Ocean Acidification Mock Conference
Courtesy of the California Academy of Sciences
Through this lesson, students will learn what organisms are affected by ocean acidification by taking on the role of one of the stakeholders affected by ocean acidification and creating poster(s) to address their issue(s). Learn More…
Call to Action – Science Graduation Mandate Elimination
by Carolyn Holcroft and Marian Murphy-Shaw
In recent months, CSTA has been working to keep members informed about the status of the high school science graduation requirement. Under title 5 section 51225.3, California high school students must complete a minimum of one biological science course and one physical science course in order to graduate, and that second year of science is estimated to cost the state upwards of $200 million annually. Since the state is currently facing its most dire financial situation in decades and state leaders are exploring all options for cost savings, perhaps it’s not surprising that the second-year science mandate has been targeted in Governor Brown’s 2012-2013 budget proposal. At this time it is unclear whether his ultimate objective would be to eliminate only the mandate (and thus absolve the state’s financial obligation going forward) and keep the requirement via statutory change, or if the requirement for the second year of science would be eliminated altogether. Learn More…
Using MERLOT Voices to Build Community of Learners
by Laura Henriques, David Andrews, and Jaime Arvizu
This is the fifth in a series of articles related to using on-line resources to support student learning. Each article highlights a different National Science Digital Library (NSDL) resource used in the Building Locally, Linking Globally project (NSF DUE 0735011).
MERLOT is the Multimedia Educational Resources for Learning and Online Teaching. Highlighted in an earlier eCCS article, MERLOT (www.merlot.org) is a free service. There are several things that MERLOT provides. The on-line library of peer reviewed teaching and learning materials (called “learning objects”) is searchable by grade, topic and type. The e-portfolio generator called Content Builder is a free, simple way to create professional portfolios and classroom based websites. Both of these features were highlighted in Jaime Arvizu and Sara Meadows’ article. The feature of MERLOT which we are highlighting in this article is MERLOT Voices. Learn More…
Next Generation Science Standards Now Available for Public Review
Achieve has released the first draft of the Next Generation Science Standards (NGSS) for public review. The NGSS will be available for review online until June 1, 2012. The website hosting the standards contains the draft standards and a wealth of background information. Click here to access the draft standards.
NGSS Resources
CSTA has gathered together a variety of NGSS resources for your use. You will find a links to information about group review meetings being hosted around the state (updated daily as we get the information), resources for people hosting group review meetings, links to the Framework, webinars, and the CSTA blog on the NGSS. Please visit http://www.cascience.org/csta/ngss.asp.
NGSS Group Review Meetings
The following are group review meetings scheduled so far. Click the event for more information and registration.
May 22: Sacramento County Office of Education, Sacramento, CA
May 22: Central Valley Science Project, Fresno, CA
May 30: Siskiyou County Office of Education, Video Conference
If you are planning to host a meeting and would like to have it posted on the CSTA calendar, click here to let us know.
NSTA to Host Two Webinars Next Week
The National Science Teachers Association (NSTA) is a key partner in the development of the Next Generation Science Standards. They will be hosting two webinars on May 15 and 16.
May 15: Introduction to the Next Generation Science Standards (NGSS) First Public Draft. 3:30 pm – 5:00 pm (Pacific Time). Click here for more information and to register.
May 16: How to Lead a Study Group on Next Generation Science Standards (NGSS) First Public Draft. 3:30 pm – 5:00 pm (Pacific Time). Click here for more information and to register.
First Public Draft of the Next Generation Science Standards Available on Friday, May 11
According to today’s (May 7) issue of the NSTA Express Newsletter, the first public draft of the Next Generation Science Standards will be available for public review on Friday, May 11.
For the past few months we have been providing you with information and updates on the development process. Please stay tuned to California Classroom Science and CSTA for information on the release, review group events, and more.
The deadline for reviewing will be June 1.
CSTA thanks its partners at NSTA for keeping us all informed on the development process. For more information about the Next Generation Science Standards, read CSTA’s Next Generation Science Standards blog, and visit www.nextgenscience.org and www.cascience.org/csta/ngss.asp.
If you are hosting a review group meeting and would like to get the word out, please let us know about it by filling out this form.
State Board to Hear Presentation on Next Generation Science Standards
On May 9, 2012 the California State Board of Education will hear its first formal presentation on the Next Generation Science Standards (NGSS). It is item number 2 on the agenda. The board meetings are available for viewing on-line, so if you can’t make it to Sacramento, you are encouraged to view the meeting online to get the most current information on the Next Generation Science Standards and when they will be released. In addition to a presentation from CDE staff, Stephen Pruitt of Achieve will make a presentation to the board. Achieve is the organization coordination the writing of the NGSS. Learn More…
CDE Releases Updated Science Safety Handbook
by Dean Gilbert
The California Department of Education has released the 2012 edition of the Science Safety Handbook for California Public Schools. Thanks to the efforts of representatives from various state agencies, educational and research institutions, the Science Safety Handbook, available in PDF format, has been thoroughly edited to provide updated information on:
- state and federal legislation affecting science instruction,
- first aid issues in the classroom,
- general laboratory safety precautions,
- safety in the biology, chemistry and physics laboratories,
- legal citations, safety agreements, laboratory safety checklists and tests, field trip permission forms, plus many other ancillary support documents.
