Model Secondary School for the Deaf
at the Laurent Clerc National Deaf Education Center

MSSD Participates in the GLOBE Program

The GLOBE program is a national and international Environmental Education and Science partnership. MSSD science teachers look forward to being able to work with other teachers of the deaf in designing strategies for including all deaf and hard of hearing students in this endeavor. Student of all abilities will be able to participate in the GLOBE project and achieve a level of scientific literacy.

Science teachers know the importance of visual and hands-on experiences for all learners. The GLOBE project provides a range of activities which reinforce these sklls, from the hands-on aspect of the data gathering activities to the use of the website to enter data, data analysis, and data visualizations. Through the GLOBE program science teachers address LLC's priority areas.

Literacy

Teachers will explore strategies needed for students to perform and report the science measurements accurately. The need for precision and accuracy will reinforce student's observational, recording, analyzing and reporting skills. Students will have access to the language and content of science through the sharing of data with other schools and the production of their own reports. The goal of literacy is effective communication, which is a primary goal also of the GLOBE project.

Transition

The emphasis of this project on measurements and precision will better prepare our young deaf learners for the future, and for making decisions. Science teachers recognize the gaps deaf learners are frequently found to possess. Some of these gaps are found in the understanding of the need for precision, the skills of data recording, data analysis, and reporting. National reports indicate that high school students in general lack experiences in these areas. These are the general skills students will need for successful transition into the field of work or into post-secondary programs. An emphasis on technology will provide many skills essential to success in a technological society.

Family Education

The availability of the GLOBE project online will make it easy for students to share their classroom experiences with their families. In addition, since the GLOBE project enjoys a national distribution and is being implemented in a variety of settings, it is very likely that sisters and/or brothers may be involved in the project in their own schools, and that the families could even encounter it on a summer vacation trip, since certain park services are featuring the project.

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