Gaining Practical Science Experience: A Must for Teachers Marcus Begay¹, Lisa Burke², Steve Hanlin², Benjamin Herman³, Carolyn Lawrence²³,Candice Gardner² ׳ ³ 1. Northern Arizona University, Flagstaff, AZ USDA-ARS, Ames, IA Iowa State University, Ames, IA Abstract Many educators struggle nationwide in the area of teaching science to their students due to the lack of hand’s on experience in the scientific field. Being able to work with individuals who have expertise knowledge in the scientific field can greatly improve an educators ability to become an effective teacher. A teacher can be effective by learning through practical experience, also while receiving first hand knowledge. This practical experience can help teachers provide more effective learning experiences for students through improved methodologies. Future educators can create lesson plans that can be available for their use in the future. The North Central Regional Plant Introduction Station has many different project teams that have important, specific roles in conserving germplasm genetically. Working with the different departments, one has many opportunities to create several lesson plans based on kinesthetic learning. The importance of these resources is that not only that they are available for future educators, but are also base in practical science experience. A website containing the lesson plans, a biography, and information about the individuals that they have worked with will display what the future educator has learned to other educators. In addition to the lesson plans, a brochure was created paraphrasing what the NCRPIS’s role is. This brochure was paraphrased in a manner that reflects the Navajo Culture and is meant to be able to be used as a supplement for teaching. This is important as an effective teacher will provide evidence that they have had first hand experience and provide several different sources that can support their lesson to his or her class. Introduction Educators put a lot of time into creating their lesson plans, but that does not necessarily mean that their lesson plans are effective in helping the students learn. Time is very valuable, but how your time is spent is even more important. Especially if your job involves educating children, because both the student and the teacher alike take a lot of time out of their daily lives to be in school. A teacher should try to get as much firsthand experience as they possibly can about the subjects they teach inside the classroom. Being able to work at the North Central Regional Plant Introduction Station (NCRPIS) provides many opportunities for future educator’s to gain practical science experience. Practical science experience is very important because it will help teachers create lesson plans that are more effective towards educating the youth. With practical science experience, teachers will have a better understanding of what they are teaching, therefore allowing them to do a better job of teaching. Not only does working at the NCRPIS allow future educators to have practical science experience, it also allows the soon to be teacher to have credible lesson plans and credible resources. Credible resources include as getting to know individuals who are very knowledgeable in the scientific field. Teachers can document their learning experiences several different ways. Lesson plans, a brochure and a website are three good types of materials that the teacher can use to “store” what they have learned. These documents were created and will be available for other educators to see online. Comments and suggestions from teachers are encouraged to be made online about any of the documents and will help other teachers through online collaboration through correcting any errors or updating any information. Materials and Methods Lesson Plans Materials : Primary literature was used in providing examples of the many ways a lesson plan may be written. The different types of literature that were available for ideas and examples contained tips about what were appropriate and certain things weren’t appropriate when writing lesson plans. To assist in writing the lesson plans, discussions with Steve Hanlin, Lisa Burke, Maria Erickson, Matt Lively, Mark Millard and other employees at the NCRPIS helped answer questions. Method : Due to the fact that the processes that are conducted at the NCRPIS are so difficult for an elementary student to understand, writing the lesson plans was a difficult task to complete. Therefore, further explanations of the interest of the students were needed. The method in writing lesson plans included picking the topics that may get the attention of the kids and finding ways to relate the topic so that it would make sense to a young student. The toughest task to do was to find ways to relate the topic to the student’s interests. The subjects that were used are the importance of corn, seeds, and pollination, so the three lesson plans were created base don the three subjects. The method that worked best was to think like a kid. This method worked because teachers have to see thing’s through the perspective of their students if they want their full attention. Brochure Materials: Microsoft Office Word 2003 and the NCRPIS brochure. Method: The original NCRPIS brochure was obtained at the NCRPIS in Ames, IA. Then Microsoft Word was used to create a document with three equal sections that would display information