PA Grant Report: Conservation Ecology with the American Museum of Natural History

In preparation for her new role as a science teacher, lower school teacher Sunny Lawrence took a class on Conservation Ecology with the American Museum of Natural History. The course proved to be both illuminating and deeply relevant, proving yet again that eager students make great teachers. 

I was a homeroom teacher when I signed up for a course on Conservation Ecology offered by the American Museum of Natural History, but I knew that I would soon be transitioning into the role of a science teacher. And I was eager to improve my content area science knowledge. 

Ecology: Ecosystem Dynamics and Conservation was a six-week, online, asynchronous graduate-level class aimed at people in my exact situation: educators who were teaching science but lacked scientific backgrounds. It took as a framework the case study of Gorongosa National Park, a park in Mozambique that had been ravaged by civil war. When local communities impacted by famine started hunting large animals in the park for food, it caused a ripple effect, resulting in almost every species in the park being decimated. The course provided the context, tools, and information to understand this phenomenon as well as how the park’s ecosystem could be restored and protected going forward. 

We were introduced to the concept of “connection circles”—the idea that everything in an ecosystem impacts, and is impacted by, a variety of other factors in the ecosystem. The addition or subtraction of a single factor can completely destabilize an entire ecosystem. This framework has proved to be helpful as we approach our work with the fifth floor classes raising oysters as part of the Billion Oyster Project. It helps students understand the oyster’s role in the ecosystem of NYC’s waterways, the harm that has been caused by their near-extinction, and how their reintroduction will benefit our city’s coastline.

I also enjoyed learning about—and even getting to try!—some scientific tools. My favorite was definitely Zooniverse, where volunteer citizen scientists—in other words, anyone who wants to help—can support professional scientists in collecting and organizing data. For instance, you can view photographs from trail cams and match the animals you see to a wildlife identification guide. A tool like this could be used in the MMFS classroom with modifications and support. 

Now that I am a science teacher at Mary McDowell Friends School, I am extremely grateful to the PA for making it possible for me to take this course. It helped me to be more informed and confident as I create curriculum, present lessons, and respond to student questions. I hope to take more classes with AMNH to continue my growth as a science educator. 

Thank you so much to the PA for this opportunity and for helping me better serve the students of Mary McDowell Friends School.