Students from the Advanced Graphic Design class will begin work during August. This is the latest in new collaborations with secondary schools and other organizations that is moving SEEdS towards the achievement of new innovations in education.

The brand identification program that Mike Srsen and his students are working on with the SEEdS team will form the foundation of the SEEdS brand experience that target audiences and constituencies will have with the project.

Last July, President Obama announced the American Graduation Initiative, calling for 5 million more college graduates by 2020.

The statistics are stark and chilling. Almost 70 percent of high school graduates in the United States enroll in college within two years of graduating, only about 57 percent of students who enroll in a bachelor’s degree program graduate within six years, and less than 25 percent of students who begin at a community college graduate with an associate’s degree within three years. Low-income students and minorities have it even worse. Only 30 percent of blacks ages 25-34, and less than 20 percent of Latinos in that age group, have an associates’s degree or higher.

The Sustainable Ecosystems Education in Science project’s SEEdS for Success and SEEdS GreenNews capture students’ attention, focuses them on real-world issues and applications of science, technology, math and engineering and raises awareness of exciting new career pathways available through higher education.

Nationally, since 1996, there have been no significant changes in average science scores for 8th graders, and there has been a decline in science scores for 12th graders (NCES, 2009). In addition, math and science score gaps between white and minority students persist and high school drop out rates among all students are still high; especially in minority populations.

Current reform efforts in the U.S. are clearly not producing results. What needs to change in America’s high schools? In Stigler and Hiebert’s (1999) study comparing U.S. and Japanese mathematics classrooms, they found that U.S. classrooms emphasized learning terms and practicing procedures while Japanese classrooms emphasized problem-solving and critical thinking.

Inquiry-, problem-, and project-based learning are promising new approaches that focus on rigor, relevancy, and relationships (ICLE, 2008) and the development of technology and 21st Century skills (P21, 2010). This approach, commonly referred to as student-centered learning (SCL), improves student interest, engagement, and achievement in academic content and better prepares them for higher education and their careers.

We will use this term to refer to instruction that addresses real-world problems using a project-oriented strategy that teaches students how to formulate appropriate questions and strategies to solve problems. While there is data indicating that SCL methods can have positive effects on students’ attitudes and achievement, this approach has not been widely implemented on a large scale, and not much research has been done to find out how well it works at the high school level.

SEEdS takes an innovative approach to improve academic achievement and college and career readiness for students in grades 9-12 by engaging students in the science and technology behind the “green” movement. This generation embraces the ideas of reducing carbon footprints; conservation of natural resources; recycling; composting; alternative energy sources (wind, thermal, fuel cells, solar, biofuels); organic, local, and sustainable food production; water harvesting; monitoring and clean-up of the environment; Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design Standards (LEEDS) construction; nanotechnology; and more.

Thus, students have an intrinsic interest in being “green.” Students are very familiar with many of these practices, at least at a superficial level. However, they are not familiar with the emerging research occurring at universities or practices being used by newer companies.

For example, how many students know what hydroponics or aquaculture is, or how algae or sorghum can be converted to a biofuel? The basic sciences of biology, chemistry, and physics, as well as mathematics, engineering and technology, underlie these concepts and practices.

Other areas such as economics, marketing, entomology, botany, climatology, and thermodynamics are also involved, demonstrating the interdisciplinary nature of science.

These new sustainable technologies are fascinating to students and provide a real-world context for them to learn Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics (STEM) concepts and become interested in working in STEM fields.

The SEEdS team is in development of newly proposed Thematic Modules and Lessons:

Energy

power basics, fuel cells, solar photovoltaics, concentrating solar power, solar stills, wind

Water

quality, analysis, filtering, gray water, rainwater harvesting

Materials

sustainability analysis, recycling, industrial processes

Food

irrigation efficiency, hydroponics, aquaculture

Construction

LEED certification, insulation, lighting, landscaping

Transportation

traffic flow, mechanical analysis, infrastructure, alternatives

Communications

bandwidth basics, monitoring, networks

Recently I sat down over a cup of coffee with SEEdS Advisory Board member Henry Rubin at his neighborhood haunt, Raging Sage in Tucson Arizona, to talk about professional pathways and education for students who want to pursue a career in broadcast television and media production, two keys to success.

In a career spanning more than two decades, Henry Rubin has played a key role in the television production of several Summer and Winter Olympic Games as an Editor and Edit Supervisor, currently with NBC Olympics, and most recently at the 2010 Vancouver Winter Olympics. He is Broadcast Operations Manager at the Center for Learning Technology in Tucson. He was Vice President and Senior Editor at Video Workshop, and Senior Editor at PBS affiliate KUAT-TV, also in Tucson.

As a broadcast media consultant with RubinMedia Consulting, Henry is a regular consultant and trainer for Sony Electronics (this week he returned from another stint with Sony at NAB), and Editor-Producer-HD consultant for the City of Tucson. He is also an Edit Supervisor at NBC Sports.

With the explosion of “do it yourself” media production, there is even greater interest among young people in getting into the television and digital media industry and enjoying satisfying, fulfilling careers. The Internet opened a new world for creation, production, and distribution of content simply unavailable to us until the last several years. The last couple of years has seen an explosion of media content on the Web that has revolutionized how young people view media and their active involvement.

