For Jonathan Franklin, a PhD candidate in the Department of Physics and Atmospheric Science, making the transition to Halifax and AV俱乐部 from his home just south of Boston, Massachusetts 鈥渨as easy,鈥� he says.
Perhaps a bit easier than the transition at the end of May from rainy springtime in Halifax to snowy Igloolik, Nunavut. But Franklin, who works with on climate change and pollution research, jumped at the chance to participate in a week-long education outreach program organized through (the Canadian Network for the Detection of Atmospheric Change).
Back in May 2010, Franklin took part in his first outreach experience in Pond Inlet, Nunavut. This year鈥檚 trip to Igloolik 鈥渨as more student-centred,鈥� says Franklin. 鈥淲e spent a lot of the time interacting with them in small groups, rather than just presenting information to them.鈥�
The May trip was follow-up to one in March, when another group of graduate students visited Igloolik to show school children how to build simple measurement tools. That outreach team left basic thermometers, pyranometers and anemometers for the children to use to gather basic data about the temperature, solar radiation and wind.
Franklin 鈥� along with two other university students, Anthony Pugliese (at the University of Toronto) and Melanie Wright (a master鈥檚 student at Western University), and with the CANDAC outreach co-ordinator, Ashley Kilgour 鈥� helped the kids interpret the data they鈥檇 been gathering since March. Franklin and his colleagues also helped the kids decide how to share their data with other classes and with people in their community.
鈥淪ome wanted to make a story, some wanted to draw pictures of a specific day they took measurements, and one group even made a video,鈥� Franklin says. 鈥淭hey filmed the process of setting up the pyranometer to measure solar radiation and did the editing after.鈥�
鈥淭he kids really enjoyed doing something different,鈥� he continues. 鈥淭hey were enthusiastic and invested in it, because they鈥檇 spent the time going out in the cold to take these measurements. They were very enthusiastic; it was very effective.鈥�
Helping budding atmospheric scientists
These interactive opportunities have been part of the Arctic outreach program鈥檚 mandate since its inception in 2004. Kaley Walker, associate professor in the Department of Physics at the University of Toronto, was part of the team that started the program 鈥� almost more by accident than intention.
鈥淭he CANDAC outreach program grew out of an outreach program that started when the first ACE Arctic Validation Campaign team got stuck in Resolute Bay [Nunauvut] because of a snowstorm,鈥� explains Dr. Walker. 鈥淭wo of the team stayed up talking with the principal from Qarmartalik School.鈥�
鈥淏y the time I got up the next morning, we were going to spend the day at the school and I was to give a talk about what we were doing in Eureka,鈥� she says. That led to several subsequent visits, 鈥渨ith the goal of not just talking 'at' the students. We developed workshops and activities for the classes to complement their science curriculum materials.鈥�
This year in Igloolik, the school children learned how to make simple recording tools, went outdoors in frigid temperatures to take measurements, and recorded their data for future use.
They were also encouraged to think about whether or not their data was accurate. 鈥淪ometimes the data is 鈥榥oisy,鈥欌�� Franklin explains, noting one group that took anomalous readings. So he asked them what they think happened and whether the measurement is believable. 鈥淲ith just a bit of prodding, they start thinking, 鈥榃ait a minute, what鈥檚 going on here?鈥� With older kids, anyway, we could have discussions about data quality and problems with the instruments. 鈥楳aybe a wire was loose?鈥欌��
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On the last day, a big assembly was organized in the school gym. 鈥淭hey put up all their various graphs, stories, videos documenting their data collection. All the classes came, and some of the kids鈥� families and parents,鈥� Franklin says. 鈥淎nd in the corners, they had demo stations to show their parents what they鈥檇 been doing.鈥�
Observing, quantifying 鈥� and sharing
Franklin鈥檚 own objectives for doing outreach aren鈥檛 much different from those of the program: 鈥淚 want students to pay more attention to the world around them, to see what鈥檚 going on, but also to be able to quantify it in some way 鈥� to note the first time the snow buntings arrive, for example.鈥�
鈥淯p there, children are a bit more in tune with the cycles, in the way they live. Those observations already exist,鈥� Franklin says. 鈥淚 asked a 10-year-old when the ice was going to break, and he didn鈥檛 blink: 鈥楤y the end of June.鈥� So they have a sense of the cycles already. But it鈥檚 also important to be able to share your observations.鈥�
鈥淎nd maybe they鈥檒l learn that people can make a living sitting there and staring at the weather,鈥� he says with a grin.
鈥淭he changing climate does directly connect to their way of life,鈥� he says. 鈥淢any families still hunt, so they see the changing seasons over their lifetimes. And any changes will affect them much more than children down here. So it鈥檚 important to make sure they鈥檙e paying attention to what鈥檚 happening around them.鈥�
Visit to learn more about the program鈥檚 goals and to find .
about the trip to Igloolik.