Kathy Ellins
Mailcode: C1100
I am engaged in efforts to improve science learning and to reach the public through: (1) curriculum development for the Earth/climate sciences and geohazards; (2) teacher professional development; (3) multi-institutional collaboration to promote the geosciences at the K-12 and undergraduate levels; and (4) interdisciplinary projects that explore the intersection between the sciences and visual arts. This work has been supported by federal grants, primarily NSF, and state agencies, and carried out in collaboration with geoscientists and learning scientists at UT Austin, Tyler and El Paso, Michigan State University, Mississippi State University, North Carolina State University, Auburn University, the Science Education Resource Center (SERC) at Carleton College, and TERC, a not-for-profit organization in Massachusetts. I have guided the masters-level research of geoscience students at the University of Florida and education graduate students in the UTeach program at UT Austin. I also mentor many secondary teachers as they transition from classroom teachers to geoscience education leaders.
Areas of Expertise
Geoscience education; Discipline Based Education Research (DBER); teacher professional development; geoscience curriculum development; undergraduate geoscience teacher preparation; climate literacy; geoscience, art and design engagement
Current Research Programs & Projects
CARIUSA 2017 Conference in Jamaica (spring 2017)
NSF-IUSE-1540608. GEOPATHS-IMPACT: The Green Tech High School Academy: A Model Program of Combined Geoscience Field Learning, Classroom Instruction and Career Preparation
NSF-INCLUDES (1649367): EarthConnections (Engaging Local Communities in Geoscience Pathways)
NSF-GEO-1203021, Diversity and Innovation for Geosciences in Texas (DIG TEXAS) - an Alliance for Earth Science Literacy ( view )NSF-DRL-1019815, Collaborative Research: Confronting the Challenges of Climate Literacy ( view )Fulbright CORE Scholar, Jamaica - Hosted by the University of the West Indies (UWI), Mona (2015 - 2016)
AGU Citation for Excellence in Reviewing (EOS) - American Geophysical Union (2015)
Member of Leadership Team, AGU Geoscience, ARt and Design ENgagement (GARDEN) community, American Geophysical Union (2016)
Chair, EarthScope Education Subcommittee, NSF EarthScope (2013 - 2015)
Member, EarthScope Steering Committee, NSF EarthScope (2013 - 2015)
Member, Board of Advisors, NSF-sponsored CyberShARE Center of Excellence, The University of Texas at El Paso (2009 - 2015)
Recent Strategic Planning, 1) NSF-sponsored community conference, Summit on the Future of Undergraduate Geoscience Education, January 10 12, 2014, Jackson School of Geosciences, Austin, Texas; (2) Co-leader of Diversity and Innovation for Geosciences (DIG) Texas, 2010 present; (3) NSF community conference, Planning for the Future of Geo-Cybereducation, January 6 - 8, 2010, Washington, D.C.; (4) IODP New Ventures in Exploring Scientific Targets (INVEST), University of Bremen, Germany, Sept. 2325, 2009, session co-convener; (5) MARGINS Successor Education Planning Meeting, Oct. 28 30, 2009, Carleton College, MN; (6) NSF-sponsored July 21-23 Earth Science Literacy Initiative (ESLI) writing workshop in St. Louis, MO; ESLI online workshop, May 12- 23, 2008 (Product: Earth Science Literacy Principles: The Big Ideas and Supporting Concepts of Earth Science, 2009, available at http://www.earthscienceliteracy.org/); (7) March 2008, Coalition of Earth Systems Science Education meeting; (8) NOAA - sponsored Earth and Space Science Education Summit, February 2008., (2008 - Present)
Member, U.S. Science Advisory Committee (USAC) to IODP, Consortium for Ocean Leadership (2007 - 2010)
Member, IRIS Education and Outreach Standing Committee, Incorporated Research Institutions for Seismology (2003 - 2006)
Session Co-convener at National/ Regional Conferences, (1) American Geophysical Union (AGU) Fall Meeting, 15- 19 December 2014, San Francisco, CA, PA 14A: Connecting Geoscience With the Arts; (2) 2014 GSA Annual Meeting in Vancouver, British Columbia, 1922 October T71: Climate Literacy: Formal and Informal Education and Outreach Efforts to Increase Awareness and Enable Responsible Decisions; (3) American Geophysical Union (AGU) Fall Meeting, 9- 13 December 2013, San Francisco, CA, PA Geoscience Through the Lens of Art; (4) 47Th Annual Meeting of South Central Section GSA Meeting, 4-5 April 2013, Austin, TX, No. 26, Engaging the Next Generation of Geoscientists; (5) AGU Fall Meeting, 3-7 December 2012, San Francisco, CA. ED04, Climate Literacy: Barriers, Misconceptions and Progress in Improving Climate Literacy; (6) AGU Fall Meeting, 8-12 December 2003, San Francisco, CA. ED17, Education and Outreach Efforts of Major Research Facilities and Organizations., AGU, GSA (2003 - 2016)
Reviewer for Scholarly Articles, Journal of Geography, Journal of Geoscience Education, Journal of Evaluation and Program Planning, and Journal of Hydrology (2003 - Present)
Proposal Reviewer (Ad hoc and panel reviewer), NSF, NOAA, NASA, NATO, and Texas Education Agency (Texas Presidential Awards for Excellence in Science and Mathematics Teaching). (2003 - Present)
Supporting Students Understanding of Climate and Natural Hazards: Examples from the EarthLabs Climate Project and the Jamaica Educational Seismic Network (JAESN), Geological Society of Jamaica, The University of the West Indies, Mona (2016)
The Impact of Linking Art and Music to the Geosciences, Natural History Society of Jamaica, March 3, 2016., The University of the West Indies, Mona (2016)
Earth is Calling: Careers That Change the World, General Assembly, Immaculate Conception High School (ICHS), May 18, 2016, Kingston, Jamaica (2016)
Geoscience + Art, Art Science Gallery, Austin, Texas (2014)
