Stars and STEM Stories
First GLOBE Regional GLE in Asia Held in Thailand
GLOBE Thailand recently hosted the first Asia Pacific Regional GLOBE Learning Expedition (GLE).The regionally-funded GLE took place from 13—18 November 2007 at the Navy Phirom Hotel in Hua Hin. The event was organized to allow students to share their research projects with their peers, GLOBE scientists, and the greater GLOBE community. The GLE also promoted Earth system science research through a student-teacher-scientist-community collaboration model.
Fifty-three students and 28 teachers from Thailand, Sri Lanka, and Laos participated in the weeklong expedition focusing on "Learning about Climate Change to Inspire the Next Generation of Scientists." The GLE was opened by Mr. Supalerk Tansriratanawong, Director General of the Department of Meteorology, and Professor Surin Phongsupasamit, President of the Institute for the Promotion of Teaching Science and Technology. In addition, Dr. Ed Geary, Director of the GLOBE Program, gave the keynote presentation. Dr. David Brooks, a former GLOBE Principal Investigator for the Atmosphere and Climate Investigation, presented on student research and led a session on solar cars.
The weeklong GLE focused on the following four areas:
- Sensor-based Climate Change Monitoring
- Climate Change Impacts on Land Degradation
- Phenology Research for Climate Change Monitoring
-
Aquatic Bioindicators for Climate Change Monitoring
Following the opening ceremonies, student investigation presentations, and a solar car competition on day one, students learned about conducting student research on climate change from presentations by Dr. David Brooks, "Student Climate Change Research" and Dr. Krisanadej Jaroensutasinee, "How to do Earth System Science Student Research." The presentations were followed by one and a half days of field work led by GLOBE Thailand scientists focusing on the above four areas. Each group was guided through data analysis exercises and learned how to give a presentation of their findings to the entire group.
Through participation in this GLOBE Asia Regional GLE, students developed a better understanding of how to conduct research using GLOBE protocols. They learned about complex ecosystems and the effects of climate change. By formulating questions and conducting research, synthesizing and analyzing the data they collected, and presenting their findings to their peers, they learned about the scientific method. Teachers shared innovative ideas about teaching inquiry-based Earth system science to build connections for research efforts among schools.
All in all, the GLE in Thailand served as an outstanding model for collaborative learning. It provided students and teachers opportunities to investigate climate change, to share implementation strategies for learning about and addressing environmental issues, and to develop new friendships with the potential for ongoing collaboration. We congratulate all those who took part in this ground-breaking event and the Institute for the Promotion of Teaching Science and Technology (IPST), the GLOBE Thailand Country Coordinating agency in Thailand, for hosting the Asia Pacific Regional GLE. In addition, we would like to thank the generous sponsors, Ban Pu Public Company Limited and Double A Company Limited for their financial and facilities support.
15 November 2007