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> Birds' Eye View Program

An ecologically literate public may be the “last best hope” for a sustainable biosphere. Partnerships between ecologists and educators may be the best hope, though not the last, for moving towards an ecologically literate public.    -- Feinsinger et al. 1997

At the Avian Science Center, we seek educational outreach opportunities that not only allow us to teach about birds and the environmental conditions needed to sustain their populations, but also about the process of science and field-based inquiry.  Through the following two related ventures we have worked to develop and transfer curricula to local high school teachers and their students.

 SCIENCE TEACHER INSTITUTE with the Division of Educational Research & Service
 STUDENTS INVESTIGATING BURNS with the Montana Natural History Center

Additionally, we are always looking for new opportunities to support exceptional K-12 education programs and to collaborate with others.  For example, we are presently working with a group in Argentina to expand the very successful ALAS program:  Alumnos y Aves del Sur.  ALAS is an international project in avian conservation education for school children in southern Argentina, Chile, and Uruguay where millions of hectares of native habitats are being converted to large plantations of exotic pine and eucalyptus trees. Continued homogenization of the landscape has serious implications for the endemic and migratory bird populations. The ALAS program raises awareness of the conservation and biodiversity issues surrounding large-scale pine plantations.  For more information on ALAS, contact our colleague, Kim Olson. 

If you would like to support or collaborate on an educational grant, please contact Amy Cilimburg.

Science Teacher Institute

In 2005 the Division of Educational Research and Service (DERS) of the University of Montana invited the ASC to partner in teaching their Summer Science Institute for local science teachers, the goals of which are to enhance science proficiency among teachers and help them develop inquiry-based lessons that explore locally relevant ecological topics.  The ASC was invited to serve as the science content expert for this year’s topic – Fire Ecology.  Wildfire is the primary disturbance agent here in the Northern Rockies, and we have a strong interest in conducting and explaining research designed to understand fire’s effects on birds and other taxa.  Participating in the Science Institute gave us the opportunity to expand the Students Investigating Burns Fire Ecology Curriculum (see below) and continue to work with local teachers.    

Over the course of two weeks, we used lectures, computer labs, hands on activities, and fieldtrips to teach over 40 public school teachers about both the scientific process and fire ecology.  Visiting local burned areas – our “outdoor laboratories” – proved to be the favorite component of the Institute.  Here we made observations, formulated scientific hypotheses and predictions, and collected data to test our hypotheses.  These teachers now have the background, tools, and confidence to study fire ecology with their students, exposing them to the complex effects that wildfires have on our forests and wildlife. 

Click here to download materials from this Institute

Students Investigating Burns

In partnership with the Montana Natural History Center, we received a grant from the Bullitt Foundation to develop a fire ecology education program. The goals of this program are to build basic ecological literacy among high-school students and create a model that can be applied broadly throughout the region and beyond. Specifically, during 2004 and 2005, we developed a pilot program with Big Sky High School teacher Dave Oberbillig and his students. We visited the Black Mountain fire near Missoula to look at the ecological effects of fire on birds, beetles, and plants. We also held a teacher workshop to provide local high school teachers with our fire ecology curriculum and to highlight our emerging field inquiry program. With additional funding, we expect to make this curriculum available to other high schools in western. 
Click here to view and download our Students Investigating Burns Curriculum.

 

For more information, contact Amy Cilimburg 243-2035, email amy.cilimburg@mso.umt.edu