Human Relations Paper-Mexico

Migrant Situation from a cross country view in Puebla, Mexico
Mary Crofford
University of Oklahoma


Abstract

This paper is an overview of my stay in Puebla, Mexico for five weeks this summer. The research topics are based on encounters from the people and experiences there. The focus is on migrant populations. The migrant families, their earnings as well as the situations they find themselves in away from home and the family they left in Mexico.


Paper:

The American Identity crisis as the right has often put it, leaves us with a sour taste of cultural integration in our mouth and mind. At the heart of the debate is migration primarily from our southern neighbor. Mexico has long since been at odds for various reasons. However, as they put it, “the border crossed us,” 150 years ago during the Mexican-American war. (Levine, 2007) With sentiments that compare the alienation of Mexico to the Berlin wall. (Pedersen, 2007) These dueling sociological groups have several contrasting factors while the border is loosened up buy travel, trade and mere location, regulations and rules are tightening for the movement of people.

The identity crisis that is at stake some would believe is America, as Patrick Buchanan said during his 1992 campaign, “there is war going on, it is a cultural war and critical to the nation that we will one day be”. He refers to this sentiment as a takeover or invasion by the third world. (Pedersen, 2007) Just as this movement is vying for a call of American/Western ideals another is in place based on integration and inclusiveness.

Mexican migrants come to America risking their lives to claim a better lot here, 575,000 a year since 2000. (Hendrix, 2007) The American anthem is sung in Spanish at protests against public policies that limit aid and make border crossing inhumanly dangerous. We now see ads in Spanish and more attention to diversifying the labor market.

However there rests one central idea for both groups that is to curb the movement of people. Mexico wishes to keep its young people there to grow the economy, while America wishes to limit the number of immigrants for job and capital.

My husband and I will be spending five weeks in the fourth largest city in Mexico, known as Puebla. Our main intent is to find out how to better serve the migrant population of students currently in the United States public school system. Another is to look at the panorama of the migrant situation.

We are coordinating our visit in conjunction with the OU College of Education immersion program. They send a group to Universidad Popular Autonoma del Estado de Puebla, (UPAEP) to immerse them in language and culture and look at the schools. We will be doing some activities (weekend trip; meetings) and working with the same office that coordinates the visits, however our research will be taking us out more to look at on the workings of individual schools and focusing on systems. We have scheduled visits to secondary and elementary schools as well as meetings with scholars and other authorities on migrants and educational systems for the first three weeks. However, for the last two weeks we will be visiting with locals, sightseeing, and delving into rural communities to look through a Human Relations lens. We will also be attending a conference on culture and systems of Mexico and Mexican people and taking Spanish classes.

I am here specifically to gather statistics as well as find out about the issues of migration from this perspective. To examine Human Relations issues that I see, and begin to understand them, I as find myself a part of them. To focus on those issues from a cultural understanding lens while inside Mexico. Families who have moved north to work or those who are planning on moving north to work will help to see what they have left behind. What are the driving forces and the situational problems? Within that aspect will be the effects on the children and family. This will be examined through an eyeball account of schools, both rural and urban as well talking to people we encounter.

Besides the basic learning process of cultural norms and language barriers while here, daily accounts and interactions with people in Puebla make-up the basic framework of this paper, and the research arose out questions from those encounters. Therefore several statistics on various topics are included.

Ciudad Puebla
As we arrive in Mexico City the streets are loud and highly over crowded. The cars are backed up like nothing I have ever seen, because I have never been out of America. Beggars fill the streets with wash buckets for car windows; Chiclets, candy or juice are for sell. The streets are marked clearly with lines but no one seems to care, they make four lanes out of two, or three where there should be one. Puebla sits about three hours south of Mexico City, and we are headed there and for UPAEP. We settle in our first night in our apartment it is little but very comfortable.

Puebla is located about eighty miles south of Mexico City and is in Puebla valley (see insert figure 1). The capital city of the state of Puebla, Mexico it sits 7,091 feet above sea level. Founded in 1851, it is one of the oldest cities in Mexico with a population of roughly 1.3 million in 2000. The climate ranges from 40 to 80 degrees Fahrenheit year round with heavy rains in the summer months; it is ideal for growing fruit and flowers (Mulhare,1998).
Figure 1

Dr Alfredo Toxqui Middle School
Today is our first full day in Puebla and as we arrive at the Alfred Toxqui Middle school we are greeted several teachers and administration.

The school is fully concrete in the middle of a bustling neighborhood, there is no playground there is only concrete. We are told by one of the administrators that we may go into the main office, the door closes and I notice that we are not in an office with the head director but we are in a small front room surrounded by what feel like the entire faculty of six or seven maestros (teachers) that do not any speak any English at all, and we don’t speak Spanish I notice this and can’t help but think that if it were in America we would not doubt be behind a closed door with one solitary person that was heading up the whole school. Here we all listen to each other they all spoke and everyone sat around.
As we enter our first class of fourth graders I see a room of about twenty kids they are in uniform and very quiet as we walk in, they stand. We are introduced to the class and proceed to the back. I see that the weather is so perfect the low breeze with smell of city provides for the thermostat, they leave the windows and doors open all time you can hear the loud noises of the street over all the voice of the teacher yet none of the children are raising their voices nor do they ask for something to be repeated they don’t need too, they are totally attentive.

As we enter the next classroom I notice that the first graders here have virtually no teaching tools there are no books in shelves and there are not cabinets filled with the regular stuff that I see in American schools there is only a concrete floor and old wooden mini picnic looking tables that are used as the desks. They are worn.

The next day we return to Toxqui to observe. The second grade classroom that we are visiting is gracious as always, they are working with numbers and boxes. Something that struck yesterday has stayed with us. A boy in one of the classrooms hits another, throws a hard punch right to his cheek, while we were waiting for the teacher to return. We were stunned. My husband and I started talking to each other about how we would not have put up with that, and in an American classroom someone would have said something they would have hit back or at the very least been angry. No one said anything when the teacher returned it was like it did not happen. None of the kids were angry and no one told on him. So I wondered if this was a regular occurrence of hitting. If they punch and do not get in trouble, or if it seen as young boys just playing? But I also had to add our thoughts into the equation of America being a supposed culture of violence. Maybe it is in Mexico that the exception is a hitter. Could our classrooms just have an abundance of children that hit because of our culture?

The director of Toxqui is Manuel Hernandez, an attorney and kind man who invited us to his home like family. He told us as we walked in to that his home was our home, and welcomed us warmly. One thing we were surprised to see was that he took us in to his son’s bedroom and opened up the closet to show his clothes, he then stated, “I work very hard to provide everything that my children need.” We had spent very little time with this man but it was important to him for us to see how he lived.

As we visited Dr. Toxqui Elementary School again as usual were greeted warmly and made to feel at home. We watched the students practice their dances for a festival, carry out presentations on geometry topics, and play related games. One of the teachers expressed her frustrations with the students’ economic situations and how it impacts their schooling and ambitions. She said almost all the children are from single parent families and struggle to get by. The older siblings are often impaired educationally because they must care for the younger siblings while their mother works. She stated that much of the money the state and federal Mexican governments claim to provide the schools never actually makes it to them. In fact, she said they are lucky if each teacher receives 60 pesos per month for 30 students or more. Please note, this is supposed to pay for food as well as school supplies. She also suggested bringing teachers like her to the US would be an effective approach for improving migrant education in the US.

Dr. Ricardo Flores Magon General Secondary School
The following day we travel to a remote school that sits out side of the city by thirty minutes or so, the reality of what an economically contrasting country Mexico is hits us: we are only thirty minutes outside a major metropolitan area and we begin to see burros hauling wood and oxen pulling plows.

The rural school makes us feel very welcome. They have a social worker and we set up times for me to meet with her. She says there are several issues that she has to deal with, some are typical and others such as separation of family because one parent has to another country to work.

The next day is our first classroom visit to the secondary school, Ricardo Flores Magon. It is outside of Puebla near a small town called Chalchinuapan. As we arrive at the school the students are all walking in a huge entourage from the nearby village. They start out their day and week with a flag assembly in which all students participate, at 7:30 in the morning. All the students wear uniforms and stand respectfully, sometimes saluting, throughout the entire ceremony. The assembly was rigid, all the students moved in sync and they saluted and waved their hands in the air as they marched, it looked very European they practice this from a very young age. After the presentation of the Mexican flag, the students sing the Mexican national anthem, and then sing one for the state of Puebla, as well as a song specific for secondary schools. The school’s director or professor introduced us as representatives of the University of Oklahoma.

The setting of this school is rural and there are fields of prickly pear, corn, and other crops around, being plowed by burros. Some houses are large and Spanish style, they are structurally very beautiful but here a large with running water and clean facilities means one thing: that the father or son has gone to American for work. Figure 2 shows remittance flow in 2006.

Total Remittances………23053.8 USD
Money Orders………5.9%
Personal Checks………0.0%
Electronic Transfers………92.6%
Cash and In Kind………1.5%
Figure 2


Other houses do not have a roof. In fact, many homes have rebar sticking from the top, as families hope to add additional levels as they can afford it in the future. There are also large black plastic containers on the roofs, into which water is pumped, which then flows into the house when needed due to gravity. There is a huge contrast in the houses that you see in this rural area; as you look out you can see very beautiful countryside, almost European-like, while huge churches over look everything.