For those wishing to work at the apex of mainstream broadcast and digital media, the door to entry is still a competitive and elusive one, yet open to those who seek the right opportunities and are willing to work hard learning their craft.

“It’s a multiple algebraic equation,” said Henry. “A factor in student success is the internship.”

He stressed the importance of the internship experience as a key element in progressing toward professional success. “They need this experience, to get it somehow before they commit to a career path, so they know where they want to be,” he said.

“For those who want it and prepare for it, we need to place them in those situations, whether it’s a radio station, the IT world, a TV station. Hands-on experience with professionals is what these students need.”

Henry went on to describe a simple formula for success—typical of those working at the highest levels of their industry. “Individuals who have made it in the business have a love of the craft. At that level, there is a combination of being good at it and loving what you do.”

It starts with getting a good education, he said, and whether it’s secondary school or higher education, you need qualified professors.

“At most colleges and universities, you have professors who are not qualified, often those with little professional experience. They can theorize and students need a solid grasp of theory, but many professors cannot tell you how to go from A to Z—from an interest in a career to being a working professional in the industry.”

“Both theory and academics are important so you can guide individuals to where they want to be,” he said. “It’s a good start to introducing students to media.”

However, Henry thinks many students get an unrealistic perception of what careers in television really entail.

“TV is perceived to be “cool”, but it may not be the best choice for the student.”

Awhile back, Henry considered accepting a teaching position at Western Carolina University where one of his responsibilities would be to guide students into broadcast and other media careers. These students do internships with major media corporations. While he chose not to make the move, he continues to advise the University on internships and connects students with these opportunities through his network of contacts.

Students need to be serious and pursue excellence as a prelude to networking with the right people to gain access to the opportunities they need to develop careers. Henry said the world of TV sports provides a clear example.

“The professionals doing sports now, they know intimately the teams and players of the sport they are covering. The writers and producers know that particular sport,” he said. “Look at NFL Films. They have a multi-million dollar facility in New Jersey. They recruit top students from the top schools like Notre Dame. They want people working there who can think and are invested in their schooling.”

ESPN has taken on the campus mode at their headquarters in a way similar to what Microsoft did in creating their campus in Redmond, Washington.

“The ESPN campus grew up in Bristol Connecticut and their program engages college grads, interns, as well as professionals—it’s a culture.”

Like CNN, ESPN started out as a dinky cable programming company and grew into a giant, he said.
Henry emphasized the point that once college students enter the industry after graduation and become professionals, they need to stay current. Like any profession, the learning process never stops. The field is constantly changing. Henry himself is currently at work in studies in a master’s degree program.

“With technology, it’s axiomatic—the technology changes, but the stereotype is true. The Olympics – the technology completely goes through a quantum change every two years for the Winter Olympics and Summer Olympics,” said Henry.

In 2010, NBC went through another quantum change for the Winter Olympics coverage. Henry recounted the new paradigm that reflects the rapid increase in Internet TV development and penetration.

“For the Vancouver Olympics, they told us, this is going to be the “live” Olympics. True, but the programming is stored on and delivered from servers. There are multiple distribution channels including Universal Sports, NBC, CNBC, MSNBC, USA, Telemundo, and the Highlights Factory pumps out highlights for Web entities.”

“The IOC designed this as the first Olympics where all the games were online and delivered throughout the world. The exception was in the U.S. where NBC had exclusive distribution rights in their contract for which they made a huge investment. But elsewhere in the world, viewers could watch all the games anytime.”

“NBC Universal paid big dollars for rights negotiated for their first two contracts for the Sydney and Salt Lake City Olympic Games and then negotiated again,” he said (NBC is reported to have paid a record US $2.2-billion in 2003 for the U.S. broadcast rights to the Beijing 2008 Summer and Vancouver 2010 Winter Olympics, and actually lost money on the Vancouver Games for the first time in its history of broadcasting the Olympic Games).

At Vancouver, student interns performed a variety of tasks, he said, many of them what might be considered menial but still important, whether it’s logging program content, running and fetching, getting drinks for staff, or photocopying.

“This is a farm, a nursery for college-age kids, young talent, for the most part volunteering to learn and be involved in the process by filling the need for interns. These kids are basically volunteering or getting paid little for their work–the value is in the experience,” said Henry.

“Nowadays, kids are already producing their own videos and posting them on YouTube and other social media sites,” he said. “They’re part of the DIY generation. Each development in technology brings the individual closer to communicating worldwide.”

Henry advises the SEEdS project on high school students’ involvement in the production of SEEdS GreenNews and SEEdS for Success Learning Modules videos. By carefully matching these students’ career and technical education with career advising and SEEdS internships, these students will have a powerful advantage as they pursue higher education and career opportunities.

As each new generation, more media savvy than the last, comes along, industry professionals like Henry Rubin are taking responsibility for guiding those students who are truly passionate about the work and acquire the necessary knowledge, skills and experience.

By forming a channel and continuum through education and networking into professional experiences, we lead this new generation to positions where they can create a new future for television and digital media of all kinds.

* * *

View a list of all SEEdS Advisory Board members

plant SEEdS in your schoolsTM