Adventures that inspire students to Learn & Explore
Last November President Barack Obama launched the “Educate to Innovate” campaign to improve the participation and performance of America’s students in science, technology, engineering and mathematics – often referred to as the STEM skills. The campaign will include efforts from the federal government, leading companies, foundations, non-profit organizations, and science and engineering societies.
President Obama believes that investment in education must be accompanied by reform and innovation. Our nation certainly needs this reform. Study after study has called dramatic attention to the need to excite students to pursue careers in STEM education, and to develop the 21st century thinking, problem solving, communication and teamwork skills our nation needs for our future.
Through “Educate to Innovate” and other efforts, the Obama Administration has put out a call to action to:
- Increase STEM literacy so that all students can learn deeply and think critically in science, technology mathematics and engineering.
- Move American students from the middle of the pack to top in the next decade.
- Expand STEM education and career opportunities for under-represented groups in these fields, including minorities and women.
At Challenger Center for Space Science Education, we believe that the way to engage students in STEM education is by inspiring them. Founded by the families of the Challenger 51-L astronauts lost on board the Space Shuttle in 1986, we continue the crew’s mission of exploration and discovery. Through the assistance of NASA, astronauts and educators, businesses and communities dedicated to improving STEM education, nearly 50 interactive Challenger Learning Centers have been built across the nation and around the world, engaging more than 400,000 students each year. Students fly one of four simulated space missions working in a space station and in a Mission Control room modeled after NASA’s facilities at the Johnson Space Center. Using innovative, simulated space flights – the next best thing to actual space flight – Challenger Learning Centers teach students and train teachers.
Far more than field trips, these are deeply grounded learning experiences that engage students, transforming them into scientists, engineers or researchers, placing them in simulated space missions where they solve real-life challenges.
Challenger Learning Center programs meet state and national education standards in many areas of math and science, among others. Challenger Learning Center educators also train thousands of teachers each year in a variety of STEM disciplines, including aviation and aeronautics, space science and astrobiology.
The Challenger Learning Center experience has been heralded as a model program in STEM by leaders in the field such as Norman R. Augustine, former CEO of Lockheed Martin and chair of the industry report “Rising Above The Gathering Storm,” who described Challenger Center as “exactly what I concluded was needed” to inspire a new generation of scientists and engineers to join the 21st century workforce.
At the heart of each Challenger Learning Center is the simulated space mission. Whether it’s the navigation team locating a lunar landing site or mission control resolving a potential emergency based on data the students have collected, each team must work together to achieve its goal.
To prepare for the mission, teachers participate in professional development workshops where they receive training to increase content knowledge and help them use simulation and inquiry-based learning in the classroom. Upon returning to school, students analyze and reflect on the data gathered during the mission.
One of our Challenger Learning Centers is located in the Center for Educational Technologies on the campus of Wheeling Jesuit University in West Virginia. Opened in 1995, more than 25,000 students fly missions each year either in-person at the Wheeling Center or through distance learning programs.
The Wheeling Challenger Learning Center places an emphasis on professional development, providing teachers from West Virginia and neighboring states with lessons to prepare their students for a two-hour simulated space mission as well as other activities to extend the experience.
Jackie Shia, Director of the Challenger Learning Center in Wheeling, believes that we need to find different vehicles to deliver the curriculum to today’s students. "The students in classrooms today are very connected by technology and we need to find a way to get our content to them via their platform," said Shia. "By providing innovative simulations and activities for teachers and students, we can both cover that content in a different manner and make learning a wonderful and memorable experience."
The Wheeling Center has recently constructed a new Micronauts simulator, where students in kindergarten through the second grade participate in hands-on activities in a room of space-themed experiments scaled down to their size with bright colors and engaging activities. Wheeling plans to expand Micronauts to the 4th grade so that their programs can reach all age groups. Their standard two-hour missions currently reach middle school and will be expanded to high school students in the near future. Wheeling and other centers also offer programs to Scout groups and have designed corporate training programs.
During summer camp programs in Wheeling, students have additional opportunities to explore hands-on problem solving, communications and teamwork challenges through extended learning experiences.
Wheeling has expanded on their space-themed simulations to provide e-Missions™ that connect their students with others around the world. In one e-Mission, "Operation Monserrat," an awakening volcano and an approaching Category 2 hurricane simultaneously threaten the island. Engaging the students in a real-life scenario brings the situation to life. When faced with a complex problem in the e-Mission, teamwork is required and the knowledge that the students put to use has an immediate impact. By solving problems through their own skill and ingenuity, they remember – and they learn.
The world has changed in the more than 24 years since the Challenger tragedy, and Challenger Learning Centers are constantly adapting to new technologies, new developments in space exploration and new ideas to inspire students.
Most students today have powerful computers in their homes, and many carry smart phones that have more memory than any of the manned spacecraft that traveled to the Moon. Now, from their schools or homes, students can follow the progress of the Mars rovers, access glorious images from the Hubble Space Telescope or even talk with the astronauts on the International Space station. With these tools, Challenger Learning Centers will provide students with deeper and richer experiences in the Learning Centers – and through extended follow-up activities in the classroom. And with the growing use of social media such as Facebook and Twitter, we have new ways to connect our alumni with each other, and share their passions that drive space exploration.
One of our Challenger Learning Center alumni is Meg Meehan, who first visited the Buehler Challenger & Science Center in Paramus, N.J. in the fifth grade.
Meg’s initial exposure to spacecraft engineering was installing the parts and wires as a member of the probe team. Today Meg is an aerospace engineer. She was a mechanical systems engineer for the recent STS-125 mission, the fifth and final flight to service the Hubble Space Telescope.
NASA Administrator Charles Bolden said in a recent speech, "Space science requires a healthy space program, and new ideas and innovative approaches. This can only be achieved by a trained and skilled workforce. To attract the best workers, NASA must continue to develop missions that inspire as well as educate us."
We hope that you have an opportunity to visit a Challenger Learning Center – you may just be inspired to join the important work under way as part of the "Educate to Innovate" initiative.
Daniel Barstow is president of Challenger Center for Space Science Education. For more information visit www.challenger.org.
