our students to step into the wilderness – Alaskan and local, past and present – in order to experience the wonder of the earth and the need to preserve it for future generations. Like Muir, we are documenting our adventure, in writing and digitally, in order to create a meaningful experiential unit that transports students to the Alaskan wilds with the aim of inspiring students to seek out such experiences for themselves while also advocating for the preservation and protection of the natural world.”

Armed with a 360 degree camera, Frank and Brandon are capturing experiences for their students, including:

• Observing the impact of the ExxonValdez oil slick and climate change on Kenai Fjords National Park;
• Witnessing the human-nature relationship on Reeve’s Field, the airstrip used to support the Pacific Theater during World War II;
• Exploring in Denali National Park and Preserve the Kantishna Mining District;
• Flying above the Arctic Circle to tour Simon Paneak Memorial Museum,
  which documents the natural, geological and cultural history of the Nunamiut people;
• Backpacking in lands preserved by the
  Alaska National Interest Lands Conservation Act

In addition to incorporating images and experiences into U.S. History and English III classes, the teaching team plans to collaborate with colleagues to create an experiential interdisciplinary unit that promotes outdoor engagement and conservation. They also believe their experiences will help grow the school’s Outdoor Leadership Club, which Brandon founded last year. Lastly, students will visit a local tract of land managed by the National Park Service, interviewing rangers about local issues that interact with what their teachers learned in Alaska. Students’ research will culminate in a joint English – U.S. History research and advocacy project they’ll present to peers, teachers, parents, community members and park rangers.

Brandon is dedicated to preparing his students for active citizenship in the world by infusing his classes with authentic reading and writing. In 2016, he co-founded the school’s Outdoor Leadership Club in an effort to diversify the outdoors and expose students to the beauty of nature. In addition to being a Fund for Teachers Fellow, Frank has received a Teaching American History grant and studied the Civil Rights Movement at Cambridge University through the Gilder-Lehrman Institute.

As I think about my teaching practice, I believe it is important to provide my bilingual second grade students with a well-developed and engaging science curriculum. I recently read a study that showed only 10% of workers in science and engineering fields were African-American or Latino. As a teacher of students who are 98% Latinos, I want my students to see opportunities in these fields and I believe it is my responsibility to provide them with a strong base in early childhood to empower them to pursue scientific careers.

Overlooking the North Rim of the Grand Canyon

To that end, I decided to model for them scientific inquiry by designing a Fund for Teachers fellowship to explore the unique geography and biological diversity of the American Southwest. For two weeks last summer, I investigated geological formations and desert habitats to develop an integrated unit that references Southwestern literature and folk tales.

Before my fellowship, I was struggling to find meaningful ways for my students to connect to our science unit about rocks and pebbles. The curriculum felt stale and boring to me, so it was understandably difficult to get kids enthusiastic about something that I was finding dull. By exploring the parks and learning about the formation of canyons and rock formations, my excitement flourished and in turn reinvigorated the unit with some fresh lessons and demonstrations. I learned that, like my students, real authentic experiences deepen my knowledge.

During my fellowship, I was able to learn extensively about our national parks. I visited 8 national parks, 2 state parks and 2 parts of the Navajo Nation.  I collected information from both Park Rangers and locals about the region and its treasures. Since I couldn’t take my students with me it was important for me to bring my learning back to them. Through photos, artifacts and stories I was able to find ways to incorporate my leaning and experiences back to our work in the classroom.

I attended a number of presentations given by park rangers. It was truly inspiring to see the wide variety of topics that individual rangers and researchers are currently studying. I attended programs that varied from evidence of dinosaurs found in the Grand Canyon to the formation of the Rocky Mountains. One of the biggest lessons for me was how the rangers were definitely looking for more questions than answers. When I questioned different rangers for ideas for my own classroom, they often returned to the idea of encouraging student questioning. This pushed me to incorporate more inquiry into my lessons.