The school day gets underway with a short first hour due to the weekly assembly. There are various areas of curriculum being taught; Natural Science, Math, Spanish, English, State History/Geography, Art, Technology/Computers, and Music/PE. We are told that the school year breaks down into two semesters like their American counterparts, a semester of August to December and the second of January through June.

The classes have a smart board and computer as well regular boards, and the class size averages around thirty. Magon School has a complete and modern computer lab. Today we visited science and math seventh grade classes.

We returned to Magon Secondary School early this cold, cloudy, and rainy morning. Fog and clouds obscure the mountains and volcanoes. The director was not here to greet us but we soon settled into a third year mathematics class for a geometry lesson and practice problems. After touring the campus some more and visiting with the staff we sat in on a third year science class. The maestra lectured on electromagnetism, and the students took notes and read aloud. After that class we sat down for an interview with the social worker and learned several interesting things. She starts her day at 8 am and ends at 3 pm, and she does not go year round, instead she goes the length of the school’s year. She serves as a counselor and nurse as well. One of her more difficult jobs is dealing with the parents. Very few parents are vested in their children’s education, many of them want their children working or they are very preoccupied with trying to get from one day to the next. Many of the parents work as cleaning help or they make sponges, clotheslines, and so on to sell on the street. She estimated three parents out of the school of 200 students she knew of had steady jobs at the local Volkswagen factory.

The United States federally mandated minimum wage of $5.15 an hour is approximately ten times greater than that of the Mexican minimum wage which is 47.05 pesos in 2006, around 4.20 a day. (Levine, 2007) The figure shows the breakdown of job configuration, conversely we will see it becomes very hard to discern what constitutes “employed”.



Mexico Occupational Structure 2006
Total Employed 41,909
Agricultural Activities…14.5%
Goods Production…16.6
Construction…8.2
Total Services…54.4
Figure 3

Students here generally have one of three options upon leaving Magon assuming they complete high school; they may marry, go to the US and work, or make crafts and trinkets to sell. Financially, it is very difficult for them to go to university.

The Mexican working population breaks down as 22 percent earn the minimum wage or less, two-thirds only earn three times that, combing to make a total of that 83% earn only up to five times the minimum wage (Levine, 2007). The unemployment numbers often register as very skewed due to lax definition of “employed population,” …all persons of working age (fourteen plus) during the reference week participated in economic activities for monetary wage, nonmonetary wage, or no payment, and those who would be starting a job within the space of a month (Levine, 2007). The effort here was to cover the sporadic and unofficial economy employees which count for roughly half (Levine, 2007). The workers have little to no benefits. Forty eight percent of wage earners have no contract, while 20 percent work less than 35 hours a week and 27 percent work a reported 48+ hours weekly. The Mexican social security system will provide health care, however only 32 percent are covered (Levine, 2007).

The social worker talked about medical care for the students and the Mexican system. For example, if a student gets injured at school they are able to go to the clinic in town and the social worker will take them. They have cases where a traditional family will not go to the doctor because they believe that a medicine man will heal them better and faster than modern medicine. Another instance was a girl came to school with a severe cut on her arm; it had happened over the weekend but the parents did not take her for medical care because they could not afford the visit. In Mexico, for example, total expenditure on health care is only 5.6% of the gross national product—compared with about 15% in the USA (Ruelas, 2002).

One thousand public hospitals have 75% of the beds; 90% of the 3000 private hospitals have ≤20 beds, often as few as ≤5 beds. In fact, some “private hospitals” can hardly be considered hospitals at all, since they have no laboratories, radiography equipment, or even nurses (Ruelas, 2002).

Many of the children in this area live below the poverty line so health care is limited and they pay a heavy price. If one child is born in the Native Indian part of the state of Chihuahua and another is born the same day in Monterey, those children immediately face inequities: the child born in Monterey has a 17-year longer life expectancy. While yearly around 3 million people in Mexico face catastrophic expenses due to major illnesses or injuries (Ruelas, 2002).

As the social worker she estimates that 70-80% of her parents are migrants, which means that many of them were being raised by single mothers who cannot find work. And when they do, it means they will be left to care for their siblings this was not specific to rural populations, as it is the same in urban areas. The social worker said that the migrants in the US are telling people at home not to come to America, but many people are determined to get there. Another obstacle the children face is not knowing their family, some children have never met their fathers and on occasion their mothers either; they are being raised by their grandparents, because they moved to America to work as well. This is distressing to me, because my observations so far have revealed basically good schools with motivated and knowledgeable teachers who truly care about their pupils.
The students themselves are bright, respectful, and hard working.
Although a new trend is happening as children can be left without both parents, in that women are no longer the companion migratory rather they are crossing the border and finding employment for themselves. Figure 4 shows trend of migrant women.
1995 2005 Total Percentage Total Percentage
Citizenship Status 3,089,367 100.0 4,914,161 100.0
American Citizen 482,83 15.6 1,105,348 22.5
Non-American Citizen 2,606,484 84.4 3,808,813 77.5
Arrival in the US 3,089,367 100.00 4,914,161 100.0
Before 1986 1,834,340 59.4 1,418,406 28.9
1986-1994 1,225,027 40.6 1,167,668 23.8
1995-2000 -- -- 2,328,087 47.4
Figure 4

This shows only the female demographics. Mexican’s constitute the largest sector of the foreign born population living in the US (Perez et all, 2007); with around 11 million in 2005 immigrants here. within these population figures the number of house hold headed by Mexicans total 4,070,910. This labor market integration is a collection of push/ pull factors involving economic reorganization and innovation, which has left Mexico with a large population of surplus labor. Therefore they better their by chance by coming to America. There are however, socioeconomic constraints awaiting their arrival in the US as well. The Latino labor force holds a median income of 651 USD weekly. This show approximately 18 million Latino workers not just Mexican migrants. With the largest percent holding janitorial or cook positions (Levine, 2007).


Today we visited a Magon English class. They were in seventh grade and they were learning basic English vocabulary. After the English lesson we gathered four children for an interview to go over what their daily life is like.

As we sat down with two boys and girls ages 13-15 in eighth and ninth grades, we began to discuss their favorite school subjects. All the students said they liked the science classes the best because they found it more interesting and there was more to do.

All of the children walk from the town to school and it is about a 10-minute walk. Their school day is from 7:30 in the morning until 1:15. We asked why is it that when we pull into the school all the kids are walking in almost one huge group, why is that? How does that happen? He said all just start waling and just see each other. If you can imagine this tiny community, to see a hoard of 200 some children walking to school every morning, no one has a car and they are so close in proximity, they all end up walking together and this represents a sense of reliance within the community. American communities are much bigger, but to get a group of that size together takes organization and planning.

We began to talk about what they do after the school day is done. One of the boys said that he goes to work. He told us that his family has a store. And that he goes to the store after school, to sell the candy, pop and other odds and ends. The other boy said the he must go home and help his mother look after his other siblings due to the fact that his father is in America working. The Migrant center in Puebla sets up phone conversations with television-like screens where toddlers often see there fathers for the first time. Three of the other children live with their parents while he lives only with his mother. While girls must go home and help also some of them make stuff to sell.

They have several of the interests as their American counterparts, sports and reading but there is little in the way of extracurricular activities. They read and watch TV and go for walks in the town.

All of the students said that they want to keep studying after high school; they wanted to be accountants, or work in technology. We had several more question as we began to wrap up, I wanted to dig further about the boy whose father worked in New Jersey, but in a situation like this it becomes hard to assess what is it appropriate to ask and not.

Cuetzalan, Mexico
As the weekend got underway we joined other exchange students, teachers, social workers, and nurses on a trip to the city of Cuetzalan in the mountainous part of the state of Puebla. We departed early and enjoyed a comfortable four-hour bus ride through winding and hilly terrain. Upon arrival we checked in and immediately hiked to and explored a local cave. We saw wild coffee, banana, and papaya plants growing amongst the lush vegetation and cultivated fields of maize and other crops. Birds, butterflies, and other animals were numerous. We could choose between shopping in the picturesque town, rappelling and swimming in a waterfall, or horseback riding. The local cuisine was exotic and sumptuous, and at night the UPAEP and hotel staff held a cook out for us. We were also able to explore the Mayan ruins near the village of Yohualichan.

We were explained to on the bus by the UPAEP official that the region around Cuetzalan is famous for growing coffee. It began to resonate with us that we were at the heart of a globalization process that some believe degrades the worker and others that it allows more power to buyer and seller. These are the farmers who work the coffee fields, and grew, picked, and sold the coffee. This aspect of research was very important in order fully understand these very real and complex Human Relations issues. I bought some coffee from a girl selling it on sidewalk to try, and it was delicious.
The daily cup I now sip on is not what I expected to have one the most profound influence on my trip, but it did. This intricate market we now participate in, has us drinking from a global trading system. According to PBS Frontline World News (2003) a coffee bean can change hands up to 150 times before reaching you. In Mexico 90 percent of coffee farms are 12.5 acres or less. The majority of them are owned by indigenous people. We traveled to these beautiful areas past the naturally growing plants. The profit is not equally distributed cross the board. These indigenous workers who grow the plant, which takes coffee plant around three years for a plant to produce around 2000 cherries which is only a pound of coffee. They then must hand pick at just the right time to guarantee the quality. They receive 10 to 12 cents on the dollar. I was looking at their homes and some live on dirt floors and they peddle juice or crafts they have made for a few pesos. One big issue is that production exceeds the use. The average cup goes from growers to traders that often have the only link to the outside knowledge of market worth, to shippers, roasters, and then retailers. Seeing this first hand had a profound impact on my sense of global community and corporate responsibility (Rubin, 2003).
We left with a realistic account and deeper understanding of a major Human Relations concern.

