Urban Advantage Workshop
New York Aquarium
November 19, 2006

The New York City Urban Advantage program (www.urbanadvantagenyc.org) is a citywide initiative designed to engage students directly in the process of scientific experimentation and discovery. Eighth graders are tasked with completing an "exit project," much like a typical science fair project. Projects tend to follow one of four research approaches: laboratory experiments, field observations, secondary research or experiment design.

The New York Aquarium hosted a series of professional development workshops, and asked Rutgers IMCS E&O to assist in presenting "secondary research" ideas. Both Rutgers and the NY Aquarium are partners in the Mid-Atlantic COSEE, which promotes such collaborations.

Secondary research involves finding existing data that demonstrates a relationship between variables to support a scientific conclusion. Ocean observatories provide a natural resource for obtaining scientific data (real-time and archived) to demonstrate a myriad of physical, biological and chemical relationships in the marine environment.

Our goal during the workshop was to present several vignettes on readily accessible ocean and environmental datasets along with engaging scientific questions that students could easily use to perform secondary research projects. Our objective was to demonstrate to teachers how easy it was to collect real-time data and use it in the classroom. The resources below were presented during the workshop.

Presentation

Conducting "Secondary Research" with Oceanographic Data (Powerpoint 28 MB)
This presentation was presented by Janice McDonnell and Sage Lichtenwalner and contains a comprehensive of oceanographic data, data collection and some cool research subjects. The major pieces include:

• Introduction to IMCS E&O
• Understanding Data (and Secondary Research)
• Types of Ocean Data
• History of Ocean Exploration
• 3 Vignettes on Secondary Research Ideas
• Comprehensive overview of oceanographic data

Secondary Research Data Tips

#1 - Animal Migrations and Ocean Temperature (PDF)

• Example SST Images (PDF 13 MB) - If you prefer not to/cannot access SST imagery online, you may use this representative collection of images from 11/2005 to 11/2006.
• Example Results (Excel File 54 KB) - This file contains two graphs showing results obtained from comparing 1) coastal locations and 2) a nearshore and offshore location based on the SST images from the file above. The file also contains a blank graph that can be used to plot points.
• Temperature Recording Sheet (Word File 66 KB) - A simple worksheet to record temperatures on.

#2 - Comparing Climates in the United States (PDF)

#3 - The Ocean and Atmosphere (PDF)

• Example Results (Excel File 267 KB) - This file demonstrates how one month of buoy data may be displayed to show 1) the difference between daily atmosphere and ocean temperature variability and 2) the relationship between wind speed and wave heights.

Additional Resources

• Discrete vs. Continuous Activity (PDF) - A quick activity to show the difference between collecting data continuously or a specific time steps.
• Oceanography Through Time Activity (PDF) - A exploration through over two thousands years of ocean exploration.
• Striper Tracker Activity (Word File 115 KB) - A sample activity for analyzing Striped Bass tracking data from Striper Tracker.
• Real-time Ocean Data Resources - A comprehensive list of some of the best real-time environmental data and data-focused educational web sites currently available.

Home

2008 Shore Bowl

The Cool Classroom

Communicating Ocean Science: College Course

Marine Activities, Resources & Education (MARE) Program

Using Ocean Observing Systems in K-12 Education: Final Report

Post-Workshop Resources

Center for Ocean Sciences Education Excellence, Mid-Atlantic (COSEE-MA)

Jacques Cousteau National Estuarine Research Reserve (JCNERR)