Interweb Science of the Week #9

It's no secret that I'm a huge fan of science and the natural world. It's also not hard to see that I think that science education, starting at a young age, is one of the most important things that any child can have access to. Sadly, in some places, providing this education is difficult for those responsible for shaping the minds of tomorrow. Low funding, fear of starting a controversy, and lack of proper training for science educators are all roadblocks that teachers today face. It's a sad but simple fact: the United States is falling behind in science education. This is something even President Obama recognized in the State of the Union address in January. He wants "to prepare 100,000 new teachers in the fields of science and technology and engineering and math", and "teach our kids that it's not just the winner of the Super Bowl who deserves to be celebrated, but the winner of the science fair". I could not agree more.

That's where this weeks ISW award winner comes in. Science Netlinks: Resources for Teaching Science, is a website put together by the Thinkfinity partnership* that "provides free, Internet-based content across academic disciplines [...] for K-12 educators, including lesson plans, interactives, and reviewed Internet resources." Simply put, this is the greatest science resource for educators I think I've ever seen. I know I'm going to be telling all of the teachers I know about it. I highly suggest checking out, whether you are an educator, have kids of your own, or are just plain into science. There are a couple of projects in there that caught my interest.

As much as this weekly award is supposed to be about internet based science, I really want to give an award to all the teachers out there as well. I worked in the field of education for over 12 years ( technically, I still do), with children and young adults of all ages, and I know the amount of time, energy, and patience that goes into being a teacher. In fact, as much as I was encouraged to get a degree in education, I steered away from it simply because I knew those things, and knew I couldn't cut it. Teachers and former teachers out there, this ISW goes out to all of you, too. Your work often goes unrecognized or under-appreciated, but you should all know that if it weren't for you and the work you do, the world would be in a terrible, terrible state. Thank you!