Teacher Interview and the SEP
The week got underway with a visit to Magon science class, where the children were presenting on Natural Phenomena. They presented reports on meteorology and astronomy as well health benefits of science, and they were prepping for a botany exercise that will improve the grounds of the school.

We had a chance to sit down with the teacher and ask a few questions, and we found out much information. She had been teaching for three years. In order to complete a teacher certification it takes six years, she was in her third year leaving three to go. One of the most interesting answers we found was given to us when we asked, “What do you need from the government to better serve your students”? She replied that it would be very good to have a breakfast provided for the students. They often come to class tired form watching their siblings all night, or working long hours, and there is not enough food. Parental involvement was needed as well, because so many of the parents have gone to work in America and that becomes an issue for the government because of a lack of jobs that pay well.

We also later found out that the average starting teacher pay in Mexico is 6,000 pesos a month, which is roughly 600 USD. Education in Mexico is regulated by the Secretariat of Public Education ( Secretaría de Educación Pública) or the SEP. In Mexican schools, students must master specific skills before being promoted to the next. Uniforms are traditionally worn by all students in elementary and middle schools for the purpose of lowering clothing costs, minimizing social class differences, instilling discipline and creating a school environment where all students have a sense of belonging (Roybal, 2004).
Educational standards are set by this Ministry at all levels except in autonomous universities chartered by the government. Basic Education comprises preschool, primary school, and lower secondary school. Preschool covers children aged three through five and is generally provided in three grades; Secondary Education, and Upper-Secondary Education is separate from Basic Education. This stage is non-compulsory and has three pathways: General upper-secondary, Technical professional education, and Technological upper-secondary. Until 1992, education was compulsory only through the end of primaria, or sixth grade. Many families still consider education important only through the primaria years, and there is significant attrition after sixth grade in urban as well as rural schools. (Stein, 2004)

For our dinner that we grabbed tacos from a taco stand and the young man cooking the food asked us if we were from Estados Unidos, when we replied yes he informed us that he was going to Chicago to work. Our Spanish improves so much through these conversations, as well gathering information about the people of Puebla. So many of the people that we address speak to us about leaving, that is what they want to do, all they want to do, and their main goal.

Additional Visits

The next week encompassed writing and reading and joining OU and UPAEP students and staff for short two hour visits to Manuel Acuna Primary School and Miguel Hidalgo Elementary School in Puebla. The focus was on special education in Mexico. We learned that Mexican special needs students are mainstreamed into the public schools, numbering anywhere from three to twenty per school. Special Education teachers and other personnel rotate through the schools 2-3 times per week. We observed pre-school and elementary students reading, dancing, singing, and in physical education. The second school that we visited did not have any electricity, as the bill had not been paid.

My husband and I attended our Spanish class later in the day, and bought bus tickets for our weekend trip to Veracruz, the largest port in Mexico.


The Immersion classes graduated today, and we attended. We enjoyed a huge ceremony, with wonderful traditional Mexican food, and entertainment by a Mariachi band. In Puebla they have a dish called Mole Poblano; it is made of several ingredients including chocolate and various chiles. The origin of Mole Poblano, this thick, rich, chocolate-tinged sauce made so famous in the colonial mountain city of Puebla (Nemerovsky). I know now that the word, “poblano” means the “Puebla people” like Oklahoman or Mexican, so anything with that word has origins of Puebla.

We also had Spanish class with our wonderful instructor, Rosario Robles. Our Spanish is improving significantly; some things are made so much harder due to the simple fact that we can neither speak nor understand the language very well. Afterward we boarded a bus for Veracruz, arriving late and checking in at the hotel near the beach. Joining us was Sherry Cox, OU Spanish instructor.

Veracruz, Mexico

We spent the weekend in the port city of Vera Cruz. Veracruz is Mexico's largest and most important port, and serves today all of Mexico's central and southern states with the extensive rail and road networks directly connected to the port. The port serves with its direct access to the Atlantic Basin all the eastern coast of North America, Central and South America, Europe and Africa (Wallengren, 2006). From 1994 to 1998, the cargo handled at the Port has increased from 8,000,000 to 13,000,000 tons (Sorensen, 1998).
This brings the issue of international trade to the table. Seeing as how I was once again witness to a global dynamic, so I thought I should further my knowledge.
One subject that was to curb migration as well as stimulate the trade between America and Mexico was the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA). President Salinas of Mexico in the early 1990’s boasted that NAFTA would help Mexico to, “export goods and not people.” This came with a promise of modernizing the Mexican economy, higher wages and more jobs. México has figured in the past decade one of the top three trading partners, for both imports and exports, of the US (Levine, 2007). After NAFTA the foreign trade rose to over 50 percent which left Mexico’s economy vulnerable to our fluctuations. (Levine, 2007)
Let us take Tontaca for example, an area in the state of Veracruz where maiz or corn production is not just a crop but a way of life, and with a large Indigenous population they believe gods created humans from a mixture of blood and maiz dough. Maiz is a staple food and consumed on a daily basis in the form of tortillas. After NAFTA, Mexican markets opened to a flood of U.S. exports. From 1994 to 1996, maiz grain prices dropped by as much as 48 percent (King, 2005). Familiarizing these issues is important to understanding the places visited.
Early Saturday we ventured to the Malecon, or board walk, Mercado, and the famous “Grand Café de la Parroquia” for lecheros, which are espresso coffee and steamed milk. We took a boat across the harbor to the fortress of San Juan de Ulna, which for centuries has served as not only a fortress, but also a prison and government building. It was ironic how we pride ourselves on so many advancements in facilities and structures. This fort kept its prisoners there by filling the escape waters with sharks. However inhumane, they stated that no one had ever escaped in the time that it was a holding for criminals. After visiting the beaches near our hotel, we had a traditional Veracruz dinner and called it a day. On Sunday, before leaving for the bus station, we had time to rent another boat and visit Isla Sacrifios, in the Veracruz harbor. We observed fish, sea stars, sea urchins, coral, and other marine life. A brief visit to the world-renowned Veracruz Aquarium was unfortunately cut short due to our travel schedule. We return to Puebla with a few days to go.

After wrapping up and preparing ourselves to disengage from our apartment we had grown to call home and people that had helped get our bearings we were preparing to say good buy. What we have chosen to take with us varies from person to person.

Identity, through this lens, takes on a new meaning; it can call to question one’s stance on public policy of your own country. As you begin to understand the human relationships develop between two countries, your part and place and how you choose to nurture that connection becomes a reality. One group believes that they are at the mercy and dictation of a larger more powerful group with the only option to assimilate, where do we find ourselves in the equation?

Socioeconomic factors, disparities, and problems that separate families and divide countries cannot be solved by individuals alone but by mass movement, like migrations. I learned the issues cannot be tagged or labeled as one, but rather become a conglomerate force. Movement into America comes with a hefty price tag that many do not see, like a three year old boy who sees and hears his father for the first time over a TV screen and/or a phone call from America. Or the alienation that a foreigner feels thousands of miles away from home and family in a place where he or she cannot understand the language and is are not accepted, as public policy proves.
Bibliography
1.Hendricks, T. (2007, March12). On the Border. The San Francisco Chronicle, pp. A-1. Retrieved July 12, 2008, from http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-in/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2007/03/12/MNGEUOJLNF1.DTL&type=printablebut

2.Mulhare, E.M. (1998-2006). Visitors Online guide to Puebla Mexico. Retrieved July 7, 2008, from http://www.ixeh.net/travel/puebla/puebla.html

3.Ashbee,E., & Clausen, H.B., & Pedersen, C. (Eds.). (2007). Politics, Economics and Culture of Mexican-US migration. New York: Palgrave-McMillan.

4.Levine, E. From Precarious, Low-Paying jobs in Mexico to Precarious Low Paying jobs in the United States. In Ashbee,E., & Clausen, H.B., & Pedersen, C. (Eds.), Politics, Economics and Culture of Mexican-US migration. (pp 63-90).New York: Palgrave-McMillan.


5.Ruelas, E. MD. (2002). Health care quality improvement in Mexico: challenges, opportunities, and progress. Proceedings,15. Retrieved June 26, 2008 from http://www.pubmedcentral.nih.gov/articlerender.fcgi?artid=1276627

6.Saucedo, S.E. & Perez, M.A. & Olvera, S.G. The Other Side of the Migration Story: Mexican Women in the United States. . In Ashbee,E., & Clausen, H.B., & Pedersen, C. (Eds.), Politics, Economics and Culture of Mexican-US migration. (pp 39-61).New York: Palgrave-Mcmillan.

7.Rubin, Joe. (Producer). (2003) PBS Frontline World News [Web Broadcast]. Public Broadcasting Service. Retrieved July 19, 2007 from http://www.pbs.org/frontlineworld/stories/guatemala.mexico/coffee1.html


8.Colorado Statewide Parent Coalition. (2004, February). Engaging Mexican Parents in their children Education. Westminster, Colorado: Roybal, P. & Garcia, D. Retrieved July 12, 2008 from http://www.coloradotrust.org/repository/publications/pdfs/CSPC%20Teachers.pdf

9.Stein, R. (2004) Mexico and US Schools: a World Apart. The Term Paper,3. Retrieved july8, 2008 from http://www.piton.org/content/Documents/term6.pdf

10. Nemerovsky, B. The Mole Page. Retrieved June 8,, 2008. From http://www.ramekins.com/mole/recipesmole.html

11.Wallengren, M. (2006). Successful Expansion. Retrieved July18, 2008 from http://www.mexconnect.com/mex_/travel/bzm/bzmveracruzharbor.html.

