A r c h i v e d  I n f o r m a t i o n

Audience Approved by PEP for students in grades 5-8.

Description Polar Regions supplements and reinforces the existing science and social science curriculums and replaces outdated content areas related to the polar regions without requiring additional instructional time. It provides instructional materials for students and resource information for teachers to pursue a problem-solving, investigative approach to topics in: geology, meteorology, oceanology, biology, and the social sciences. The development and application of critical thinking skills and the involvement of laboratory activities are emphasized for the purpose of developing scientific content and concepts. Concepts are developed and reinforced relating to global geography and the exploration of the polar regions. The project's curriculum is divided into four units of instruction: Climate, Oceans, Land, and Discovery and Exploration.

Evidence of Effectiveness Students participating in the program at grades 5 through 8 make significantly greater gains in science knowledge and concepts on project-developed and validated criterion-referenced lists than comparison groups covering the same knowledge and concept areas using traditionally available curriculum materials.

Requirements The program may be taught in self-contained or departmentalized classrooms by science, social science, or environmental education teachers. Each of the four project curriculum units require an average of two to three weeks of instruction or 10 to 15 one-hour periods, depending upon student needs and instruction methodologies used. One six-hour inservice workshop is sufficient to prepare teachers for effective program implementation.

Costs Project Polar Regions' complete Curriculum Package is comprised of four instructional units, each with its own Teacher's Guide and classroom set of 30 nonconsumable packets of Student Background Information and Investigations. Twelve 11" x 14" Antarctica Study Prints and one Antarctica Filmstrip, both with Background Information and Discussion Questions, accompany the project's printed materials. The complete Curriculum Package, whose four units of instruction can be "modularized" to serve four separate classes of 30 students each at one time, is available for $1,050. A Teacher's Edition of the Curriculum Package with only one copy of all program printed materials, without the study prints or the filmstrip, is available for $100.

Services In addition to training and materials, an awareness packet is available at no cost. Visitors are welcome to visit the project's demonstration school site by appointment. Training workshops can be conducted either at the project site or at sites selected by potential adopters or by NDN State Facilitators. Project staff is available to attend awareness meetings out of state with costs to be negotiated.

Contact

Donnalyn Jaque-Anton, Los Angeles U.S.D., Director of Professional Development, 450 North Grand Avenue, Los Angeles, CA 90012. Milton Anisman, Disseminator, Environmental Science Center, 6625 Balboa Boulevard, Van Nuys, CA 91406. (818) 997-2389.

Developmental Funding: ESEA Title IV-C and district.
PEP No. 91-21 (4/3/91)

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[Physics--Teach To Learn]

[Program for Access to Science Study (PASS)]