A Novel Water Quality Measurement System as a Teaching Aid for Environmental Education

In this project, the team is developing a prototype to conduct field-based experiments for students to apply learning of STEM and data analysis skills.  The prototype will include a wireless sensor that collects samples of scientific data for standards-aligned STEM topics related to environmental science (e.g., temperature, turbidity, salinity, depth, chlorophyll) and transmits data to an app for students and educators to access, discuss, share, and visualize findings. The platform will also transmit and crowdsource data to regional school partners, river keepers, and volunteer groups as well as scientists to promote additional learning opportunities in the context of career exploration. At the end of Phase I, the team will conduct a pilot study with five middle school science educators and 100 students to examine if the prototype functions as planned and if scientific data that students collect is successfully transmitted into the portal, if educators are able to incorporate data into lesson plans for classroom use, if educators can use the lesson plans to prepare for and conduct classroom investigations, and if students are engaged using the prototype.