Seminars on Science with the American Museum of Natural History in New York City

Location:	online
Date:	8 June 2009 — 19 July 2009
Registration Date:	20 February 2009 — 26 May 2009
Workshops:	Earth: Inside and Out, Evolution, Genetics, Genomics, Genethics, In the Field with Spiders, Space, Time and Motion, The Diversity of Fishes, The Ocean System and The Solar System.
Language:	English.

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Level 3:  Topical Seminar is a three-day seminar covering a topic or several topics of interest.  The relevancy of teaching experience and/or knowledge of the IB will vary from seminar to seminar and programme to programme, depending on the topic on offer.

 

In an exciting new initiative, IB Americas is collaborating with the American Museum of Natural History to offer online professional development to IB teachers.  These courses are available to IB teachers in all 3 programmes.

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Now in its ninth year, the museum’s award-winning Seminars on Science programme has helped over 2,000 teachers complete degree, certification and salary gradation requirements.  It has also deepened their scientific understanding by connecting them with museum scientists, rich classroom resources and their peers in a networked community of teachers.

 

Each six-week online course is designed specifically for teachers, available 24/7 and co-taught by both an experienced classroom teacher and a scientist.  The courses are available for up to four graduate credits each.

 

The course topics allow teachers to reflect on both the subject and its classroom application. The instructional team guides ongoing discussions of the course material that lead to an exciting exchange of questions, ideas and resources. Teachers complete interactive and field assignments including rock or spider collecting or a field trip to the local fish market.

 

IB teachers will benefit from:

• specialized IB course moderation
• individually customized final culminating assessment project for the Primary Years Programme, Middle Years Programme and Diploma Programme.

 

For more information on online learning, the teachers, and the time commitment, please click here

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In the Field with Spiders

Did you know that you're rarely more than six feet away from a spider? Or that these abundant predators—the largest entirely carnivorous order of animals—structure the terrestrial food chain? In this seminar, Dr. Vladimir Ovtsharenko, Research Scientist in the Museum's world-renowned spider lab, introduces the study of spiders. As an example of how to study invertebrates, he explains the importance of counting and cataloging spiders, how each new species is a treasure, and why he has devoted his career to studying them.

For more information, please click here

To register, please use the following codes:

For Diploma Programme:  NYFS1C3SU09D

For Middle Years Programme:  NYFS1C3SU09M

For Primary Years Programme:  NYFS1C3SU09P

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Space, Time and Motion

Throughout history, people have grappled with fundamental questions about the physical origin, workings, and behavior of the universe. This course explores our changing comprehension of motion, time, space, and matter through the ideas of the ancient Greek philosophers, Galileo, Newton, and Einstein. You'll learn how physicists measure mass, weight, and the speed of light, and how these basic measures relate to the nature of time, thermodynamics, Einstein's theories, and the wider social sphere.

For more information, please click here

To register, please use the following codes:

For Diploma Programme:  NYSTM1C3SU09D

For Middle Years Programme:  NYSTM1C3SU09M

For Primary Years Programme:  NYSTM1C3SU09P

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The Solar System

The Solar System is our local neighborhood in space, comprising our closest star, the Sun, and the matter that surrounds it. This environment provides rich and diverse source material for a seminar on fundamental astronomical concepts like motion, collisions, and scientific investigation.  Using the extensive resources available through the Museum, the Rose Center for Earth and Space and the Museum's partners at NASA, the course will explore a series of questions: How did the Solar System form? What can we tell by looking at the surface of solar system bodies? What is an atmosphere, and how do those of different planets vary? Each week will focus on a different scientific project (such as Venus Express and the Mars rovers) to reinforce the essential concept of science as an ongoing search for better understanding of the universe.

For more information, please click here

To register, please use the following codes:

For Diploma Programme:  NYSS1C3SU09D

For Middle Years Programme:  NYSS1C3SU09M

For Primary Years Programme:  NYSS1C3SU09P

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Evolution

This course draws on the Museum’s long-standing leadership in the fields of paleontology, geology, systematics, and molecular biology to tell a modern story of evolution. Students will learn why evolution is the fundamental concept that underlies all life sciences and how it contributes to advances in medicine, public health, and conservation. Students will gain a solid understanding of the basic mechanisms of evolution — including the process of speciation — and how these systems have given rise to the great diversity of life in the world today. We’ll also look at how new ideas, discoveries and technologies are modifying prior evolutionary concepts.

For more information, please click here

To register, please use the following codes:

For Diploma Programme:  NYEV1C3SU09D

For Middle Years Programme:  NYEV1C3SU09M

For Primary Years Programme:  NYEV1C3SU09P

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Earth: Inside and Out

Feel like you're standing on solid ground? In fact, the Earth and its atmosphere form a dynamic system in a state of constant flux. This seminar shows you the world through geologists' eyes. You'll see how geologists "read the rocks," delve into the geological events that shaped the planet over millions of years, and consider the interconnected systems that cause earthquakes, volcanoes, and major climate changes. A grasp of the scale and nature of geologic change helps you understand how the Earth supports life.

For more information, please click here

To register, please use the following codes:

For Diploma Programme:   NYEI1C3SU09D

For Middle Years Programme:  NYEI1C3SU09M

For Primary Years Programme:  NYEI1C3SU09P

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The Ocean System

The physical characteristics of the ocean and its related systems have framed its origin, incredible diversification of life, and amazing ecosystems, like coral reefs and mangrove forests. This seminar explores how oceanographers investigate the role that symbiotic relationships and other biological adaptations have in the dynamics of oceans, a dynamic that is being threatened by human activities and consumption.

For more information, please click here

To register, please use the following codes:

For Diploma Programme:  NYOS1C3SU09D

For Middle Years Programme:  NYOS1C3SU09M

For Primary Years Programme:  NYOS1C3SU09P

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Genetics, Genomics, Genethics

How will our growing knowledge of the genome affect our health, our societies, and the natural world? How do heredity and the environment interact? This course explores a scientific frontier: how scientists are investigating and applying the information contained in genetic codes. Examine the tools and techniques used in a molecular biology lab, learn about the Human Genome Project, and discuss the ethical issues involved in emerging fields like genetic enhancement, genetically modified foods, and cloning.

For more information, please click here

To register, please use the following codes:

For Diploma Programme: NYGG1C3SU09D

For Middle Years Programme:  NYGG1C3SU09M

For Primary Years Programme:  NYGG1C3SU09P

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The Diversity of Fishes

Fishes were the first creatures with brains and bony jaws. But their incredible diversity—fishes make up half of all vertebrate species alive today, and live everywhere from mountain streams to ocean depths—makes it easier to determine what's not a fish. This seminar explores this paradox by demonstrating how ichthyologists pursue the evidence through the study of evolution, diversity ecosystems, and biogeography.

For more information, please click here

To register, please use the following codes:

For Diploma Programme:  NYDF1C3SU09D

For Middle Years Programme:  NYDF1C3SU09M

For Primary Years Programme:  NYDF1C3SU09P

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Please click here to download the registration form for the above courses.