Faculty/Staff Detail

Angela Pagano, Biological Sciences Department, along with SUNY Cortland Noyce Scholars Dominick Fantacone and Sarah Smith, presented a workshop session at the Noyce Northeast Regional Conference on Oct. 14 in Philadelphia, Pa. Their session was titled “Bringing Space Down to Earth! Teaching Secondary Science Using NASA Materials.” Context-based inquiry teaching approaches, especially those emphasizing links between science, technology and society, have been shown to improve student attitude toward science, increase understanding of scientific concepts and the nature of science, and reduce gender differences in attitude toward science. Cornell University’s Center for Radiophysics & Space Research Education & Public Outreach (CRSR-EPO) partnered with SUNY Cortland’s adolescence education: science program to offer professional development workshops aimed at creating context-driven, inquiry-based lessons using NASA content, teaching materials and activities. During the session, presenters provided an overview of NASA materials available to educators, worked through a selection of activities, and provided examples of how these materials can be incorporated into the secondary science curriculum. Access to plans created in the professional development series was provided.