The Gulf of Mexico: A Video Series

Objectives

1. To produce a series (~15) of short videos that align with draft Gulf of Mexico literacy principles.
2. To develop an accompanying educational guide with information, resources and challenges that align with each video. 
3. To engage student viewers with challenges that when completed result in GoM learning micro-credential/badge.

Methodology

Discovery Hall Programs educators will work with Hunter Nichols Productions, a company that has a proven track record of producing short high-quality videos about ecosystems in the region. Script topics and outlines will be developed collaboratively with Hunter Nichols during the first half of the project. Videos will include cinematography, infographics and conversations with researchers, managers, and other individuals holding expertise relevant to the topic. Language and terminology used will be suitable for the middle school audience and above. Care will be taken when developing videos to select Sea Grant personnel, scientists and other individuals that reflect the full extent of cultural and racial diversity in the area. Cultural relevance and cultural (mis)appropriation will be considered in the development of proposed materials. Discovery Hall Programs educators will develop the accompanying learning guide and design the GoM stewardship ‘badge’ and microcredential certificate. The learning guide will include information, resources and challenges that align with each video. It will be structured such that learners are engaged and encouraged to work through the suite of videos. 

Rationale

It is highly likely that the COVID pandemic will have lasting impacts on PreK-12 instruction in the US. It is expected that we will see increased enrollment in virtual learning academies and other forms of remote learning. This will likely be accompanied by an increase in the diversity of examples, case studies, and other resources used. As this occurs, the importance of the availability of high quality online instructional resources will grow. The Ocean Literacy Principles have proven to be an effective framework to address K-12 instruction about ocean-related topics and science concepts. It has been shown that regional ocean literacy principles, those developed for a specific geographic region, can also be a successful approach to environmental literacy. With the parallel effort developing Gulf of Mexico (GoM) literacy principles funded by MASGC, we recognize that these GoM literacy principles can serve as an organizing framework for a variety of educational resources specifically about the GoM including lesson plans, data-rich activities, field guidebooks, hands-on activities, professional learning opportunities and videos. It is with this context in mind that we propose to develop a set of GoM specific videos highlighting GoM literacy principles with an accompanying instructional guide that includes background information, additional resources for exploration and relevant activities and challenges.