12. Force Technology. (1998). Port of Veracruz Mexico. Denmark: Sorensen, Peter. Retrieved from http://www.forcetechnology.com/NR/rdonlyres/153A774D-1779-4338-A0E9-47B3A75DABF1/893/19353en.pdf

13.Bread for the World Institute. (2005). Trade and Totomoxtle: Coping with NAFTA in the Totanacan region of Veracruz (Annual Report 2005). Washington DC: King, Amanda. Retrieved July 18, 2008 from http://www.bread.org/BFW-Institute/trade-sidebars/trade-and-totomoxtle.html

Figure 1
Puebla. (n.d.) In Wikipedia online. Retrieved July 29, 2008, from http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Puebla,_Puebla

Figure 2
Viallrreal, M. & Davy, M. Sending Money Home the Dynamics of Mexico-US Remittances. In Ashbee, E., & Clausen, H.B., & Pedersen, C. (Eds.), Politics, Economics and Culture of Mexican-US migration. (pp 91-106).New York: Palgrave-McMillan.

Figure 3
Levine, E. From Precarious, Low-Paying jobs in Mexico to Precarious Low Paying jobs in the United States. In Ashbee,E., & Clausen, H.B., & Pedersen, C. (Eds.), Politics, Economics and Culture of Mexican-US migration. (pp 63-90).New York: Palgrave-McMillan.

Figure 4
Saucedo, S.E. & Perez, M.A. & Olvera, S.G. The Other Side of the Migration Story: Mexican Women in the United States. . In Ashbee, E., & Clausen, H.B., & Pedersen, C. (Eds.), Politics, Economics and Culture of Mexican-US migration. (pp 39-61).New York: Palgrave-McMillan

American Museum of Natural History

http://www.amnh.org/

http://www.nmai.si.edu/

I fulfilled a lifetime ambition this summer and visited the Natural History Museum in New York, as well as the National Museum of the American Indian. I have provided links for them and I recommend them both.

Holmes Scholarship

I was fortunate to be recently named a Holmes Scholar at the University of Oklahoma. Below is a link describing the program.

http://www.holmes-scholars.org/

Puebla, Mexico

Mary and I are the guests of UPAEP in Puebla for five weeks this summer. We are developing our Spanish language skills, and generally being immersed in Mexican culture while studying educational issues pertaining to science and indigenous and migrant populations. Below is a link to the blog we are keeping.

http://education.ou.edu/puebla_blog

How Effective is National Board Certification for Secondary Teachers?

TITLE:
Relationship of Percentage of National Board Certified Teachers with Student Achievement as Measured by End-Of-Instruction Exams at the Secondary Level in Oklahoma
ABSTRACT:
The percentage of National Board Certified teachers (NBCTs) in Oklahoma high schools is positively and significantly correlated to student achievement as measured by performance on state End-Of-Instruction exams (EOIs), including Biology I, Reading, and Math. This effect is independent of other factors concerning the schools’ student populations, locales, sizes, and Title I status.
INTRODUCTION:
Every week the news media is full of stories describing concerns about America’s competitiveness in a global economy. A recent report states that the fastest growing occupations are dependent upon a knowledge base in science and mathematics (National Science Board, 2006). This same report points to the lack of student proficiency on national and international tests of mathematics and science and the decline of students pursuing science and engineering degrees from universities nationwide as a cause for economic apprehension. Basic areas such as reading and writing are essential to success in these areas as well as for their own sake. Solutions to these problems include training teachers at the highest levels, including National Board Certification, and providing incentives for teachers to do so. Data indicate that differences between effective and non-effective teachers have a tremendous impact on student achievement, and NBCTs are statistically and significantly more effective teachers. Teacher quality and lack of preparation in subject area are inextricably linked, and this research is of interest to teachers, administrators, and school boards because we are hoping to improve science education, and education in general, by demonstrating that high-quality and effective teaching can be brought about at least partially by encouraging teachers to engage in professional development up to and including National Board Certification.

PROBLEM STATEMENT:

The objective of the research project is to determine if the percentage of National Board Certified teachers (NBCTs) in a high school faculty is correlated with an increase in student performance as measured by state End-Of-Instruction exams (EOIs).

LITERATURE REVIEW:
Research is consistently positive about the impact of National Board Certification in enhancing teacher practice, professional development and areas of school improvement that are critical to raising student achievement. Many studies throughout various states have examined National Board Certification and the vast majority found NBCTs make a significantly measurable impact on teacher performance and student learning, engagement and achievement. Vandevoort, Beardsley, and Berliner (2004) found that student achievement was higher in the classrooms of NBCTs in three quarters of their comparisons with students in non-NBCT classrooms. Goldhaber and Anthony (2004) found that NBPTS is successfully identifying the more effective teachers among applicants, and that NBPTS-certified teachers, prior to becoming certified, were more effective than their non-certified counterparts at increasing student achievement, especially among minority students. The statistical significance and magnitude of the “NBPTS effect,” however, differs significantly by grade level and student type. Smith, et al., (2005) demonstrated overall findings from their study indicating that the relationship between student learning outcomes and teacher certification status was highly statistically significant on six of the seven student outcomes measured, with the results in favor of NBCTs. Clotfelter, Ladd, and Vigdon (2007) analyzed several aspects of teacher certification and found links to student achievement. Bundy (2006) found that when student demographic variables are controlled, schools with a larger proportion of NBCTs demonstrate moderately higher test scores. Additionally, a larger proportion of NBCTs coincides with a small increase in teacher empowerment, but these gains are unrelated to the improvement in student test scores. We believe that having more NBCTs on a campus produce across the board increases in student achievement, regardless of other factors such as student population diversity, locales, and size of schools.
METHODOLOGY:

Data sets of EOIs in Biology, Math, and Reading were obtained from the Oklahoma State Department of Education, including EOI results for all high schools in the state, as well as faculty numbers that yielded percentage of NBCTs per campus. The numbers for a large sample of Oklahoma high schools were submitted to a Pearson’s correlation test using SPSS, and the results were analyzed. Approximately thirty schools from each of the six size classifications were included in the sample, for a total of 175 schools. Results were also broken down by urban, suburban, town and rural high school settings and geographically and socioeconomically covered the entire state of Oklahoma.

RESULTS:

Our results suggest that the percentage of NBCTs on a high school campus correlates positively and significantly with student achievement as measured by EOIs, including Biology I. We observed this effect in the high schools sampled in the state of Oklahoma, and no significant difference on the basis of urban, suburban, rural, town, and rural settings, school size, or geographic location.

CONCLUSION:

More effort and incentive toward encouraging elementary and secondary teachers to become National Board Certified needs to be put forth by states, school boards, and administrators. The positive impact of having more NBCTs in a faculty have been documented in various states and in a variety of ways, and now we have demonstrated a similar effect in Oklahoma high schools. The process of National Board certification is an expensive, demanding, and time consuming process for the teachers who undertake it. The beneficial results in our school systems, and for our students and communities, have been demonstrated over and over again. Teachers should be encouraged, assisted, and rewarded for attempting to become National Board Certified. Our results suggest that the percentage of NBCTs has a campus-wide effect on student achievement, and this effect should be investigated further. Future studies may analyze campus and department leadership roles of NBCTs, or consider the number of NBCTs students are exposed to at the elementary and middle level. While we looked at NBCTs in general on each campus, a more specific study could break down the analysis in terms of specific subjects taught by NBCTs. Qualitative case studies may also be carried out that determine how National Board Certification has impacted individual teachers’ teaching philosophies and practices.




REFERENCES

Bundy, J. (2006). The Effect of National Board Certified Teachers on Average Student Achievement in North Carolina schools. Master’s Thesis, University of North Carolina.

Clotfelter, Charles T., Ladd, Helen F. and Vigdor, Jacob L., "How and Why Do Teacher Credentials Matter for Student Achievement?" (January 2007). NBER Working Paper No. W12828 Available at SSRN: http://ssrn.com/abstract=956867

Goldhaber, D., Anthony, E. (2004). Can Teacher Quality Be Effectively Assessed? Urban Institute Website
Kielborn, T., Gilmer, P., & Southeastern Regional Vision for Education (SERVE), T. (1999). Meaningful Science: Teachers Doing Inquiry + Teaching Science. (ERIC Document Reproduction Service No. ED434008) Retrieved June 13, 2007, from ERIC database.

Kimble, L. L., Yager, R. E., & Yager, S. O. (2006). Success of a Professional-Development Model in Assisting Teachers to Change Their Teaching to Match the More Emphasis Conditions Urged in the National Science Education Standards. Journal of Science Teacher Education, 17, 1007-1021.

Rhoton, J., Bowers, P., & National Science Teachers Association, A. (2001). Professional Development Planning and Design. Issues in Science Education. (ERIC Document Reproduction Service No. ED449040) Retrieved June 13, 2007, from ERIC database.

Smith, T. W., Gordon, B., Colby, S. A., & Wang, J. W. (2005). An Examination of the Relationship between Depth of Student Learning and National Board Certification Status. Office for Research on Teaching, Appalachian State University.