Back in the classroom as a result of my fellowship, students are now:

• Conducting investigations on how rocks can be classified in different ways.
• Simulating erosion, weathering, and glacier’s effects on lands.
• Reading folktales from the region.
• Writing creative legends to describe natural phenomenon in my photographs.
• Studying the unique characteristics of the desert habitat and what adaptations are needed to survive there.
• Creating maps and travel logs that recreate my fellowship practicing map skills and elapsed time.

Mary Beth’s students conducting soil sampling.

Participating in my own self-directed learning experience revitalized my teaching with fresh perspectives. As I enter my sixteenth year in the classroom, this fellowship provided me with time and space to reflect upon my teaching practice, as well as how it has changed over the years. By designing my own learning plan, I was able to focus on some of the elements that brought me to teaching in the first place. I am excited to recommit myself as an educator to curiosity and questioning.

I did not anticipate how much the level of autonomy would effect my learning in this fellowship. I knew that I would learn more about land forms and geography; I didn’t realize how much I would be influenced by how we learn. The education system has been moving to a more test based, data based, linear view of education. This fellowship reminded me to push back on this and allow space for questioning and curiosity. By exploring my own topics, I was able to connect to ways my students can explore in our classroom. By seeing various researchers explore their own topics and connect with
others in novel ways, I was able to see how intellectual sharing is able to deepen one’s own understanding.

This fellowship helped bring me back to center in my educational philosophy which has in its own way eroded over time. When I have spoken with other FFT Fellows, I think that this is one of the key components that makes this fellowship successful. I was able to create a fellowship that met my needs and as a result I was able to reflect on what the fellowship meant to my professional practice. This
time that I was able to study something of interest helped me connect to myself as a learner. This experience is personal for each grant recipient as we pursue topics of interest, but also immensely professional as we develop as educators.

To me, it is very powerful that as a veteran teacher I can speak about how my fellowship helped me to
develop as an educator. There are few learning experiences that I have that focus on my professional development; instead they are more frequently about analyzing data sets and adopting new methods. My Fund for Teachers fellowship let me step back and take a big picture view of what I want to do as an
educator. I went to study sand, rocks and land forms and left recommitted to fostering intellectual curiosity.

Mary Beth Werner (Telpochcalli Elementary School – Chicago, IL) is a second grade teacher who is passionate about bringing hands-on experiences to her classroom. She is a Drive Award winner, as well as a two-time FFT Fellow.

When the Ebola outbreak caught the attention of my students, I looked for ways to capitalize on that interest and help them look at the global issue through the lens of statistical modeling – but I felt ill prepared. Most of the educational materials I found online were focused on the biology of pathogens and how to spot the symptoms. One student said, “The person on the news told me not to worry, that chances of getting Ebola are low. How low is low? And isn’t there a possibility?” As a Statistics teacher, I answered, “There is always a possibility.”

That answer did not satisfy my students, nor did it satisfy me. I want my students to know that I am the kind of teacher who listens to their questions and who takes their curiosity seriously. I designed a Fund for Teachers fellowship to deepen my understanding of mathematical modeling and statistics in the context of Public Health and Epidemiology in two phases over a three-week period. For the first phase, I participated in the “Introduction to Infectious Disease Modeling and Its Applications” course at the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine; for the second phase I visited governmental,non-governmental, and academic institutions across the east coast of the United States.

Teaching, in many ways, is analogous to what Epidemiologists do: studying the spread of knowledge (instead of disease) and consistently planning and implementing intervention plans and measuring the impact of those interventions.

In London, I was introduced to this exciting and expanding area by professionals working on infectious diseases in both developing and developed countries. The emphasis was on developing a conceptual understanding of the basic methods and on their practical application, rather than the manipulation of mathematical equations. Back in the States, I met with experts at the Yale School of Public Health in New Haven, CT, Partners in Health in Boston, and National Institutes of Health in Bethesda, MD. I sat down with people who use Statistics in their careers to better understand the world around them, and made videos of our discussions to expose students to careers in fields that are not often covered in the media.

