Partnership with Montgomery Schools trains teachers in water quality management exercises
High and middle school teachers from four Montgomery County (Va.) public schools will receive training in water quality management for their classroom instruction using the latest field measurement tools and techniques.
Specialists from the Virginia Tech-based Virginia Water Resources Research Center, the Center for Geospatial Information Technology (CGIT), and Virginia Tech Science and Outreach Program will share their expertise with up to 30 science teachers in two workshops this year.
The series of training seminars, which extends over three years, begins on March 30 with a one-day session, and continues during the summer with a two-day workshop. This training initiative is funded by Virginia Department of Education’s Learn and Serve Virginia program that aims to merge meaningful community service with instruction and reflection.
The Virginia Water Resources Research Center, CGIT, and science outreach specialists will explain and demonstrate topics such as the latest water quality management issues, water quality measurement technologies and Geographic Information Systems (GIS) applications.
“GIS is a technology that links physical features on the earth to a database of their descriptions, locations, and characteristics,” explains Randy Dymond, one of the CGIT specialists and associate professor of civil engineering at Virginia Tech that will conduct the training sessions. “We will show the teachers how to study the chemistry and biology of the stream water and then analyze these data for water quality management purposes using GIS. Ultimately, we would like to get the students excited about using the latest technology while becoming aware of the environment,” concludes Dymond.
Montgomery County science and agriculture teachers have been independently conducting water quality investigations with their students for 18 years, but this training initiative brings something new.
“What this project contributes is an unprecedented partnership between Virginia Tech and the Montgomery high schools. We are able to offer the teachers the technologies and facilities to create a focused and systematic approach to educating high school students in environmental issues,” says Tamim Younos, associate director at the Virginia Water Resources Research Center and research professor of water resources in the Geography Department at Virginia Tech, the project’s lead partner. “We hope these exercises stimulate students’ critical thinking and curiosity about water environment issues, and make them aware of the causes of environmental problems in their own backyard and the consequences of human activities.”
“Montgomery County's agricultural activities and its rapid trend toward urbanization create a need to ensure that its water bodies are continuously monitored over time and that the results of this monitoring are shared with the community and with local and state agencies,” explains Patricia Hubble, supervisor of science for Montgomery County Public Schools. “Through this training project, almost 300 students will have the potential to be instrumental in meeting the need for water quality monitoring, while increasing their understanding of environmental stewardship, civic responsibility, and meaningful community service.”
The four participating Montgomery County schools are Auburn High School (Riner, Va.), Blacksburg High School (Blacksburg, Va.), Christiansburg High School (Christiansburg, Va.), and Eastern Montgomery High School (Elliston, Va.). In addition to the Virginia Water Resources Research Center and CGIT, the partners of this project include the Virginia Tech Service-Learning Center, Virginia Tech Science Outreach Program, Montgomery County Planning and GIS Services Department, City of Blacksburg Planning and Engineering Department, and the Virginia Department of Environmental Quality.
The Center for Geospatial Information Technology at Virginia Tech functions as a dual-campus, interdisciplinary research center that specializes in cutting-edge geospatial data analysis and applications. The Center’s staff and affiliated faculty provide expertise in a variety of areas, such as infrastructure and transportation, natural resource and hazard mitigation planning, environmental management, homeland security, wireless communications, and public health.