Vandevoort, L. G., Amrein-Beardsley, A. & Berliner, D. C. (2004). National Board Certified Teachers and Their Students’ Achievement. Education Policy Analysis Archives, 12, 1-46.

Science Education Issues Concerning Native American Students

Introduction

The director of the education department of a large American Indian tribe in northeastern Oklahoma related to me recently an informal and unpublished study carried out by a former superintendent of Bell School in Adair County in Oklahoma. The school is a small, rural, PK-8, and dependent district with a student population that is almost 100% Native American. A few years ago the superintendent surveyed fourth graders as to what they wanted to be when they grew up. Their answers ranged from teachers to professional athletes to firemen and cowboys. When these students were asked the same question four years later as eighth graders, their responses were mostly limited to one of two; chicken pullers at the nearby Tyson Foods facility or line workers at the Mrs. Smith’s pie and cake factory in Stilwell. This startled and concerned me, and coupled with Native American student drop-out rates and tendencies to not attend or complete college (especially in STEM majors), set me to investigating the role of science education in addressing this dilemma. In fact, Native American students are the least represented group in STEM majors and careers, both in sheer numbers as well as proportionally (Demmert, 2001).
My personal experience after attending the summer workshop at Sam Noble Oklahoma Museum of Natural History at the University of Oklahoma two years ago was that my students (mostly Native American) responded very well to inquiry-based science instruction in the form of learning cycles. I witnessed greater student enthusiasm for and achievement in science in my 3-8th grade classes, and many more “light bulb” or “Ah-Ha!” moments during the Concept Development and Expansion/Application phases. This was especially true when we could relate a concept to something from the students’ real-world environment and interests, including sports, cars, etc. In fact, it was this success in my classroom that prompted me to apply to the PhD program at OU in ILAC-Science Education, so I could help ”spread the word” and develop programs and train other teachers. Of course, the research indicates ALL students tend to learn better with this teaching approach, so I am faced with the question of whether Native students are somehow uniquely suited for this teaching approach, or vice-versa. My thoughts at this point are admittedly scattered, so I am aggressively pursuing all avenues of information concerning science education, indigenous science and educational perspectives, perceptions and misconceptions of science and scientists, socioeconomic status, opportunities for informal learning, cross-cultural evaluation instruments, and so on. I am perusing the literature, consulting with others in the field, and generally trying to become as informed as possible about Native American culture, education, and science and any possible relationship with inquiry-based science instruction, as well as science education in general.

Potential research questions include:

Can inquiry-based science instruction combined with informal learning opportunities and greater emphasis on Native culture and language enhance students’ scientific reasoning ability and likelihood to enter STEM related majors and careers?

Will intervention in the form of after-school, inquiry-based science activities with traditional ecological knowledge (TEK) and scientist mentoring positively affect students’ knowledge of science content, and their perceptions and misconceptions of science and scientists?

What is the nature of middle school students’ scientific reasoning ability, knowledge of science content, and perceptions and misconceptions of science and scientists in northeast Oklahoma rural, town, suburban, and urban schools?

Literature Review

The former superintendent at my previous school in NE Oklahoma believed for years that Native students tended to be active, right-brained learners who responded well to learning through tactile, kinesthetic, auditory, and visual experiences. He developed a “psychomotor” approach to learning for younger students that coupled activity with concepts, such as counting in both English and Cherokee while jumping rope. Partially because of this, his school was designated by the U. S. Department of Education as a National School of Excellence, and also received the James Madison Elementary School Award for Outstanding Curriculum in 1988 (Southwest Educational Development Laboratory, 1995). I attempted to connect my own classroom experiences with these and other observations from my experience and the literature to link Native culture and learning styles to the utilization of learning cycles in the classroom (Aikenhead & Jegede, 1999). For instance, traditional American Indian viewpoints of the world and environment are holistic, emphasizing the interconnectedness of everything, living and non-living. This may align with the idea of organization within the Application/Expansion phase of a learning cycle, as the active learning tendencies of Native students may correlate to the Exploration and Concept Development phases. I realize again that all students tend to learn better using this teaching approach, but it would be interesting if for cultural or other reasons Native American students were particularly suited for socially-based constructivist teaching and learning, or even transactional philosophies. For instance, traditionally Native children learned about the world around them by actively exploring it on their on, as well as through the passing down of knowledge by oral story-telling and hands-on instruction (Cajete, 1999). Traditional Ecological Knowledge or TEK has been recognized as a “sub-culture” within the larger culture of science itself and its intersection with classic Western science can be used to promote Native learning instead of hindering it (Snively & Corsiglia, 2000). Another point of view is that indigenous science knowledge, instead of being “swallowed up” by the Standard Account, is better off as a different kind of knowledge that can be valued for its own merits and play a vital role in the science education of Native American students (Cobern & Loving, 2001).

Research Methods

One of my professional goals is to possibly work in the education department of an American Indian tribe, and help to institute and develop inquiry-based instructional programs, especially in science, in the schools within their tribal boundaries. Research has shown that inquiry-based professional development may enhance teachers’ understanding of Piagetian models of intelligence and increase their use of appropriate constructivist approaches in the classroom (Marek, et al., 1990 & 1994). I also believe that encouraging more informal learning opportunities both at home and in school should be a priority, including museums and other field trips, chess, speech, and science fairs (Gerber, et al., 2001), as well as emphasizing Native culture and language. Students need to actively construct their own knowledge with the teacher’s guidance, engage in varied activities both in and out of school, and maintain their Native identity (Gilliland, 1995). That is, they need to realize that they can “be Cherokee”, for instance, and yet also be successful in school and professionally in the larger world outside their usually rural home environments (Nelson-Barber & Estrin, 1995). In order to gauge the effectiveness of this initiative over time I would need a baseline of data, that is, an idea of where students in the affected schools stood prior to implementation of more inquiry and informal learning. I am considering a wide array of instruments, including course grades, drop-out rates, end of instruction exams and other state and national standardized tests, the Draw-A-Scientist Test (Chambers, 1983), the Informal Learning Assay (Gerber, et al, 2001), and tests of scientific reasoning ability and content. I am also considering the development of one or more instruments that consider cultural factors in these types of evaluations. I also have an excellent opportunity to get another perspective on science education and other issues for indigenous (and migrant) populations when I visit UPAEP in Puebla, Mexico for five weeks this summer. Another possibility is working in conjunction with the Sam Noble Oklahoma Museum of Natural History’s education department and staging interventions in the after-school programs of selected districts involving informal learning opportunities. These may consist of commercial curricula and could be evaluated with a pre- and post-test methodology in order to gauge their effectiveness in terms of student interest in science, scientific reasoning ability, and misconceptions and/or perceptions of science and scientists. This may be particularly effective if actual scientists are participants and mentors in the programs.

References:

Aikenhead, G. S., & Jegede, O. J. (1999). Cross-cultural science education: a cognitive explanation of a cultural phenomenon. Journal of Research in Science Teaching, 36(3), 269-287.
This article explains cognitive conflicts arising from cultural differences as collateral learning and demonstrates the efficacy of reanalyzing interpretive data published in other articles. It attempts to provide new intellectual tools for teaching "science for all".

Cajete, G. A. (1999). Igniting the sparkle: an indigenous science education model (1 Ed.). Asheville NC: Kivaki Press Inc.
This book describes a model of science education specifically tailored to the needs of Native American students that draws on traditional methods of learning and knowing.


Chambers, D. W. (1983). Stereotypic images of the scientist: the draw-a-scientist test
Science Education, 67(2), 255-265.
The stereotypic image of the scientist appears in grade school and advances as students age. DAST is easy to administer and does require a verbal response; it also may correlate to other measures.

Cobern, W. J., & Loving, C. C. (2001). Defining "science" in a multicultural world: implications for science education. Science Education, 85(1), 50-67.
This paper argues that indigenous knowledge, instead of being swallowed up by the "Standard Account", is better off as a different kind of knowledge that can be valued for its own merits and play a vital role in science education, particularly for Native American students.

Demmert, W. G. (2001). Improving Academic Performance among Native American Students: A Review of the Research Literature. Charleston, WV: ERIC Clearinghouse on Rural Education and Small Schools.
This is a review of the literature spanning several decades concerned with issues of Native American education. It includes several subject areas and emphasizes the need to maintain indigenous culture and language in the classroom.

Gerber, B. L., Cavallo, A. M. L., & Marek, E. A. (2001). Relationships among informal learning environments, teaching procedures and scientific reasoning ability. International Journal of Science Education, 23(5), 535-549.
This study showed a separate positive relationship between informal learning experiences and scientific reasoning ability in children and inquiry-based instruction and scientific reasoning ability with no interaction effects.

Gerber, B. L., Marek, E. A., & Cavallo, A. M. L. (2001). Development of an informal learning opportunities assay. International Journal of Science Education, 23(6), 569-583.
This paper documents the development and verification of the Informal Learning Opportunities Assay (ILOA) to measure learning outside the formal classroom environment.


Gilliland, H. (1995). Teaching the Native American. Third Edition. (3 Ed.). Dubuque IA: Kendall/Hunt Publishing Co.
This book describes teaching approaches effective for indigenous students, including incorporation of traditional ecological knowledge (TEK).

Marek, E. A., Cowan, C. C., & Cavallo, A. M. L. (1994). Students' misconceptions about diffusion: how can they be eliminated? The American Biology Teacher, 56(2), 74-77.
This study showed that students taught through inquiry displayed fewer misconceptions of science ideas than those taught in an expository manner.