Geoscience Through the Lens of Art, 2014, Texas Art Science Evening Rendezvous (TASER), March 4, Umlauf Sculpture Gardens and Museum, Austin, TX (2014)
Keynote Address: The Texas Earth and Space Science (TXESS) Revolution, Florida Association of Science Teachers and Science Supervisors Conference, October 16-22, 2011, Orlando, Florida (2011)
Rising Above the Storm: DIG TEXAS, Abstract ED53D-03, INVITED. Presented at 2011 Fall Meeting, AGU, San Francisco, Calif., 5-9 Dec, San Francisco, Californa (2011)
Keynote Address: The Stories Faults Tell: Risks Associated With Earthquakes and Tsunamis Near Kingston, Jamaica., The Earthquake Risk is RealWhat is Jamaicas Coping Capacity: A Symposium on Disaster Preparedness. Sponsored by the American Chamber of Commerce in Jamaica (AMCHAM), July 28, 2010, Kingston, Jamaica (2010)
Geoscience Professional Development for Minority-Serving K-12 Science Educators: The TXESS Revolution, Oce Sci, ED43A-01, INVITED. Presented at the 2010 Ocean Sciences Meeting,, Portland, Oregon (2010)
The TXESS Revolution: A Partnership to Advance Earth and Space Science in Texas, Eos Trans. AGU, 88(52), Fall Meet. Suppl., Abstract ED24A-01, INVITED. Presented at the Fall Meeting of the American Geophysical Union, San Francisco, Californa (2007)
UTIGs Contributions to Seismology in K-12 Classrooms, 2004. EOS, Transactions of the American Geophysical Union, 85 (47), Fall Meet. Suppl., Abstract ED32A-06., INVITED. Presented at 2004 Fall Meeting of the American Geophysical Union, San Francisco, Californa (2004)
Using Geophysical Data in the Texas High School Course, Geology, Meteorology, and Oceanography, Eos Trans. AGU, 83(47), Fall Meet. Suppl., Abstract ED71C-02, INVITED. Presented at the Fall Meeting of the American Geophysical Union, San Francisco, California (2002)
| Year | Semester | Course | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2020 | Fall | GEO 371T | Teaching About Climate-Wb |
| 2017 | Summer | GEO s271T | Field Learning Education |
| 2015 | Fall | GEO 271T | Geoscience Through Lens Of Art |
| 2015 | Spring | GEO 371T | Teaching Climate Sci Earthlabs |
| 2014 | Fall | GEO 271T | Geoscience Through Lens Of Art |
| 2014 | Fall | GEO 371T | Teaching Earth & Space Science |
| 2014 | Fall | GEO 391 | Teaching Earth & Space Science |
DIG Texas Instructional Blueprints for Teaching Earth and Space Science
The blueprints are pathways through an entire year-long, capstone level, high school Earth science curriculum. Each blueprint stitches together a set of three-week teaching units. Each unit has links to curated, carefully reviewed learning experiences and other educational resources. Learning experiences included in the units have links to background preparatory materials, additional hands-on resources, teaching tips, and, in some cases, cross-curricular connections. Educators may use each blueprint as laid out , or mix and match different units to create blueprints tailored for their own course. Educators may also use the blueprints as the inspiration to create their own blueprints.
Audience: Designed for high school Earth Science classes, this site is also appropriate for two-year college and undergraduate Earth Science courses.
Standards Alignment: The learning experiences in each unit were purposefully chosen to align with the Next Generation Science Standards (NGSS) Earth Science Performance Expectations (PEs). Educational resources also align with the TEKS for Earth and Space Science and the Earth Science Literacy Principles.
EarthLabs
Funded by NOAA, NASA, and NSF, the EarthLabs collection is composed of a set of modules that focus on weather, climate change, the Earth system, and environmental science. The sequence of labs in each module represent active learning experiences that are meant to be a part of integrated instructional units. The collection underscores the crucial need for students, the public, political and business leaders, and scientists to understand our planet, manage its resources and prepare for its future, as well as appreciate its beauty and dynamics as an integrated system.
The website has a student portal (http://serc.carleton.edu/eslabs/index.html) and a protected teacher portal (http://serc.carleton.edu/earthlabs/index.html). Educational resources in the Climate Modules align with the NGSS, and the TEKS for Earth and Space Science and Environmental Systems
Audience: Secondary students.
TXESS Revolution
This site contains a collection of learning activities that were implemented, and, in many cases, developed by the TXESS Revolution project and tested at their teacher professional development academies from 2008-2011. These activities can be used independently, or with one of the Blueprints for Instruction, which lay out a year long course in Earth and Space Science.
Water Exploration
Water Exploration uses a project-based learning approach permitting students to conduct research and build an understanding about water science and critical water-related issues. All learning activities and resources are packaged into three modules, or Legacy Cycles, in a way that enhances student learning by making use of the Internet and computer technology to promote inquiry learning. The Earth Science Literacy Principles provide the organizing framework for the lessons and activities in each Water Exploration Legacy Cycle.
The curriculum is applicable to high school science courses such as Earth and Space Science, Advanced Placement Environmental Science, Biology, Chemistry, and Aquatic Science.
Jamaica Educational Seismic Network (JAESN)
JAESN is part of the IRIS Seismographs in Schools program. To see realtime earthquake data collected by station in the JAESN network, click on "search by network" under the heading "Join our Network!"