My Two Boots … A Walk Through the Wetlands. An Annual Outing for 700 Middle School Students

Abstract

[ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] Let every individual and institution now think and act as a responsible trustee of Earth, seeking choices in ecology, economics and ethics that will provide a sustainable future, eliminate pollution, poverty and violence, awaken the wonder of life and foster peaceful progress in the human adventure. --John McConnell, founder of International Earth Day Project WetKids (www.projectwetkids.net) provides wetland, environmental, estuary, and watershed experiences with local scientists, engineers, and naturalists to Pascagoula, Mississippi students and their families. Extensive activities provide participants: (1) real world, locally relevant science-based events (2) meaningful scientific experiences and interactions with field scientists, and (3) exposure to science, technology, engineering, and mathematics career opportunities in the Gulf Coast region. The Project WetKids program and accompanying research were funded by the National Science Foundation (Grant #0639629) and have been further supported by local and regional partners. Our extensive partnership includes: the Pascagoula River Audubon Center, NOAA Fisheries Laboratory of Pascagoula, Chevron Pascagoula Refinery, Northern Gulf Institute, Gulf Coast Research Laboratory, John C. Stennis Space Center, and Northrop Grumman Incorporated. In addition to developing and providing these rich watershed experiences, our university-based research team is documenting and analyzing Project WetKids' impact on students' science content knowledge, scientific aspirations, and views of science learning in experimental and quasi-experimental studies (Davis, Cwikla, & Barry, 2008) and more results will be forthcoming (Cwikla & Barry, 2009). The idea and concept for Project WetKids was spawned in part from the success of the annual My Two event in the Pascagoula School District (PSD). This day-long event for 700 Pascagoula and Gautier sixth-graders tackles wetlands and environmental science and is the focus of this article. * Pascagoula, Mississippi: & the Sciences Abound The Gulf Coast of Mississippi provides a spectacular outdoor wetlands laboratory. The town of Pascagoula, Mississippi is surrounded by wetlands, marshes, and swamps, and is bordered on the south by the Gulf of Mexico. Located at the mouth of the Pascagoula River, it is a town whose existence depends on its wetlands. Whether drawing community members into coastal and wetlands leisure activities or sustaining livelihoods in shipbuilding, fishing, or energy production, the river and the Gulf of Mexico define the lives of every person living in this district. [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] The Pascagoula School District's mission is to: Produce globally competitive graduates by inspiring them to reach their maximum potential through rigorous innovative learning experiences in concert with our diverse coastal resources and unified communities (http://psd.schoolwires.com/psd/site/default.asp). One of the District's goals is to prepare students for the statewide Biology I Subject Area Testing Program in the ninth grade. PSD has repeatedly earned performance in the top 10% of all school districts in Mississippi. Science departments have accordingly expanded course offerings to include astronomy, genetics, zoology, marine biology, AP Chemistry, and AP Biology, with an emphasis on student-centered activities and hands-on learning. PSD has documented dramatic increases in student achievement with the designation of two of its secondary schools as National Blue Ribbon High Schools. We attribute part of PSD's success to the exceptional out-of-school activities and non-traditional offerings it provides for its students. One example of the wetlands and environmental focus in PSD is the annual My Two Boots ... A Walk Through the Wetlands event. For the past six years, Ms. Sybil Wilner, a middle school Language Arts teacher, and Mr. …