Marek, E. A., Eubanks, C., & Gallaher, T. H. (1990). Teachers' understanding and the use of the learning cycle. Journal of Research in Science Teaching, 27(9), 821-834.
This study showed that teachers with a sound understanding of the Piagetian model of intelligence were more likely to effectively implement learning cycle curricula than those that did not.

Marek, E. A., Haack, C., & McWhirter, L. (1994). Long-term use of learning cycles following in-service institutes. Journal of Science Teacher Education, 5(2), 48-55.
The study reported here examined the long-term implementation of learning cycle curricula introduced in National Science Foundation (NSF) sponsored institutes delivered in the 1980s.

Marek, E. A., & Laubach, T. (2007). Bridging the gap between theory and practice: A success story from science education. In M. Gordon & T. V. O'Brien (Eds.), Bridging Theory and Practice in Teacher Education. Netherlands: Sense Publishers.
This book chapter describes an example of a successful partnership between a Midwestern university and a nearby school district in terms of developing and implementing an inquiry-based science instruction program over several years.

Nelson-Barber, S., & Estrin, E. T. (1995). Bringing Native American perspectives to mathematics and science teaching. Theory into Practice, 34(3), 174-184.
This is a discussion and comparison of traditional Native American views of science and mathematics and how they may be incorporated into the modern classroom.

Snively, G., & Corsiglia, J. (2000). Discovering indigenous science: implications for science education. Science Education, 85(1), 6-34.
This paper describes how traditional ecological knowledge (TEK) can be integrated into the modern classroom as one of several scientific viewpoints and can help alleviate misunderstandings of students at the "border crossing" of TEK and classic Western science.

Southwest Educational Development Laboratory (1995). Maryetta School: the center of a rural community and a case study of leadership and school improvement. Issues about Change, 5(1), 5-27.
This is a description of Maryetta School; a small, rural, pk-8, dependent NE Oklahoma school district with a low socioeconomic and mostly Native American population. It includes a discussion of the development and purpose of the school's psychomotor program.

Summer Science Inquiry

Linking Inquiry and Classroom Practice
Summer Science Institutes: Inquiry-Based Professional Development with Authentic Research Experiences

In 2001, after 13 years of teaching mostly Advanced Placement science classes at the secondary level in the US Southwest, I transferred to a small, rural PK-8 school in a Midwestern state. The student population was relatively low socioeconomically and 86% American Indian. I realized that many of the expository teaching methods I had employed previously with older, higher-level thinking students were simply not effective for my new students. I began to seek alternative teaching approaches to the Inform, Verify, and Practice (IVP) modality I had been subjected to as a student, and had in turn utilized as a primary form of instruction as a teacher. In 2005 my administrators passed to me a notice concerning a summer science institute coming up at a state university. I applied and was accepted for the next summer. The program was a collaboration between the school’s education college and natural history museum, and covered one week of the summer, in a residential format. I was intrigued by the institute’s paradigm of inquiry-based professional development coupled with authentic research experiences mentored by practicing scientists, and the utilization of appropriate technologies. The program’s stated goals were to increase the scientific literacy and efficacy of the state’s elementary and middle school teachers through actual research experiences and an approach to science teaching that translated these experiences into classroom practice. The program’s theoretical base was grounded in the nature of science and inquiry, state and national science education standards, the nature of the learner, and the promotion of critical thinking skills. The workshop was conceived in response to a lack of interest and proficiency among the state’s students in science and math at the time, especially at the elementary and middle school levels. Special emphasis was placed on teachers of “transescents” or middle year students, who are at a critical developmental junction in terms of how they see themselves regarding science and mathematics, as well as college majors and careers in these areas. The data and experience suggested traditional expository text book teaching with cook book labs was not adequate, and many students were not being exposed to the true investigative nature of science, nor were they developing the critical thinking skills which are the stated central purpose of American education. The education department of the university’s natural history museum has a variety of programs that encourage science learning, both formally and informally, for teachers and students, as well as the general public. There is strong history of collaboration and cooperation between the museum and other departments within the university, and especially the college of education.

Upon arrival at the campus the 25 teacher participants were provided excellent on-campus accommodations, with most meals provided, and a stipend was arranged as well. Mornings were occupied working in groups of 3-4 teachers on an authentic research project mentored by practicing scientists from the museum, university, and other local agencies. Projects ranged from investigations of food webs in nearby aquatic habitats to fish reproductive habits to an analysis of insect populations, and the institute culminated with creation of poster and slide shows, and presentations of the projects in a symposium format. We utilized field sites, laboratories, and museum collections and engaged in all aspects of investigations from developing testable hypotheses to collecting and analyzing data to interpreting and communicating results. Afternoons were overseen by university science education professors and devoted to development of the theoretical base and building a link between research experiences and application to science teaching and curriculum development. These modalities were accomplished by creating and utilizing new curricula and carrying out pre-existing ones, along with discussion and the incorporation of applicable technologies. The idea emerged that constructivist learning cycle approaches to teaching science were most effective and supported by all aspects of the relevant theory base, and teachers needed to be comfortable with this and in turn apply it in their classrooms.

I returned to my classroom the next semester, excited and motivated to begin using what I had learned that summer. I saw encouraging results right away, as my students were allowed to gather solid data themselves, I helped them construct concepts from their data, and especially when they expanded and applied their new knowledge through any number of related activities that helped make connections to their environment and interests, including sports, health, cars, food, and so on. Student attitudes toward science improved, achievement increased, and they looked forward to what we were doing in class. As a veteran teacher I recognized right away my students were experiencing more “light bulb” moments as previously difficult concepts became clear to them. My tactile and kinesthetic students were self-motivated to actively gather data and science became fun and understandable to them. I began to spread the word among my colleagues and administrators, and we as a school adopted a curriculum more suited to this teaching approach. As I mentioned, the student population was mostly Native American, and as a citizen of the Cherokee nation myself I began to consider the larger implications of what I was experiencing. Half of Native American students fail to graduate high school, and few go on to university. Even fewer enter into mathematics and science related majors and careers. It seemed through this teaching approach that science and math could be part of the impetus to educational and career success for these and other students, and not part of the barriers. I developed a mind set that I could compound the effectiveness of this teaching approach by returning to school and seeking a PhD in science education to train other teachers, so I began the process of entering the university that sponsored the summer science institute I had attended.

In the summer of 2007 I was able to return to the summer science institute as a graduate student and assistant facilitator, and also to help with research that would attempt to gauge the effectiveness of the workshops. I chose three existing quantitative instruments that would evaluate the participants’ science teaching efficacy, and understanding of the nature of science and of the learning cycle approach to teaching. I developed two more instruments to consider the teachers’ comprehension of the investigative process of science and their approach to lesson development and implementation. These instruments were all administered in a pre- and post-workshop manner, and seemed to suggest gains in all areas, with the exception of science teaching self-efficacy. This may be due to the teachers realizing there is much more to effective science teaching than they had imagined, prior to their participation in the workshop. I am also conducting a follow-up qualitative examination through the use of surveys. Participating teachers are reporting results similar to what I had experienced at my school, as reflected in these comments:
“I learned how to properly engage students using inquiry learning. I was able to get some good ideas and work with other teachers…”
“I am now asking more leading questions instead of giving straight answers…”
“The students discover the answer to the inquiry they are doing…”
“My students this year are noticeably more adept at measuring for accuracy and utilizing metric units after inquiry-based instruction…”
“The students are DOING instead of listening and watching, and have an improvement of attitudes…”

However, It is not enough to provide teachers with research experiences. The goal is make the pedagogical connection in the classroom between the investigative process of science and its application in lesson development and implementation. The learning cycle approach seems to provide the linkage that translates inquiry into actual learning, and the critical thinking skills that will serve all students in all areas. These summer science institutes permit teachers to better understand the nature of science and inquiry-based teaching approaches, as well as the relationship between them. Teachers become more comfortable with the scientific method and inquiry, and teachers are more willing to engage students in data collecting activities. In turn, facilitation of concept development and introduction of appropriate terminology, and expansion and application of these concepts, resolve the "disconnect" between teachers’ understanding of inquiry and its actual application in the classroom.

