Using Sustainable Storylines to Support Next Generation Science Standards at the Middle School Level – Natural Hazards and Tsunamis

Science educational standards in the United States are not under federal mandates, but rather under state and local jurisdiction. Every few years, most districts and states revise and update their standards. One of the more recent curricular models that has been slowly gaining popularity across the US involves embracing the Next Generation Science Standards. These cover the breadth of K–12 science content standards in schools. They set the expectations for what students should know and be able to accomplish. The NGSS framework supports student growth in science and engineering practices as well as constructing and using scientific ideas to explain phenomena and solve real problems.

 

Many states, schools, districts, and teachers use a storyline approach as a hook to engage student learning. Others use the storyline as a defined series of events and lessons that are driven by student inquiry. A storyline starts with an interesting and perplexing phenomenon. Student-created driving questions will determine the direction of the class storyline. Through inquiry and experimentation, students track their progress and construct understanding to explain phenomena. 

 

In 2022 OpenSciEd, a nonprofit organization funded by the Carnegie Corporation and the Gates, Schusterman, and Hewlett foundations released a sequence of NGSS units themed with storylines for middle school science education. These were funded and created by a consortium of partners including BSCS Science Learning, Boston College, the Dana Center at The University of Texas-Austin, Digital Promise Global, and Northwestern University. This consortium facilitates the creation of sustainable, high-quality, NGSS-aligned science instructional materials that are available cost-free to all interested educators.

 

My school recently adopted OpenSciEd for our middle school science curriculum in grades 6-8. This poster session will demonstrate how the 6.5 OpenSciEd Unit on Natural Hazards addresses the use of a storyline to answer the unit question, “Where do natural hazards happen, and how do we prepare for them?” Tsunamis are the central focus of this unit. The anchoring phenomenon is designed to enable students to consider methods in which scientists detect tsunamis and how warning systems are engineered. Students ponder ways to mitigate damage to property from the flooding effects of tsunamis and protect human life. While students design solutions associated with this natural hazard during the learning process, they naturally become curious about how tsunamis form. The OpenSciEd storyline framework is an engaging way to teach students science standards.