Penn State Extension has posted a one hour webinar on November 20 by Educator Jennifer Fetter focusing on several new educational tools that have been developed by Penn State Extension to facilitate youth education on water issues in Pennsylvania.

The first tool described in the webinar was Watershed Decisions. This hands-on activity seeks to introduce youth and adults to pollution issues in a small watershed, the different land uses that may result in those pollutants and the practices that can be used to help improve water quality within a small watershed.

Participants in the activity can then make inquiry- based decisions, incorporate their own personal values, and negotiate with a team as they model a community organization that is tasked with remedying their local watershed.

Evaluation results from students who have participated in the activity showed that a high percentage learned important watershed concepts and nearly half would get involved in community service projects to improve local water resources. 

The second tool covered in the webinar was a set of videos on The Role of Water in Shale Gas Drilling. These short videos, targeting middle and high school students, were created to increase understanding about water and the environmental impacts of shale gas drilling and production in the Mid-Atlantic region.

The videos are designed for use by formal and informal educators to present in a group setting, or to be watched individually. The first video is 26-minutes and covers A Water Drop on a Journey - Shale Gas Drilling in the Mid-Atlantic.

The second 23-minute video is entitled True or False: Common Concerns about Water & Shale Gas Drilling in the Mid-Atlantic Region. Additional handouts and academic standards alignment can be found online for these videos as well.

The final tool described in the webinar was a new youth-oriented fact sheet and website on The Water We Drink. This material was designed for youth in grades 6 through 12 and is available as a printable fact sheet or in website format.

The goal of these materials is to help youth to better understand why drinking water is important to them, where it comes from, and how we make sure it's safe to drink.

A video copy of the 45 minute webinar along with copies of the slides and links to these educational tools can be found on the Penn State Water Resources Extension webpage.

(Written By: Bryan Swistock, Water Resources Specialist, Renewable Natural Resources, Penn State Extension, Department of Ecosystem Science and Management, and reprinted from the Penn State Extension Watershed Winds newsletter.)

12/2/2013