Lessons Learned from Citizen Science in the Classroom. A Response to "The Future of Citizen Science."

摘要: Mueller, Tippins, and Bryan’s contrast of the current limitations science education with potential virtues citizen provides an important theoretical perspective about future democratized K– 12 education. However, authors fail to adequately address existing barriers constraints moving community-based into classroom. We contend that for these partnerships be successful, teachers, researchers, other program designers must reexamine questions traditional citizen-science programs attend certain dimensions, including: framing projects around nature science, creating a dialog experts allowing access primary literature, fostering ability public critique information evidence. argue resource scientists, students likely pose problems true This article is response to: M.P., D., & Bryan, L.A. (2012). The science. Democracy Education, 20(1). Article 2. Available online at http://democracyeducationjournal.org/home/vol20/iss1/2/. In their “The Future Citizen Science,” Bryan (2012) argued as becomes more constrained by increasing administrative directives diminishing resources, restructuring classroom practice toward inquiry-driven, civically relevant, democratic process could create scientifically literate citizenry. Although prognosis was timely presented noble idea, there are practical concerns transition guided integrated sphere. this essay, we respond notion integrating classroom, drawing from our experiences in centered high school cooperatively developed students, environmental management agencies, scientists. propose learning communities seek engage successfully such reform forfeit some ideas associated both instead reframe Teachers administrators need adaptable enough promote epistemology over content while scientists developers allow classrooms take ownership scientific investigations. continue outlining lessons have learned working within U.S. system Steven Gray assistant professor human dimensions Department Natural Resources Environmental Management University Hawaii. His research focuses on measuring social ecological costs benefits including developing participatory modeling tools common-pool decision-making. Kristina Nicosia biology teacher West WindsorPlainsboro High School North Plainsboro, NJ. She also doctoral candidate Rutgers University. Rebecca Jordan associate Ecology, Evolution, Human Ecology As director Program Science Learning, she devotes most her effort investigating formal informal environments through Acknowledgements: work funded NSF Grant 918589. would like thank Alan Berkowitz, David Mellor, Gel Alvarado, McLelland-Crawley, Judy McLoughlin, Jim Vasslides, John Manderson, Barnegat Bay Partnership support project.