Final Paper-History of Modern Science

Final Paper
How Popular Culture Impacts Transescents’ Perception and Understanding of Science
Geary Don Crofford[1]
Thursday December 13, 2007
HSCI 5533 History of Modern Science
Dr. Katherine Pandora[2]

Introduction


Ask American elementary and secondary school students to draw a scientist and most will provide a rendering of a stereotypical Hollywood version of a “mad scientist”. Their representation is usually male, with unkempt hair, glasses or goggles, a lab coat, positioned in a laboratory, and often performing some type of dangerous or radical experiment. A 1983 study[3] of 4807 students reported these results, and this and other studies also indicated the popular media may have a great degree of influence on youngsters’ perceptions of science and the scientific community and how they relate to them personally. Why is this so, and what implications does it have for the public’s understanding of science and scientists, and the general population’s scientific literacy? Where did these stereotypes originate, and how can a science educator combat these perceptions, or conversely, employ them in their instructional strategies?
A more recent study[4] found that Hollywood movies of the 20th century often present and reinforce many, if not all, of the traits of the “mad scientist”. 82% of the scientists portrayed in the films covered in this study were male, and most were white and American, as well. The majority of scientists were portrayed as studying the life sciences, as somewhat socially inept, and many times performing their work secreted away in a remote location, often to the detriment of society in some way. This study was a quantitative analysis of 222 films of all genres, covering eight decades of moviemaking. Another study[5] specifically looked at the images of scientists as represented in six Hollywood comedy films from 1961 to 1965. This study found scientists depicted as either objects of mockery or fear, with far more intellect than practical intelligence. The recognition and esteem of the scientists in these movies was mitigated by either buffoonish behavior or the threat his (all scientists portrayed were male) research presented to humanity.
The literature indicates popular culture has a profound impact on our perception of science, and the National Science Foundation has publicly expressed concern about the distortion and dilution of the public’s knowledge of science by the fictional media. Conversely, television programs such as The Magic School Bus are applauded for exposing children to meaningful scientific concepts that are effectively and accurately presented. What implications does this have for the science educator, positive or negative, and how should a teacher strive to take advantage of beneficial popular culture, or defeat the Hollywood stereotypes?
Students in the middle years of their education, meaning sixth through ninth grade, are also referred to as transescents. This name refers not just to their schooling, but also their physical, cognitive, social, and emotional development. They are literally “in-between” childhood and adulthood, and the science teachers at these grade levels can have a particularly profound effect on their students’ understanding of science, and help develop and reinforce a positive attitude toward science. These middle years are especially crucial because just as the students are spending less time with their families, they are also exposed to many significant external influences, including their peers and all types of popular culture. Immersing these students in the proper combinations and amounts of accurate and beneficial media sources, both in and outside the classroom, may be one potential answer to address this dilemma, along with exposure to working scientists who may serve as positive role models, as well as the utilization of appropriate technology.

The Importance of a Scientifically Literate Society

As our society becomes more technologically oriented it becomes increasingly important to develop and maintain a scientifically literate population that is comfortable with most aspects of science and technology, as well as individuals that are skilled in specific areas of science and mathematics to provide a talent pool to help the United States keep its competitive edge in this domain. Voters need to be able to make informed decisions about candidates and their positions on science and technology related issues. Citizens also need to have at least a basic understanding of the health, environmental, and medical issues they may face throughout their lives. Inquiry-based, constructivist, and process-oriented science presented by positive role models, the development of critical thinking skills coupled with a solid base in science knowledge, and adherence to both process and content science education standards such as the National Science Education Standards (NSES) and in Oklahoma, the Priority Academic Student Skills (PASS) may all help ensure the quality of science and mathematics education for all students, and especially transescents.
The “deficit model” attempts to explain the gap between scientists and the general public in terms of the lack of scientific knowledge on the part of the public. This model holds that scientists attempt in vain to pass down their knowledge to a public that is either apathetic, cannot comprehend the knowledge, or both. Whether or not this true, education holds the key to narrow this deficit, or prevent one from developing in the future. I feel part of the issue is simple human nature to ridicule or reject that which we do not understand. Not everyone can be a molecular biologist or nuclear engineer, but the public, beginning with transescence or even before, can be made both knowledgeable and comfortable enough with science to avoid rejecting it out of hand. Facilitating acceptance of and even enthusiasm for science is one of the science educator’s prime objectives, in my opinion. The mass media is going to continue to become a bigger part of all of our lives, and educators need to accept this and find ways to use it to their advantage, as well as overcome the negative aspects of popular culture as it relates to science and science education.

Minorities and Women and the Sciences

There also looms the dilemma of the underrepresentation of women and minorities in the sciences, what if any role the popular media play in this, and how science teachers may address this deficiency. A recent study[6] demonstrated from a review of over 60 feature films that the portrayal of women scientists can be grouped into six categories, none of which promoted a realistic or desirable role model for impressionable transescent females. These categories were described as ranging from the “old maid” to the “loner”. Despite this, The New York Times reported recently that for the first time, the top two winners of the prestigious Siemens Competition in Math, Science and Technology were female students, and also for the first time there were more female than male finalists. The erroneous idea that women are not as capable as men in math and science was even espoused by a former president of Harvard, demonstrating just how deeply ingrained this notion is in our culture.
The idea of “social precognition” holds that the media mirror our perceptions of ourselves, including our role in and understanding of science. Is it possible that Hollywood is actually discouraging women and minorities from engaging in science careers? As a member of the Cherokee Nation, and having taught in both a rural NE Oklahoma school in which the population was 86% indigenous and a US-Mexico border school that was 75% Hispanic, I have a personal stake and experience in addressing and helping to remediate this underrepresentation of minorities. In fact, immigration of Spanish-speaking minorities, and how they will be served by our educational system will be one of the most significant issues facing our country this century. I know from my own experience that many students do not receive their first significant science instruction until their middle years. Many of these students do not even finish high school, let alone pursue higher education, and especially not in math or science. Multi-media and technology more specifically geared to assist these students may help address this unfortunate cycle of lack of education and poverty in many segments of our society. Exposure to appealing, qualified female and minority scientists in real-world research settings may also be a factor in overcoming these students’ apathy or even antagonism toward science.

Can Television Be Used to Promote a Positive Image of Science?

Television viewing has a tremendous impact on children’s ideas and knowledge of the world, including science. From Beakman’s World to Mr. Wizard to Bill Nye: the Science Guy to Steve Irwin: Crocodile Hunter, television has specifically taken aim at addressing science concepts and issues, with mixed results. Some shows are accurate and engaging in their portrayal of science, while others lean more toward the dramatic, distorted perspective, apparently for sheer entertainment value. In biology, evolution is always a pre-eminent topic, and one study has looked specifically at television wildlife programming’s attempts to explain evolution.[7] This study found that “blue-chip” programming with higher production values often was less effective than “presenter-led” programming of lesser production values in properly addressing issues such as creationism, evolution, and global warming. Much of my own early exposure to science, outside of my personal reading for pleasure, was watching Mutual of Omaha’s Wild Kingdom as a child, and I partially attribute my own personal interest in biology and wildlife to this series.
Music and sound is another facet of programming that may be useful, and was used to great effect in the television series Bill Nye: The Science Guy. I personally have used episodes of this series with tremendous results, particularly as reviews, expansions, or applications of a concept taught previously. The students always seemed to have a better understanding of a science topic after viewing episodes of this show, and the production and entertainment value combined seamlessly to hold their attention. The correct science programming, employed in the proper context within an inquiry-based educational process that incorporates the nature of science, can be an effective tool for the teacher.

Can Movies Enhance Students’ Perception and Understanding of Science?

Using any category of popular media to teach science is controversial, potentially ineffective, and even damaging. However, if utilized properly, educators can effectively take advantage of the entertainment value of Hollywood films to spark both interest in and understanding of science, according to a paper by Christopher Rose.[8] This scientist has actually developed a course he calls “Biology in the Movies” which incorporates biology-based films including GATTACA, The Boys from Brazil, and The Fly. He successfully uses the movies as starting points to pique the students’ interest in culturally pertinent topics such as cloning and transgenic manipulations. It is also interesting to analyze how biology has been portrayed in Hollywood movies over the decades of the 20th century, and how those portrayals have reflected advances in the discipline itself, particularly in the case of the three celluloid versions of The Island of Dr. Moreau.[9] One may easily trace advances in biology through these movies, ranging from 1933 to 1996, in the form of how the films’ “manimals” are created. The progression is from vivisection and blood transfusions to hormonal manipulations to direct genetic modification through recombinant DNA technology, as well as microchip implantation. Scientists may also facilitate the plausibility and purposeful portrayal of science in film and television by acting as consultants directly on the sets during production, even though according to one study this does not necessarily mean that corresponding scientific “accuracy” promotes the public’s understanding of science.[10] It also seems that the more fiction one is exposed to, the lower their regard for science in general. The impact of visual images on everyone, but youngsters in particular, cannot be overestimated.[11]Fictional Hollywood films are the most common venue through which the public is exposed to images of science, and their importance cannot be understated.

Is the Internet the Key to Promoting Science Literacy Now and in the Future?

Despite movies’ historical importance as a common venue for exposure to science concepts and practitioners, the Internet is rapidly becoming the most pervasive electronic medium for addressing students’ misconceptions, lack of interest in, and general attitudes toward science, according to two recent studies.[12] These reports analyzed the content of state-of-the-art science Web sites and popular non-science teen Web sites, and then used this information along with insights from teen focus groups to ascertain how best to construct science Web sites to attract teens. The results indicated that transescents seek entertainment, and not education, from the Web, and that teachers are the critical gatekeepers for educational Internet use. The study concluded that science Web sites can be fun and still teach science effectively, and that partnerships between schools and entities such as NASA could play an important role in developing the Web as an educational tool.
At the University of Oklahoma, the K-20 Center is currently involved in developing video games as a form of “informal learning” in science. There are numerous video games on the market now that incorporate aspects of science ranging from molecular biology to physics, and the potential of this avenue of learning is virtually limitless. Museums, planetariums, exhibits, television programming, and film may all play a role in addressing scientific illiteracy and malaise, both independently and in joint ventures, including Internet sites and gaming. Of all of these intersections of the public and science, the Internet may be the one that ultimately has the greatest impact, both in and out of the classroom. The Internet, for instance, allows teachers and students to engage directly in authentic research being carried out by practicing scientists, as in the case of “Pintail Partners”.[13]The Sam Noble Museum Oklahoma Museum of Natural History at the University of Oklahoma is at the forefront of giving science teachers the opportunity to learn to use and incorporate technology into their instruction through professional development activities it develops and sponsors. The museum’s education department also emphasizes giving teachers and students opportunities to engage in authentic research experiences with practicing scientists. My own participation in this type of professional development directly led to my pursuit of a terminal degree in Instructional Leadership and Academic Curriculum with an emphasis in Science Education here at the University of Oklahoma, and to engage in research that seeks to demonstrate a link between science teacher self-efficacy, student achievement, and these types of professional development and student programs.
My personal teaching philosophies were profoundly changed by the summer program I participated in two years ago, and I feel I can compound that impact by training teachers of science who may then pass what they have learned on to their students, and to their colleagues. Interacting with actual scientists, both in person and through the Web, often negates the negative stereotypes children have of scientists, and they come away possibly wishing to emulate the role models they met and learned from. In fact, I feel strongly that such programs are possibly the single most effective way to defeat the cartoonish or off-putting images of science and scientists that children may have been inculcated with by film, television, and other aspects of popular culture. Practicing scientists have a responsibility to work with science educators to help facilitate these positive interactions with students, for the benefit of science as a discipline and society in general.

