IPY: PolarTREC-Teachers and Researchers Exploring and Collaborating

Polar TREC--Teachers and Researchers Exploring and Collaborating--is a three-year teacher professional enhancement program that will advance polar science education by bringing K-12 educators and polar researchers together in hands-on field experiences in the Arctic and Antarctic. PolarTREC activities and products will foster the integration of research and education to produce a legacy of long-term teacher-researcher collaborations, improvement of teacher content knowledge and teaching practices, shareable online learning resources based on real-world science, improved student knowledge of and interest in the Arctic and Antarctic, and broad public engagement in polar science. ARCUS will adapt and extend existing Teacher Research Experience (TRE) models and its own experience delivering TREC—a TRE program supported by NSF for the Arctic—to develop PolarTREC, a comprehensive, sustained field research experience program for K-12 teachers focusing on IPY science themes at both polar regions. Thirty-six teachers will spend two to six weeks in the Arctic or Antarctic studying a topic relevant to one of the IPY emphasis areas, with "Live from IPY" calls, Internet presentations, and podcasts from the field, daily teacher journals, interactive bulletin boards, photo galleries, online multimedia learning resources and activities, and participation in CARE (Connecting Arctic/Antarctic Researchers and Educators) webmeetings to support translation of experiences into the classroom and beyond. PolarTREC is relevant to the education goals of the IPY by 1) providing a hands-on field research experience that can be realistically implemented in the polar regions; 2) broadly disseminating teacher experiences to students and other professionals; 3) developing a sustainable learning community; and 4) providing clear and appropriate measures of project success through a formative and summative evaluation. Additionally, the PolarTREC evaluation will provide a basis for replicating or expanding the program structure and best practices. PolarTREC will benefit from close coordination with logistics providers and international programs to ensure operational feasibility and an international reach. The intellectual merit of PolarTREC lies in its integration of research and education and through application and evaluation of a comprehensive approach to Teacher Research Experiences. The PolarTREC model of Teacher Research Experiences is conceived and organized according to current best practices, such as pre-research training, mentoring, support for classroom transfer, and long-term access to resources and support. PolarTREC builds on ARCUS' close relationship with polar researchers throughout the world, its established network of experienced TRE teachers, and its existing cutting-edge technical and Internet infrastructure designed for online collaboration and to bring research to classrooms and the public. The broader impacts of PolarTREC are numerous. As a formal science education project, PolarTREC advances discovery and understanding through direct impact on science teachers and students. Networks and partnerships within the polar science education and research communities will be expanded and sustained through a variety of activities, including a robust technical infrastructure designed for online collaboration and learning. The legacy of educational products developed through PolarTREC, broadly disseminated to teachers, students, and the public, will continue to influence scientific understanding of the polar regions' critical role in global processes well beyond the 72 teachers and researchers directly served through this project.