Local Science Alliance Minutes

Guiding Questions:

Step 1: How to Start a local Science Alliance for teachers of VSD

Step 2: Are you interested in meeting on a regular basis?

Step 3: Do you know another teacher? Discuss how to expand and lay groundwork.

Step 4: Do you have a list of teachers in your area? Do you have sufficient material for an attractive agenda and are you aware of what similar alliance group meetings are like?

Step 5: Do you have access to an appropriate meeting location, duplication facilities and mailing costs?

Minutes for Sharing Science Alliance Session: Hosted @ Fort Vancouver

Science Alliance
Vancouver School District

Wednesday, Nov. 20

In Attendance: Kris Skrutvold, Allison Brands, Jason Galvas, Don Steinke, Jim Newton, Sean McDonald, Carol Sandison, Pam Lehrmann, Kelly Cameron, Vaughn Anderson

What is the Science Alliance? It is a group of people with a common goal ­ improving student learning in science.

Purpose of the Science Alliance: fostering communication, breaking down the barriers, start looking at ourselves as a K-12 system (rather than just elementary or secondary), looking at curriculum and standards, identifying key issues (meeting a wide variety of student needs)

The Science Alliance website (http://river.vansd.org/14544/science_alliance)
Purpose
Schedule of meetings: How often do we want to meet? Once a month, every other month? (http://river.vansd.org/14544/science_alliance/schedule.html)
Topics of meetings: Devoting the first half-hour to a particular topic (assessment, literacy, etc.) when members bring examples (and copies) to share; Second half of the meeting could be open discussion or break-out sessions by subject
Lesson sharing: filling in the submission form (http://river.vansd.org/14544/science_alliance/lessons.html)
Discussion forum: "chat room" for sharing ideas about teaching science (http://worldcrossing.com/WebX?1@@.ef559aa)
Literacy in the Science Classroom: reading strategies, lesson sharing, reading philosophies (http://river.vansd.org/14544/science_alliance/literacy.html)

Other Issues/Sharing:
Lack of materials (especially consumables) and budget reductions over the years (River is writing grants to get additional funds)
Creation of a central facility for expensive items or other resources (need a way to schedule usage and transportation of these materials) ­ also, drafting an agreement about care of shared materials (payment for damaged or lost items)
www.teachingplastics.org :They will send "freebies" ­ example: density tube (Pam Lehrmann); comes with CD and teaching activities
Constellation project (Carol Sandison): research history, presentation, 3D model
Sweet and Sour Egg (Kelly): Teaching diffusion, osmosis, hypertonic, hypotonic, isotonic solutions
Vertebrate limbs (Jason Galvas): creating models showing skeletal, muscular, and integumentary components

Next Meeting: Wednesday, Dec. 18 at Skyview (600 wing)

Minutes for Sharing Science Alliance Session: Hosted @ Skyview 12-18

Wednesday, Dec. 18

Re Alliance meeting at Skyview: Meeting was about to disband........then we got chatting

 

Gained; consensus to establish :

· shared protocol for submission of assessments ( so doesn't matter what they subject matter is /
discipline same criteria being used
· sharing of ideas for investigation
· putting together an inter high school investigation so that disciplinary areas from each school could be
used
· Allison wanted to have link to legal Magnet biology (path labs concept being used by 'lawyers')
· Larry keen on scenario setting (car crash .. drunk driver death or murder??)
· I shared that the problem of student motivation would be o/come by using this on ­going scenario
(lessons x1 per month) to use as framework for teaching investigative skills
· Carol waxed lyrical about getting community involved ­ whole school ­ this was throttled back to
Grade 10 .
· Emphasis on - pooled resources solid science base bringing in other curriculum areas onto that
base as we see fit.
· DISTANCE learning stuff can be used to share findings between schools
· Aim to get this going by next year.. could start this year in a small way

Next Meeting @ Columbia River High School Room 402 at 2:45 PM Discussion topics:

  • Shared Assessments
  • Videoconferencing ideas
  • Demonstration potpurri
  • Lab Safety
  • Getting More Females interested in Upper Level Science Classes