Snacks4theBrain!

This past Wednesday, May 13, I trotted on over from my work at University School of Nashville to watch a presentation from one of the 6 groups of 3 School for Science and Math at Vanderbilt sophomores. This was the culminating session from self-directed, teacher-guided, out-in-the-field research projects, and as you’ll hear when Isaiah details what was at stake as a result of the assessment of their presentations, they were all very much into making things clear and accessible.

I watched a fun 20 minute presentation from one group, and I was relieved to see that the students were being videotaped. Perhaps we can share some more of these projects in future Snacks! I asked Dr. Chris Vanags if I could interview a group, and he graciously sent Ashleigh, Cindy, and Isiah my way. We moved over into the snack room and chatted for about 10 minutes. These are ten minutes I want to share with you. I think you’ll agree that these 16 year-olds are well on their way to lifelong learning in science, and I would say from talking with them that their self-confidence and grasp of the important concepts is exceptional. It speaks to the quality of the program a the School, which brings 25 Metro Nashville Public School high school students at each grade level to the Vanderbilt University Medical Center for hands-on research and learning one day a week, the entire academic year. I want to reiterate what I’ve mentioned here before: the rest of their public schooling does not go away, get excused, or do itself. These kids work and work hard, and they will deserve the diploma notation they receive when they graduate from their respective high schools upon completion of their senior year.

Before we get started, let’s hear some summer themed music, this time beautifully produced indie alternative rock from a project called SUPERCREEP, the brainchild of New Jersey rocker Jody Delli Santi, fresh from the podcast music network at music.podshow.com. Go visit their MySpace site and buy some SUPERCREEP! After the interview, please allow me to introduce the Dutch band Zamarro, who’ve been together 13 years without a change in band members and how come this is the first time I’ve heard of them. Maybe it’s that they’re from Switzerland? I swear, if I didn’t podcast my music education would definitely suffer! They’ll rock us outta here with a pounding hello summertime rendition of their “Off We Go.” That one’s for my son Colin…

Whilst I’m at it, I bet you haven’t seen the April 24 Vanderbilt Health News item about the School for Science and Math at Vanderbilt. No? Well here!

Welcome, Snackers!

S4theB! episode 81 shares a remarkable article about using Science to teach Science. It’s such an important and clearly expressed advocacy of research-based pedagogy that I need to share it!

When a colleague at school shared it with me several weeks ago, I swore I’d do so with my listeners. Since then, I’ve recorded the 30 minute recording, edited it down, and laced it together with the podcast show elements to make it work, but I’ve been stymied by a choice for music. Today, I am happy to say it’s a show, and it’s yours! You can read it at the Change Magazine website, of course. But, would you rather listen on your walk, your commute, or while cleaning up the kitchen at home? Snacks4theBrain! Episode 81 is here for you! If you so want to read, or even if you want to pursue some other articles from this excellent resource for teaching and learning, here’s a link directly to the article. The editors of Change, a media outlet of The Carnegie Foundation for the Advancement of Teaching, graciously granted me permission to podcast, and podcast I will!

Why Not Try a Scientific Approach to Science Education?
Too many students don’t learn enough from traditional methods of teaching science, but using the practices of science itself—gathering objective data, building on demonstrated effectiveness, and fully utilizing modern technology—can significantly increase learning, by Carl Wieman.

This article is adapted from his lecture at the Carnegie Foundation’s Centennial celebration at the Library of Congress and, as I mentioned, is shared with permission.

Oh, the music? It’s Baroque guitar from guitar master James Edwards’ Le Tresor dOrphee by Antoine Francisque at Magnatune.com!

Download Snacks4theBrain! Episode81 HERE!

Cheers!

The 69th episode of S4theB! features a brief interview with Vanderbilt Center for Science Outreach Program Manager Jennifer Ufnar, a talented, energetic environmental microbiologist who oversees grant-writing projects at the CSO and helps manage all kinds of things for this tight-knit, dedicated staff. Dr. Ufnar is chatting today about the Summer Science Institute offered this coming July at the Vanderbilt CSO. From the CSO website at scienceoutreach.org:

The Research Tools for Secondary Science Educators workshop invites secondary science teachers into Vanderbilt science laboratories for four one-week sessions. These interconnected workshops, funded by Tennessee’s Improving Teacher Quality program, will focus on science and technology content and tools for the classroom. Each of the first three weeks will focus on a different scientific discipline, one each on physics, chemistry, biology, with the fourth week covering technology tools. Each of the first three workshops are open to 25 teachers, while the technology workshop will be open to only 15 teachers.

In episode 69, Dr. Ufnar charmingly outlines some interesting details about the four weeks. They are intriguingly interwoven with leading edge content and each one promises invaluable learning, as well as a teacher stipend, for gosh sakes! Heck, I usually have to pay to take workshops! These experiences pay the attendees!

One of those workshops is mine, and you can get a glimmer of how that’ll go by my description in the podcast, and also by visiting my own little wiki-based site at ScottWeb2.0. It’ll be fun, and it’s limited to only 15 teachers, so drop on into the CSO website, download an application and get signed up! If you are thinking about hosting my week long workshop at your own school or district, contact me at scottgardnermerrick@gmail.com. There’s still time, but hurry!

