STEM Professional Development Workshop for Educators
NASA’s Goddard Space Flight Center brought the Science and Technology Education for Land/Life Assessment (STELLA) project to local educators during a specialized workshop at American University’s Don Myers Technology & Innovation Building on Saturday.
The professional development session, designed for teachers from across DC, Maryland, and Virginia, showcased how NASA technology can be adapted for classroom use through low-cost, hands-on instruments that demonstrate principles of remote sensing and environmental monitoring.
Mike Taylor, Outreach Scientist from NASA Goddard, led the STELLA demonstration as part of a broader program highlighting NASA’s Climate Change Research Initiative (CCRI). The three-hour workshop gave educators 45 minutes of direct experience with four specialized instruments: the STELLA-1.1 and Q2 spectrometers, the STELLA-AQ air quality monitor, and the Helio-STELLA for studying light spectrums.
The session was inspired by an experiential learning approach known as the Investigative Science Learning Environment (ISLE) cycle. Teachers first explored the instruments without instructions, fostering curiosity and discovery before receiving guided instruction on their proper use and applications.
Workshop participants took their instruments outdoors to collect real environmental data, measuring spectral signatures from vegetation, concrete, and asphalt surfaces. Those using the STELLA-AQ conducted simple chemistry experiments by monitoring CO2 levels from baking soda and vinegar reactions, while Helio-STELLA users observed how different colored gels affected spectral readings.
The workshop demonstrated practical applications of these instruments, including how to calculate the Normalized Difference Vegetation Index (NDVI) – the same measurement used by NASA’s Landsat satellites to monitor Earth’s vegetation health from space. Teachers also learned how these instruments connect to NASA missions like Landsat and PACE (Plankton, Aerosol, Cloud, ocean Ecosystem).
A key highlight of the presentation was STELLA’s versatility across educational levels. The project has been successfully implemented with students ranging from 4th grade through graduate school, making sophisticated concepts like spectral analysis and remote sensing accessible at multiple educational levels.
The event was part of a broader professional development program that included presentations from NASA scientists, CCRI researchers, and graduate research assistants. The agenda also featured additional NASA educational resources and opportunities for teachers to join the CONNECTS resource group for ongoing support.
For educators interested in implementing STELLA in their classrooms, building instructions and educational resources are available through the STELLA website and the STELLA GitHub community forum.