An added feature in this 2012 edition is a chapter devoted entirely to Safety in the Elementary Science Classroom. Learn More…
Your CSTA Needs You
by Rick Pomeroy
As I begin to conclude my first year as your president, I have come to realize that running this Association takes a tremendous amount of effort and time from the professional staff in the office, the Board of Directors, the Conference Committee Members, and the CSTA members who have volunteered to assist these people with the day to day operation of CSTA. Unfortunately, we do not have as many volunteer members working on CSTA committees as we would like. This, in large part, has to do with our lack of outreach efforts to our members for this type of support. Starting with this article and the Survey Form linked to this article, I hope to change this for next year and well into the future.
We are missing the voices of the majority of the members. In order to make a professional association work, the members need to be involved. As any of us who have ever participated in a volunteer organization know, it is not healthy for the organization nor the members to have a select few volunteers doing all of the decision-making and implementation of those decisions. As we move into these coming years of new standards, new assessments, and changes in the role of science in the core curriculum, it is important to have members involved at all levels. Learn More…
2012 Conference Early Registration Option
You can now register extra early for the 2012 California Science Education Conference in San Jose. This is a great option for those teachers looking to use some of this year’s unspent funds to attend the conference in the fall. This option is only available using the early registration form available for download by clicking here. Because this is early registration, and not all of the details have been finalized, ticketed events are not available for registration. Ticketed events will be available for purchase when registration officially opens on June 1. Learn More…
California Science Education Conference to Include Next Generation Science Standards Strand
by Lisa Hegdahl
By the time the California Science Education Conference is held in San Jose, October 19-21, the Next Generation of Science Standards (NGSS) will be nearing its final draft. In anticipation of the interest science educators will have regarding the standards, the California Science Teachers Association will provide an NGSS strand during their annual conference.
Helen Quinn Photo Credit: Dan Quinn
The opening keynote speaker will be Helen Quinn, Emerita Professor of Physics at Stanford Linear Accelerator Center. Helen Quinn assisted in the development of the California State Science Standards and was the chair of the National Academy of Sciences’ Committee on a Conceptual Framework for New K-12 Science Education Standards, the committee that authored A Framework for K-12 Science Education: Practices, Crosscutting Concepts, and Core Ideas. Dr. Quinn is an authority on the Framework, the document that is guiding the development of the NGSS.
LATEST POSTS
Next Generation Science Standards Now Available for Public Review
Achieve has released the first draft of the Next Generation Science Standards (NGSS) for public review. The NGSS will be available for review online until June 1, 2012. The website hosting the standards contains the draft standards and a wealth of background information. Click here to access the draft standards.
NGSS Resources
CSTA has gathered together a variety of NGSS resources for your use. You will find a links to information about group review meetings being hosted around the state (updated daily as we get the information), resources for people hosting group review meetings, links to the Framework, webinars, and the CSTA blog on the NGSS. Please visit http://www.cascience.org/csta/ngss.asp.
NGSS Group Review Meetings
The following are group review meetings scheduled so far. Click the event for more information and registration.
May 22: Sacramento County Office of Education, Sacramento, CA
May 22: Central Valley Science Project, Fresno, CA
May 30: Siskiyou County Office of Education, Video Conference
If you are planning to host a meeting and would like to have it posted on the CSTA calendar, click here to let us know.
NSTA to Host Two Webinars Next Week
The National Science Teachers Association (NSTA) is a key partner in the development of the Next Generation Science Standards. They will be hosting two webinars on May 15 and 16.
May 15: Introduction to the Next Generation Science Standards (NGSS) First Public Draft. 3:30 pm – 5:00 pm (Pacific Time). Click here for more information and to register.
May 16: How to Lead a Study Group on Next Generation Science Standards (NGSS) First Public Draft. 3:30 pm – 5:00 pm (Pacific Time). Click here for more information and to register.
Connections Between Common Core State Standards, the Coming Next Generation Science Standards (NGSS), and Career and Technical Education for STEM
by Marian Murphy-Shaw
I recently participated in the National Alliance for Partnerships in Equity (NAPE) Professional Development Institute and the Annual meeting of the NSF-funded STEM Equity Pipeline Project. The meetings were rich and offered more information than I can sum up than this article. I encourage you to visit their websites for complete information. Learn More…
CSTA Call for Awards Nominations – Only Two Weeks Remain!
May 15 is the deadline for nominations for the 2012 Margaret Nicholson Distinguished Service Award and the Future Science Teacher Award. CSTA believes that the importance of science education cannot be overstated. Given the essential presence of the sciences in understanding the past and planning for the future, science education remains and will increasingly be one of the most important disciplines in education. CSTA is committed to recognizing and encouraging excellence in science teaching through the presentation of awards to science educators who have made outstanding contributions in science education in the state and who are poised to continue the momentum of providing high quality, relevant science education into the future. Learn More…