2 Virtual Educator PDs: Blending MWEE and GIS for Educators: Expanding Meaningful Environmental and Watershed Literacy with Geospatial Technology Tools and Practice – Sep 12

Posted by Pennsylvania Sea Grant on September 6, 2022

1. Pennsylvania Sea Grant (PASG) in partnership with the Stroud Water Research Center and the Pennsylvania Department of Education, and with funding from NOAA, is now recruiting for round 2 of a free virtual educator professional development (PD) program scheduled for September 27-November15, 2022, Blending MWEE and GIS for Educators: Expanding Meaningful Environmental and Watershed Literacy with Geospatial Technology Tools and Practice.

Participating educators will be able to:

• Identify 5 or more geospatial technologies which can be incorporated into an environmental or watershed literacy instructional unit appropriate for your instructional grade level.
• Demonstrate ability to integrate and adapt use of geospatial technologies into an instructional unit appropriate for instructional grade level.
• Differentiate and describe implications for instructional use inherent in the geospatial technologies investigated, including origins, data source, maintenance routine, classroom application, and adaptive uses for inquiry plastic.
• Express how geospatial technologies can be used to identify environmental or environmental justice issues within your district’ watershed boundaries
• Investigate and describe environmental or environmental justice issues within and outside your watershed boundaries, including similarities and differences.
• Identify which classroom practices and geospatial technologies can be used both for place-based and expansion into regional watershed and environmental literacy inquiry

Workshops will take place virtually over a seven-week period with weekly assignments including journal reflections, data sheets for GIS tools, and the development of lesson plans incorporating GIS tools and the Meaningful Watershed Educational Experience (MWEE) framework. Upon completion of the program educators will receive a stipend, and Act 48 or PA CEUs as appropriate.

More details and registration can be found on the Stroud website.

2. Pennsylvania Sea Grant (PASG) in partnership with New York Sea Grant (NYSG), and with funding from the Center for Great Lakes Literacy (CGLL), is providing a free educator professional development program Blending MWEE and GIS for Educators: Expanding Meaningful Environmental and Watershed Literacy with Geospatial Technology Tools and Practice. This school year-long program will hold 12 virtual classes scheduled between September 20, 2022-May 17, 2023 (7 of the 12 sessions will meet with the PD listed above) with participating educators registered from across the Commonwealth, but with a focus on Great Lakes literacy.

Participating educators will learn and share:

• techniques for integrating Great Lakes materials into their classrooms
• examples of successful stewardship activities using the Meaningful Watershed Educational Experiences (MWEE) framework
• strategies for interacting with the Great Lakes research community
• methods for overcoming barriers to incorporating Great Lakes science into K-12 education

Additionally, educators and their students will plan and execute their MWEE stewardship projects with virtual and in-person check-ins by PASG in Winter and Spring 2023. Upon completion of the program, educators will receive a stipend, reimbursement for supplies needed to complete their MWEEs, and Act 48 or PA CEUs as appropriate.

Registration is available at this link.

For more information or specific questions, please contact: Nate Drag (NY) at [email protected] or Michelle Niedermeier (PA) at [email protected].