Throughout  my fellowship, I was reminded that learning in context is important. In math, topics can often seem random and as though you are marching through a disconnected series of rules and procedures. The learning I accomplished this summer is in a beautifully real-world context, which motivates me to keep going. I wanted to figure out the formula because I wanted to know how the average age of infection has changed since a vaccination has been introduced. After this experience, I am recommitted to the importance of students learning mathematics because so much of our understanding of science and society has foundations in algebra and statistics.

Through the lessons and projects built on the foundation of my fellowship, students will learn about careers in health and research that they can pursue and what academic background they would need to be prepared for those fields. I am excited to implement my senior-freshman health and mathematics writing buddy program this fall. I am working with the ten 9th grade Health Writing teachers to develop an Infectious Disease unit for which my AP Statistics students will serve as student mentors. I foresee great benefits for the seniors learning about writing in the math content area who will be able to turnkey that knowledge and become more confident through their work with freshmen.

I used to think about a career change from teaching to working in public health, but through my experience this summer I realized that I do work in public health- I teach statistical literacy and help students be responsible owners of their minds and bodies. I am recommitted to my career in education, realizing that I am able to effect the change I would want to through a different career right where I am.

Eleanor Terry Vierling has been teaching math at the High School for Telecommunication Arts and Technology (HSTAT) in Brooklyn, NY, for almost 10 years. She has taught everything form numeracy to AP Statistics. Five years ago, she also took on the role of college advisor.  In 2013, Eleanor was awarded the Sloan Award for Excellence in Teaching Science and Mathematics.

Boston Public Schools closed today due to -20 degree wind chills. Sounds like the schools need some geothermal heating that Fellows Kristen Cacciatore and Mandy Dillingham researched in Iceland last summer with their Fund for Teachers grant.

These East Boston High teachers spent a week investigating the impact of climate change on Iceland’s society, educational system and natural environment to develop instructional resources that empower students to address climate change and its impacts on Boston.

“We designed our Fund for Teachers fellowship to go to the world’s leader in renewable energy generation. We gained new insight into how best to combat climate change by using renewable energy sources that do not produce carbon dioxide emissions in the place of fossil fuels. Our goal is to use these experiences and new knowledge to develop curricula that empower students to develop new ideas to change current energy practices in our school and community,” wrote Mandy.

The teachers found that Icelanders take pride in their use geothermal energy to heat water used in everything from homes to public swimming pools. After renting a car, the explored Hellisheidi, the second largest geothermal power station in the world (pictured above), hiked the Hengill Volcano and explored Pingvellir, the national park where two tectonic plates meet. They also toured an innovative greenhouse that grows tomatoes using 100% of its energy from geothermal heat.

Back in Boston (although not today) Kristen and Mandy teach a newly-developed curricula that addresses climate change and the use alternate forms of energy to alleviate carbon dioxide emissions that will be delivered to hundreds of students this year alone. They are also incorporating their fellowship learning into climate change activities with the Science Club they co-lead after school. Students are in the process of developing a series of fun, informative, video clips about climate change in our local area, and ways to conserve energy, which will be delivered on school-wide TVs.

“On our fellowship, we learned how a large community was able to vastly reduce its amount of carbon dioxide production by using geothermal heat and how this heat is converted to electricity to significantly improve the quality of life of Icelanders,” said Kristen. “And our adventures in Iceland have inspired our students to try to prevent global warming by changing how the energy they use every day is produced.”

You can learn more about their experiences on the blog they developed and updated daily for faculty, family, and students to follow.

An additional BPS teacher, Alex Pancic (Brighton High) also used his FFT grant to research energy in Iceland. Specifically, Alex enrolled in Reykjavik University’s School of Energy program to learn how Iceland maximizes alternative energy systems and incorporate these solutions, along with photos and interviews, into an Engineering for the 21st Century curriculum.