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Experiments in learning Mail Tribune / Bob Pennell Students in Jane Wood's fifth-grade class at Lone Pine Elementary School take cover as science demonstrations spin, fizz and pop during a school visit by OMSI. Science will gain renewed focus in elementary schools across Oregon as part of the state assessment tests. OMSI demonstrations give students the idea that science can be fun By DAMIAN MANN Mail Tribune A thunderous explosion was all part of the fun of a science demonstration at Lone Pine Elementary School Monday. But administrators know that science will be a very serious topic at elementary schools all over Oregon this spring as a state assessment test returns after a year's hiatus. Students oohed and awed as they watched chemical mixtures explode, poked at owl droppings and checked the color of substances burned in flames during controlled demonstrations given by the Oregon Museum of Science and Industry. Schools find added science assessment difficult to fit in Fitting in one more state assessment will be difficult for schools already working hard to make sure elementary students learn reading, writing and mathematics. The state wants all schools to test fifth-graders in science this spring in addition to other tests in reading, writing, math problem solving and math multiple choice. Phoenix-Talent schools curriculum director Tim Mobley science said the district just doesn't have the resources to focus significant new energy on the science assessments. "We look at the science standards and integrate them where we can into reading, writing and math," he said. "We don't have time to do it all. If people think so, I invite them to come down and check us out." Mobley said he wants students to become interested in science, but not at the expense of reading, writing and mathematics. Education officials were hoping that the Legislature would allow schools to do some of the benchmark testing in so-called "off-years," specifically allowing sixth-graders to take the science assessment. Currently students must be assessed in grades 3, 5, 8 and 10. Educators were worried that students would spend too much time during a year preparing for tests. "We breathed a sigh of relief when it went to sixth grade," remembers Medford schools curriculum director Phil Long. "There was just a lot of pressure with all those assessments." But the hopes of spreading the assessment load into other grades was lost after the Legislature insisted schools stick to the original benchmark years of grades 3,5, 8 and 10. Long said Medford elementary schools already have a strong science program and should be ready for the tests. "I thought something was going to catch on fire," said fifth-grader Shawn Webber. His friend, fifth-grader Jeremy Kotler, added, "I thought the school would catch on fire." School officials hope the show provides more than just the drama and sheer fun of the experiments. They hope it will also ignite interest in science. In part, that's because this spring the fifth-graders at Lone Pine will join with their fifth-grade peers across the elementary in taking the state benchmark tests for science. Last year, educators debated about whether to give the assessments in sixth grade, to cut down on the number of state required tests facing the fifth-graders. The Oregon Department of Education wanted legislators to consider easing up on the number of tests required in fifth grade, which now includes reading, math problem-solving, writing, math multiple choice and science. The state is also planning for more tests in the future. "The concern becomes how much assessment do you do in a concentrated time," said Medford schools curriculum director Phil Long. The Legislature finally decided that the test must be given in fifth grade, a decision that came too late for this year's sixth-graders, who have never been assessed in science and now will wait until the eighth grade. With so many tests required of fifth-graders, the Medford School District applied for a waiver that allows some tests to be given in the winter, some in the spring. Next year, no waivers will be allowed and all assessments will be required after March 1. "The whammy this year is science," Long said. "We have an additional push this year after having relaxed last year." Lone Pine PTO volunteer Betsy Whispell agreed, "It's a frustrating time for kids. Things are in such flux." Despite that frustration, Lone Pine is gearing up for the tests, offering an upcoming science fair and a science family night. Whispell said the PTO completely funded the OMSI visit, which cost $2,000, raised through a direct donation campaign from parents. Principal Rich Miles said these kinds of activities enhance the curriculum and also encourage students to do better on the science test. "This shows the kids how fun science can be and gets them motivated," he said. "Kids seem to pay more attention when somebody from the outside comes in." OMSI Outreach educator Brad Fairbanks said the science fair provides the kind of resources and offers the kind of experiments that would be difficult for a school handle. "It's hard to store hydrogen and liquid nitrogen," he said. Many of the experiments, designed with Oregon standards in mind, appeal particularly to elementary age students. "The younger kids are so wide-eyed and amazed at what you have," he said. Fifth-grader Kelsey Hoeper learned a valuable lesson from the show. "Never put a fire by a balloon," she said. Also, "If you put a flame on a breath mint, it will start glowing." Would she ever try one of those experiments at home? "No way," she said. Reach reporter Damian Mann at 776-4476, or e-mail [email protected] Mail Tribune Home | Ottaway Newspapers, Inc. | Dow Jones & Co., Inc. | Privacy | Contact Us Copyright � 2001 Mail Tribune, Inc.