on the front and back of the brochure. Several conversations were made with Navajo elders at home to see if the Navajo culture could be related to the brochure. The most difficult part of this task was to summarize way Navajo’s used corn in as few words as possible. Website Materials: A Dell PC, html coding by hand using Notepad + +, pictures from other files, Microsoft Word, and the personal help of one of my mentor’s, Carolyn Lawrence, and fellow intern, Lamour Peshtony. Method: The process of creating a webpage starts by using html codes to get the format that you want to show on your webpage. Html codes are usually used in Notepad + +, and when a file is needed on the webpage, you have to store the file into the same folder that contains codes. There are html codes for just about everything from links to different color backgrounds. About Me Hello, my name is Marcus Taylor Begay. I am from a very small town called Blue Gap, AZ. Home is where the heart is, and I’m proud to say that my heart is in Blue Gap, where my family resides. I am a part of the Navajo Nation, the largest Native American Tribe in the world. I’m also proud to say that I speak the Navajo Language fluently. With honor and dignity I accepted to participate in the 2008 George Washington Carver Summer Internship Program. I graduated from Chinle High School in After high school I wasn’t sure about what my next move was going to be, and then a couple days later my uncle offered me a good paying job working construction, eventually I took the job and the pay was great. With the amount of money I was earning, I was able to help my family financially. I continued to work in the construction industry for six months before deciding that I did not want to work as a labor for ten hours a day for many years to come therefore I decided that it was time for me to go back to school. I enrolled at Adams State College (ASC) in Alamosa, CO with the intention of becoming a teacher. When I arrived at ASC, I soon realized that it wasn’t the school for me, but I managed to hang in there for two weeks before I decided that I had to go to a different school. Then I enrolled at Northern Arizona University, where I am currently pursuing a degree in Elementary Education. Acknowledgements I would like to thank the entire staff of the George Washington Carver Internship Program for giving me the opportunity to be a part of their 2008 Summer Program. My time with the Program has been a great one and I am so thankful to have been a part of the GWC Internship Program. Special Thanks to the entire staff of the North Central Regional Plant Introduction Station for allowing me to work with them throughout the summer. I would also like to give thanks to my mentors, Candice Gardner, Benjamin Herman, and Carolyn Lawrence for all their help that they have contributed. I also want to thank my family for their encouragement and their endless support. Without the support of my family, I would not be where I am right now, so thank you for believing in me and supporting me through the good and bad times. Last but not least, I want to thank my girlfriend Rosey for always being there for me no matter what. Again, I would like to thank everyone who has helped me, so Thank You Very Much. References Burke, Lisa. June 11, Personal discussion. Hanlin, Steve. June 25, Personal discussion. Melear, Claudia T. (1999). Middle and Secondary Science Teacher Opinions about Working in Scientists’ Laboratories during Preservice Preparation. University of Tennessee Conclusion After completing this internship I have learned a lot about writing lesson plans, making a brochure and creating a website. One of the most difficult tasks to complete was to summarize the Navajo way of how corn was used, planted, and harvested in as few words as possible. Working at the NCRPIS will help me become a better teacher by allowing me to learn from professionals who have many years of experience educating young minds. The toughest task to complete was to find ways to relate the topic to the student’s interests. The most important thing that I have learned is the fact that teachers need as much practical science experience as possible because the experience will allow the teacher to teach their lesson more effectively. I also learned that finding examples that can be related to young students is not as easy as it sounds, especially when you are trying to have the students understand lessons that are learned best when explained in technical terms. A website was created to help display the lesson plans and the brochure. The website can be accessed at The North Central Regional Plant Introduction Station The Navajo Nation Flag My Workplace I worked at the North Central Regional Plant Introduction Station (NCRPIS), which is located in Ames, IA. The NCRPIS was founded was founded in 1948 and the station was first Plant Introduction Station in the United States. At the NCRPIS I had the opportunity to work with several project leaders. Some of the employees I worked with include, Lisa Burke, Lisa Pfiffner, David Kovach, Maria Erickson, Steve Hanlin, Sharon McClurg, Mark Millard, Matt Lively and Trent Moore. The NCRPIS is made up of facilities that include climate-controlled rooms, IT equipment, green houses, offices, and laboratories. Lamour Peshtony, Dustin Thunder Hawk, Nathan Etsitty, Marcus Begay Corn being tested for viability, and the paraphrased brochure.