Inventory and Assessment of K-12 and Professional Teacher Development Programs in the National Estuarine Research Reserve System
D. INVENTORY SUMMARY
General Information
As the main objective for the project, it was important to gather specific information about each NERRS program. Several questions were asked on the general EC survey to get a clear picture of the current state of each Reserve’s education facilities, staff size, and staff time spent on conducting K-12 and PTD programs. During the follow-up telephone interviews, questions were asked to elicit information about EC educational background and previous work experience, and the time each EC spent on K-12 or PTD programs versus their other responsibilities.
Facilities
In the general survey each EC was asked whether they have an educational facility (e.g. training facility, classroom, or environmental education center).
- 84% of the Reserves have an educational facility.
- 6% of the Reserves do not have an educational facility
Education and Volunteer Staff
ECs were asked to specify what types and how many staff members they have (Table 1).
- Twelve of the Reserves (50%) have one full-time staff member that works on K-12 and PTD programs.
- 21% of Reserves have two full-time education staff members.
Table 1. Full-time Education Reserve Staff including the Education Coordinator
|
Number of Reserves |
Percent
|
| 0 Full-time |
2 |
8 % |
| 1 Full-time |
12 |
50 % |
| 2 Full-time |
5 |
21 % |
| 3 Full-time |
3 |
13 % |
| 4 Full-time |
2 |
8 % |
The specific amounts of ¼, ½, and ¾ part-time employees were not significant enough to report individually, so these were summarized as simple binary responses (yes or no). The highest number of part-time staff in any category at one Reserve was four. The highest number of volunteers at one Reserve was seven (Table 2).
Table 2. Part-time and Volunteer Staff including the Education Coordinator
|
Number of Reserves |
Percent |
| At least one ¼ part-time staff |
7 |
29 % |
| At least one ½ part-time staff |
7 |
29 % |
| At lease one ¾ part-time staff |
9 |
37 % |
| At least one volunteer |
5 |
21 % |
Time Education Staff Spends Running K-12 and PTD Programs
The amount of time that the education staff at each Reserve spends on running K-12 and PTD programs are reported on a scale of 1 to 10, where 1 equals none and 10 equals all. In the case of K-12 programs, the mean of 5.17 is misleading because the distribution of responses is grouped in large clusters on either end of the continuum. Fifty-four percent of the responses rate the time they spend running K-12 programs as a 5 or less versus 46% that rate the time they spend running K-12 programs as a 6 or higher.
Time staff spends running PTD programs has a mean of 2.92 and 83% of the respondents rate this as a 3 or less. Figure 1 shows the distribution of responses for this question.
Figure 1. Time Education Staff Spends Running K-12/PTD Programs
K-12 and PTD Duties Versus Other EC Responsibilities
During the in-depth telephone interviews, a follow-up question was used to find out what activities and responsibilities the ECs focus on. Each EC divides their time between the following topics: K-12 program development and coordination, actual teaching/training time of K-12 programs, PTD program development and coordination, actual teaching/training of PTD programs, and other responsibilities. Each EC assigns a percent value so that all five areas total to equal 100%. Each EC also lists their other responsibilities. Figure 2 represents the average time ECs spend working on each activity.
Figure 2. Average Time Education Coordinators Spend on K-12, PTD and Other Responsibilities
A variety of responses were listed to describe ECs other duties. For ease of reporting, the list is classified into four areas (Table 3). The average percent of time ECs spend on each activity is located next to each heading.
Table 3. What are Education Coordinators Other Responsibilities?
|
Managerial Activities = 31%
Communications, Public Relations
Administrative Tasks
State Administrative Tasks (permits etc.)
Staff Supervision
Budgeting/Finance
Hiring and Training Staff and Volunteers
|
Other Activities = 29%
Donor Relations
Research Assistance
Exhibit Design
Grant Writing
Facility Maintenance (buildings, trucks, aquaria)
Development Opportunities
|
|
Other Education Activities = 24%
Coastal Training Program (CTP)
Public Education Programs
Community Outreach
Coastal Decision Maker Workshop
|
Coordination Activities = 16%
Volunteer Coordination
Coordinating Partners
Program Logistics
Coordinator from Water Quality Monitoring
Coordinating Facility Use
|
Experience and Education Background of Education Coordinators
A diverse background of talent is noted within the NERRS system. Many ECs have received bachelors and advanced degrees (Table 4) in various scientific disciplines including the biological and physical sciences. To a lesser extent, ECs have studied general education and science education (Table 5).
Table 4. Education Coordinators Education Level
| Highest Degree Attained |
Percentage of ECs
|
| High School |
4%
|
| Bachelors |
52%
|
| Advanced Degree (Masters, PhD) |
39%
|
| Missing Value |
4%
|
Table 5. Education Coordinators Areas of Specialization Categories
|
Terrestrial Science = 44%
Zoology
Biology
Animal Behavior
Ecology
General Science
Wildlife Ecology
Wild Land Recreation Management
Environmental Science
|
Marine Science = 19%
Marine Science
Marine Biology
Marine Policy
Coastal Resources
|
|
Science Education = 16%
Agriculture and Natural Resource Education
Environmental Science Education
Science Education
Biology Education
|
General Environment = 13%
Environmental Studies
Environmental Policy
|
|
Education Other = 6%
English Education
Health Education
Outdoor Education
|
Other = 3%
Psychology
Sociology
|
ECs also have a diverse background of work experience ranging from positions at state agencies to work at informal science institutions (Table 6). For ease of reporting, work experience is grouped into six different areas.
Table 6. Education Coordinators Work Experience Categories
|
State Agencies = 26%
Department of Natural Resources
Department of Environmental Protection
Fish & Game Commission
Coastal Zone Management
Parks Department
|
Previous NERR Experience = 21%
Volunteer
Research Technician
Education Specialist
Graduate Student/Fellow Internship
|
|
Informal Science Institutions = 21%
Science Center
Science Museum
Nature Center
Non-Profit Organizations
|
Other Experiences = 13%
Boys and Girls Clubs
Freelance Naturalist
Recreation and Education Services
Business Owner
Carpenter/Mason
Mail Carrier
|
Education =13%
Teacher
Substitute Teacher
Community College Educator
|
Other Scientific Experience = 4%
Fisheries
Coastal Ecology
|
|