Music this show is from two of my very good friends, alt-rocker Ross Falzone and Americana-folk newcomer Rocky Alvey. Some fab hammered dulcimer work from Snacks favorite Jamie Janover underscores some of the show’s narrative, courtesy of Magnatune.com. Support creativity outside the traditional box: Go visit these sites and buy independent creations!

Upload Snacks4theBrain! episode 69 here, or simply click the “Links” link up top and listen in your browser via the Podcast Pickle Player!

See you at the Research Tools Summer Institute!

Cheerio!

Dr. Ufnar’s picture courtesy of the University of Mississippi’s faculty profile page at
http://www.usm.edu/biology/faculty/Faculty_Profile_Jennifer_A_Ufnar.htm

On Monday October 23, the freshman class at the School for Science and Math at Vanderbilt, settled in their chairs at the lab tables for a chat with with Mark Twickler, director of the National Ice Core Laboratory, to learn about how ice cores are collected and used in scientific research to reveal information about life and climate in past eras. This episode of Snacks4theBrain! will share out from that interaction, in which yours truly also learned some interesting new things, like about the lakes in Antarctica! Think you might be interested in participating in a research trip to the frozen south? Listen to what he says about the selection process…

Thanks to Mark Twickler and to the faculty and students of the School for Science and Math at Vanderbilt, for this tasty morsel of a snack. Music for episode 63 hails from Magnatune.com’s Sun Palace, led by the capable and beautiful vocals of Andriette Redmann.

Download Snacks4theBrain! 63 right here, or click “Links” above to listen with the Podcast Pickle player!

Bonus links:
Polar Planet Palooza, podcasts from the poles.
Water, Water, Everywhere–blogpost by Amanda Dixon

On Monday, October 1st, the freshman class at the School for Science and Math at Vanderbilt visited the Harpeth River, at a beautiful stretch of its snakelike path through Davidson County and Middle Tennessee. The yellow Metro Nashville Public School bus pulled into picnic shelter number 11 at the beautiful Edwin Warner Park, located just a few miles from the School’s lab at the Vanderbilt University Medical Center’s Light Hall.

The students were out for a field trip with the intention of gathering data to assess the health of the stream. They were learning to use all manner of field instruments–digital levels, digital pH probes, GPS devices, and scientific magnifier lenses–and how to record and interpret the readings and observations from those instruments in meaningful ways. They also used their hands and their feet, “kick seining,” stirring up the stream to capture macroinvertebrates and capturing downstream-bound critters in a fine mesh sein, or net. The collected debris from these efforts was transferred into glass petrie dishes, where careful observation would identify the inhabitants of this watery evirons–would they be only the sort of creatures that could survive in polluted environments, or would they find more sensitive, delicate species that would indicate the river is satisfactorily healthy? Well, final interpretation of findings would have to wait until later, when all the data would be compiled back at the lab. For this episode of S4theB! you’re out here on the river with the students, listening in on the process.

The voices you hear will be those of students, their talented teachers, and the occasional crow, along with that of Pat Holiday, retired USGS ranger and geologist (and also Brittainy’s grandfather!). You’ll also be treated to two very nice bites of wonderful music, “The River,” and “Fire Dance,” from Jesse Manno. You can pick up these songs or the entire album, “Sea Spirits,” for a song at Magnatune.com! Alrighty, stalwart listeners, listen up right here or click “Links” up top to use the Podcast Pickle player at the site!!!

And BONUS!!! here’s a slideshow of pictures from the river visit:

This episode features some absolutely captivating audio with a social responsibility aspect, a cutting-edge science aspect, and a sortofa gross aspect. You’ll like it!

On Monday, September 17th, Dr. Larry Zwiebel, Professor of Biological Sciences at Vanderbilt University Medical Center, met with our freshman class in their lab and spoke to them about, to quote from the School for Science and Math’s website, “the most dangerous animal on the planet, a parasite of humans,” and explained how his work may one day help control “the most prevalent life-threatening disease on Earth.”

This is a long listen, longer than most Snacks, but I think you’ll agree with me that it’s something you can learn from, and why the heck are we here anyway? I’m going to lead into this fascinating stuff with a song by independent recording artist David Spencer, a gifted purveyor of what I’m coming to call “Intellapop.” Far from derogatory, as I often use the term “pop,” this is, like, alternative pop, or right in the vein of one of my old faves, Dan Fogelburg (whatever happened to…?). David is a kind, centered, immensely talented young man I recently featured at my personal blog, scottmerrick.net, and he is a stellar guitar teacher. My son may be his most devoted student! His music can be purchased at davidspencermusic.com and also via iTunes. I’ll close the show with the title cut to his new cd, “Love Like a Symphony.” You owe it to yourself to stay on for that

Download S4theB! 61 here, or click the Links link and use the podcast pickle Podcast Pickle Player to play right here!

Woooooooooooooooooooo! Episode 60! Being as everybody’s so much in a “back to school” mode, let’s take an episode and dedicate it to audio celebrating the opening of The School for Science and Math at Vanderbilt, an audacious project that the fine folks at the Vanderbilt Center for Science Outreach have been planning for over a year and which they have just implemented!