November 3, 2005
Youth explore possibilities of ocean and marine sciences
Pacific Northwest eighth- and ninth-graders identified by teachers as being at or above the 95th percentile through national standardized testing — and with an interest in marine and ocean sciences — attended a day of exploration Oct. 29 at the UW.
Sponsored by the School of Oceanography, and including presenters from aquatic and fishery sciences, the Applied Physics Laboratory and mechanical engineering, 60 students and nearly 60 of their parents were on campus.
The event was a chance to showcase what’s offered here and help students and parents weigh what and where the youths might eventually study, according to Kittie Tucker, administrator of the School of Oceanography.
The students visited the UW’s salmon hatchery, fish collection and a small-scale model of Puget Sound and heard speakers talk about subjects ranging from molecular biology to the engineering that goes into today’s ocean instruments. Meanwhile parents heard about planning for college and attended their own science sessions — for example, leaning how ocean biology shapes the health of the planet.
The students are all participants in the Johns Hopkins University Center for Talented Youth program, which identifies top academic students in grades two through eight and provides educational activities through their 10th grade year. The educational activities involve partners, such as the UW School of Oceanography, that choose to offer daylong conferences, distance education or summer residential programs.
The UW is one of eight institutions across the nation offering conferences on “Explorations in Marine and Ocean Sciences” this fall for eighth- and ninth graders.
All the students on campus last weekend were from the Northwest, except one from Colorado and one from British Columbia. The students were not only initially identified by their teachers as academically talented because of standardized tests, they also had to take a special above-grade-level-test that provides specific information about their abilities. Parents get the results along with materials to help them plan their child’s education.
