WAIMEA — A new professional development opportunity in STEM is being offered to teachers on the Big Island, and the subject has timely real-world application for students and their families. The course, “Engaging Students in Citizen Science for the Prevention of Rat Lungworm Disease,” will be offered in Waimea in October and November for K-12 educators.
The course begins with a two-day, hands-on workshop focusing on lessons for late elementary through middle school and will provide extensive coverage of topics including the biology of the parasite, disease prevention, data collection and analysis. Teachers will have the chance to involve their classes in a citizen science effort, with students utilizing advanced technology for reporting via ArcGIS online.
The two-day sessions will be held Oct 27-28 at Kanu o ka Aina and Nov 3-4 at Waimea Middle School. Both workshops will introduce teachers to the IPM plan and curriculum, and all teachers will receive resources and support to complete their portfolios over the following months.
Engaging students and teachers in the fight against rat lungworm has been a long-time passion of the lead course instructor, Kay Howe. She first encountered the disease when her son contracted a severe case, and for the past decade she has been at the forefront of developing tools and expanding understanding of the disease in Hawaii.
Through her position as the rat lungworm curriculum development specialist at the UH-Hilo Jarvi Lab, Howe has focused on outreach and education to many audiences, but recognized the critical and unique role that teachers can play in keeping residents safe. In 2015-2016, she worked with five partner schools on Hawaii Island to develop the integrated pest management plan (IPM) for slug/snail control and the curriculum that will be used in the course.
“I worked with the school garden program and really saw the value of that network and using place-based education as a way to involve teachers and students as partners in research and public education efforts for disease prevention,” Howe said. “We piloted this project through them and saw such a great response from the kids and their teachers, working on a real problem that may have affected people they knew. It gave them a sense of purpose and enthusiasm for the research and their efforts made a huge difference for us in understanding what was happening with the movement of the hosts.”
A former DOE teacher, Howe notes the complex topic of epidemiology, the study of disease, as a 21st-century skill not often covered in K-12 education.
“Our course provides a unique opportunity for the inclusion of science, technology, engineering, arts and math — the STEAM subjects — while raising awareness for disease prevention,” she said.
Howe will be joined by Franny Brewer, communications director for the Big Island Invasive Species Committee, another former teacher experienced in project-based and place-based education.
To register: Teachers must do so on the PDE3 website at https://pde3.k12.hi.us