Using the History of Science to Defeat Science Stereotypes

How may the history, sociology, and philosophy of science be utilized in this endeavor? Doing away with “cook book” science, and reducing lecturing and use of the text books may in and of itself make science more interesting to the transescent. Incorporating more history, philosophy, and sociology of science and developing and implementing more cross-curricular lessons with other subjects including mathematics, language, and social studies may also help students understand how science plays a role in almost all aspects of their lives. The difficulty often lies within the science instruction itself, as science teachers are often guilty of perpetuating their own stereotypes of science.[14] Despite this, others have argued that history of science has no place in the classroom. [15] It has also been stated that misrepresenting the history of science can be as damaging as not representing it at all.[16] Humanizing science may have benefits for the students as well.[17] These ideas specifically address the Hollywood stereotype of the scientist as a social misfit locked away in a remote laboratory carrying out arcane and unauthorized experiments that may jeopardize mankind’s future. The positive and varied aspects of science, and science (or science and mathematics education) as a career, could be emphasized to the transescent student and change how they see their “hypothetical future selves”. The adventurous nature of scientists such as Jane Goodall or Alfred Russel Wallace could be emphasized, as could the “hidden” heroes such as Rosalind Franklin, and great ethnic scientists such as George Washington Carver.
Another consideration is our country’s rapidly increasing Hispanic population and the absence of much scholarship concerning the history of science in Central and South America. Francisco Hernandez produced a crucial natural history of the New World that was originally published in the Aztec language. Some prominent Mexican scientists include Carlos Frenk in cosmology, Nobel Prize winner Mario Molina, the discoverer of vanadium Andres Manuel Del Rio, and the inventor of the first oral contraceptive, Luis Miramontes. Interestingly, given the nature of this paper, it was Guillermo Gonzalez Camerena, a Mexican, who devised the mechanism behind the first color television. There are historically more than enough great Latin scientists and mathematicians to present to Hispanic students as role models to emulate.

Athletics, Television, and Science: A Combination with Educational Potential?

The National Football League’s annual Super Bowl is traditionally one of television’s top attractions, and not just in the United States but throughout the world. The “March Madness” of the NCAA basketball tournament captivates our nation’s attention for several weeks every spring. We are all familiar with the University of Oklahoma football team and its significance in our local culture. Is it possible to capitalize on the popularity of these activities and appropriate them to the educational domain to demonstrate to students the inherent nature of science in this, and virtually all aspects of our lives? The intersections and “mixed border zones” between science and sports range from the physics and mathematics of moving people or objects to the training, physiological, and medical aspects of the athletes’ bodies. Many young people participate in competitive athletic events; enjoy watching televised sports, or both. The cultural and sociological aspects of this “ritualized warfare” are deeply ingrained in all of us, and if a science teacher can effectively link science to this natural competitive drive wonders might be achieved in terms of making science and mathematics relevant and interesting to transescents.
I have used sport and athletic concepts effectively in my own science and mathematics lesson plans over the years, including teaching positive and negative numbers in relation to the yard markers on a football field. I have also taught successful sport-related lessons on batting averages, winning percentages, velocity, force, and momentum, among other topics. I have seen many students of all ages complete excellent, even award winning, science fair and symposium research projects rooted in some aspect of athletic competition, as these topics seemed to motivate them when others could or would not. There are even examples of sport and science productively combining on television, including Sport Science, which is a popular show currently airing on the Fox networks, which incorporates scientific explanations and analysis of sporting phenomena with great effect. Connecting science concepts to prior knowledge and innate topics of interest for the students makes their perception of the subject more positive, and deepens their understanding.

Conclusion

I recently read an interview with Al Gore in Rolling Stone magazine, and I could not help but be struck by how some of his points concerning the environment, and our politics and society in general, paralleled and illuminated some of the themes of my paper. Mr. Gore referenced Thomas Kuhn’s The Structure of Scientific Revolutions, and another, earlier book by Joseph Schumpeter. The books’ commonality was the idea of a “change in consciousness”, or “paradigm shift” in their respective realms of science and business. Mr. Gore believes these recognitions of new patterns to explain things that seem mysterious to an “old” way of thinking are necessary to address some of the problems our country is currently facing, and will face in the future. I believe science educators need to help bring about this type of fundamental change in the viewpoints of our students, possibly by incorporating some of the strategies I have explained here. Mr. Gore went on to express his belief in the importance of the Internet as a type of “free and universal library” that can serve many beneficial purposes, including those mentioned in this paper. He explains how the age of print lasted 500 years, and gave way to television for the last 60, and yet the Internet is poised to override that medium and be everything it is now, and more. As an aside, I do not believe Al Gore invented the Internet, and he did not make that claim in this particular article!
The issue of the image of science and the scientific community, and in particular its perception by middle year students and their desire to enter science-based careers, or at least be scientifically literate, is a complex and challenging one. Funding for technology to address the issues raised in this paper is available through a wide variety of granting entities. I advocate giving teachers the grant-writing skills and freedom of opportunities to pursue their own classroom funds through these avenues, and develop and apply their own personal initiatives, and incorporate effective professional development programs they have been exposed to. Pre-service teachers in university-level teacher preparation programs need to be guided in utilizing popular culture, technology, and interaction with real scientists and mathematicians in the most effective manner possible in their future classrooms. Partnerships with entities such as NASA that have a vested interest in a scientifically literate population are potentially fruitful venues to achieve the goal of making science interesting and exciting and dispose of negative stereotypes. Inclusion of admirable scientific role models, meaningful history of science, accurate and relevant mass media presentations, and proper utilization of newer technologies such as the Internet and video games may all contribute to effecting a positive change in transescent students’ attitudes toward science and the scientific community. Classroom teachers are at the forefront of instituting these changes and bear great responsibility in the process, along with working scientists, parents, administrators, school boards, and university teacher-preparation programs.
[1] College of Education, University of Oklahoma, Norman OK 73072, USA.
[2] Department of the History of Science, University of Oklahoma, Norman OK 73072, USA.
[3] D. W. Chambers (1983). Stereotypic images of the scientist: the draw-a-scientist test. Science Education, 67, 255-65.
[4] Weingart, P., Muhl, C., & Pansegrau, P. (2003). Of power maniacs and unethical geniuses: science and scientists in fiction film. Public Understanding of Science, 12, 279-287.
[5] Terzian, S. G., & Grunzke, A. L. (2007). Scrambled eggheads: ambivalent representations of scientists in six Hollywood film comedies from 1961 to 1965. Public Understanding of Science, 16, 407-419.
[6] Flicker, E. (2003). Between brains and breasts-women scientists in fiction film: on the marginalization and sexualization of scientific competence. Public Understanding of Science, 12, 307-318.
[7] Dingwall, R., & Aldridge, M. (2006). Television wildlife programming as a source of popular scientific information: a case study of evolution. Public Understanding of Science, 15, 131-152.
[8] Rose, C. (2003). How to teach biology using the movie science of cloning people, resurrecting the dead, and combining flies and humans. Public Understanding of Science, 12, 289-296.
[9] Jorg, D. (2003). The good, the bad, and the ugly: Dr. Moreau goes to Hollywood. Public Understanding of Science, 12, 297-305.
[10]Kirby, D. A. (2003). Scientists on the set: science consultants and the communication of science in visual fiction. Public Understanding of Science, 12, 261-278.
[11] Figuring It Out: Science, Gender, and Visual Culture. Ed. Ann B. Shteir and Bernard Lightman. (Hanover and London, Dartmouth College Press, 2006).

[12] Weingold, M. F., & Treise, D. (2004). Attracting teen surfers to science web sites. Public Understanding of Science, 13, 229-248.
[13] Thomas J. (2007). Ducks and STEM education for elementary classroom teachers: case study research leading to a new professional development model. Draft not yet published; contact Julie Thomas, Oklahoma State University, College of Education, Stillwater OK 74078.
[14] Henry H. Bauer, Scientific Literacy and the Myth of the Scientific Method, (Urbana and Chicago, University of Illinois Press, 1994).
[15] Douglas Allchin, "Why Respect for History-and Historical Error-Matters.", Science & Education 15 (2006): 91-111
[16] Anton Lawson, "What Does Galileo's Discovery of Jupiter's Moons Tell Us About the Process of Scientific Discovery?" Science & Education 11 (2002): 1-24.
[17] Hsingchi A. Wang and David D. Marsh, "Science Instruction with a Humanistic Twist: Teacher's Perception and Practice in Using the History of Science in Their Classrooms", Science & Education, 2002, 11:169-189.