Today wraps up National Environmental Education Week, or EE Week, created in 2005 by the National Environmental Education Foundation. This year’s theme was “Greening STEM: Taking Technology Outdoors,” with a focus on how to use technology and hands-on projects to enhance environmental learning.

At Holbrook Travel, we strive to connect students with their environment in new and impactful ways through international field expeditions, and the educators we work with are important partners in this mission.

One way in which we’ve been able to accomplish this is through collaboration with PASCO scientific. Holbrook employs PASCO’s SPARK Science Learning System in the field to help teachers link concepts learned in the classroom with real-life data collection and analysis. The all-in-one mobile device has sensors that allow students to take measurements and gather real-time data on environmental factors such as carbon dioxide, oxygen, light, temperature, and pH.

Eighth grade science teacher Kathryn Elkins has traveled with Holbrook both for professional development and as a leader of student groups, and she and her students have used PASCO's SPARK labs in Costa Rica. She advocates a balanced approach to using technology in the field, letting students take manual measurements and then comparing that with data collected by more high-tech means.

“A stronger connection is made when you allow time for students to use both methods and see how they compare,” she says. “This allows a building of trust in the technology and provides an understanding of how to collect data if somehow the technology mechanism fails in the field.”

At the 8^th grade level, she says it’s also important to ensure students have a strong foundation of basic science skills before incorporating technology. “Otherwise they cannot make a relevant connection to the meaning of the data,” she says. “Once there is a complete understanding of how data is collected, then put technology in use and show how it relates to real-world problems.”

For educators interested in learning how to lead students on an international field expedition – including how to effectively incorporate PASCO technology – Holbrook Travel is offering a Field-Based Learning Seminar in Costa Rica from July 28 to August 1, 2013. This intensive four-day workshop will provide the skills needed to plan, design, and lead an educational program abroad. For more information, visit www.holbrooktravel.com/fbls.