By Trish Moore, Star-Bulletin
Sister Lilia Patriarca, a teacher at St. Catherine's School in
Kapaa on Kauai, uses a hair dryer and a ping-pong ball during a
demonstration. At right is Michelle Davis,
an aerospace education specialist.
NASA helps
Kauai teachers
simplify concepts
The Pathfinder aircraft shows
By Trish Moore
math and science at work
in the real world
Star-BulletinLIHUE -- Chris Schumacher says he has trouble teaching concepts such as gravity and air pressure to sixth-grade students at Kalaheo Elementary School.
But a teacher training class sponsored by the National Aeronautics and Space Administration gave Schumacher some fresh ideas for how to explain those concepts.
"They break it down to the point where a sixth-grader can get it," he says.
About 45 teachers on Kauai -- and the students they teach -- are reaping the benefits of NASA testing its experimental Pathfinder aircraft at the Pacific Missile Range Facility on Kauai.
The Pathfinder is a 120-foot-long single-flying wing with six propellers powered by solar energy. Piloted by remote, the aircraft set a world record on Kauai last month, reaching an altitude of more than 80,000 feet.
Educators are hoping the Pathfinder will stimulate the imagination of students and provide an example of how math and science are applied in the real world.
For example, scientists have used infrared cameras mounted on the Pathfinder to monitor the reforestation on Kauai since Hurricane Iniki in 1992, as well as the condition of coral reefs and coastal water.
Thousands of these high-resolution images will be uploaded onto the Internet, where students can access them for research projects, said Jon Derby, an education renewal specialist with the state Department of Education on Kauai.
He said the Pathfinder's presence on Kauai has exposed students and teachers to the possibilities in the science and engineering fields.
Last year more than 1,000 students took a field trip to the Pacific Missile Range Facility to look at the aircraft.
"I was amazed at how many kids and teachers who said they didn't know there were scientists on Kauai," Derby said.
Derby applied for and received a $25,000 grant from NASA to develop school curriculum using data gathered from the Pathfinder.
Michelle Davis, an education specialist with NASA's Environmental Research Aircraft and Sensor Technology program, is on Kauai this week showing teachers how to use the Pathfinder technology in the classroom.
She will also give presentations to eight schools on Kauai about the Pathfinder program.
NASA has developed a wealth of educational videos, booklets and hands-on projects to engage students in learning about science and technology, Davis said.
"It makes the classroom more exciting," said Davis, a former teacher. "I bet if you wrote NASA on the front of a textbook, kids would be more interested in it."
Dr. Leila Nitta said the training class will enable her to incorporate aerodynamics into her lessons for special education students at Kapaa High School. "If they can understand the basics, it may spark their interest at the next level," she said.
Ryne Terao said he plans to add the Pathfinder materials to a new program he's developing for his industrial arts classes at Kapaa Middle School aimed at students with an interest in engineering.
