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The Philippines is an archipelago of more than 7,100 islands, with a population of over 100 million people dependent upon marine resources which are characterised by a decline in both biodiversity and abundance. The resultant large sector of fisherfolk is generally impoverished with limited education, which makes coastal adult education and lifelong learning a national priority. This article considers the Filipino fisherfolk community as a culture to identify potential input strategies regarding education development for marine science concepts. In a study piloting cultural consensus theory applications with a well-established fisherfolk organisation, the authors focus on the lack of dialogue engaging Philippine fisherfolk with standards of international marine science, bioregional resource partitioning and reflexive in-country education development. Cross-cultural strategies considered in this paper include exploring paraprofessional approaches to adult education, accommodating several dialects/languages and drawing on international science concepts. While earlier adult education initiatives aimed at fisherfolk may have had limited success in part due to a lack of cultural context, this pilot study is innovative in that it applies an existing Filipino form of "social artistry" to fisherfolk identity, expression and communication. "Siningbayan" ["Sining" = art, "bayan" = nation or town], or "art whose canvas is society" evolved through the Philippine history of organic networking and participation. Results confirm that a structured ethnoecological research design combined with "Siningbayan" appear effective for identifying education and curriculum specifics both for the fisherfolk sector of Filipino society and for professional marine science; their common goal being improved resource management. The authors place particular emphasis on subsidiarity, considering how best to transfer information to individual fisherfolk and their communities, as well as exploring their scaled-up role in leadership, organisational and professional development.

This article describes a two-day lesson in which fifth-grade students took on the role of marine biology scientists, using their critical-thinking and problem-solving skills to explore human impact on the blue crab ecosystem. The purpose of "Crabby Interactions" was to help students understand the impact of human activities on the local marine ecosystem by focusing on the blue crab. By allowing the students to participate in a life science lab and interact directly with the blue crabs, an organism found in their coastal backyard, students were able to make a personal connection with this organism and learn important ecological concepts. Teachers can situate this lesson as an extension after discussions of organisms and environments: food webs and food chains, ecosystems, life processes that help organisms survive within their environments, animal behavior and adaptations, predator-prey relationships, the water cycle, and other models and systems. The activity is targeted for fifth grade, but modifications make it suitable for lower grade levels.

University students are regarded as future decision-makers in society and have a high likelihood of becoming opinion-shapers in terms of the environment. Their awareness of the marine environment will therefore have a significant effect upon sustainable marine development. This study examines Taiwanese university students' marine environmental awareness, focusing on environmental attitudes, understanding of marine and coastal issues, and environmental behavior. A total of 825 valid samples in a questionnaire survey are used for the analysis. Overall, respondents possess a highly positive attitude towards the marine environment and a moderate self-reported level of marine knowledge, but are not actively engaged in environmental protection endeavors, particularly ones involving spending personal income and taking legal or political action. Experience in marine-related activities and marine knowledge are important in fostering marine environmental awareness, particularly in regard to environmental behavior. This study addresses the gap between widespread environmental concerns and low engagement in environmental actions by proposing a multimodal approach: improving marine knowledge and experience in marine-related activities, creating safe recreational spaces at seasides, and reinforcing legal education. This study concludes by highlighting the importance of marine environmental awareness in the development of ocean citizenship as well as the sustainability of the marine environment.

Scientific research is undergoing a "big data" revolution, as probes deployed in oceans, the atmosphere, and outer space provide near real-time data streams. As more and more data sets such as Ocean Tracks become available online, opportunities to engage students in the "Next Generation Science Standards" (NGSS Lead States 2013) practice of "analyzing and interpreting data" are blossoming (Figure 2). Students and teachers have unprecedented access to weather and climate data, images of stars and galaxies, seismic recordings, and more--data that take them not just outside the classroom but to the edges of our planet and beyond. With such abundant new data, students can ask and answer their own questions, perhaps identifying patterns that have yet to be discovered by scientists. While large scientific data sets can potentially transform teaching and learning (Barstow and Geary 2002; Borne et al. 2009; Ledley et al. 2008; Marlino, Sumner, and Wright 2004; NSF Cyberinfrastructure Council 2007; Rainey et al. 2013; Slater, Slater, and Olsen 2009), access to data often comes with a catch: Data portals meant for scientists can be unintelligible to students and teachers due to cryptic labeling, unintuitive navigation structures, unfamiliar data visualizations, and complicated analysis tools. There is a need for critical scaffolds, including customized interfaces, guiding curricula, and tools that allow teachers to assess students' progress (Edelson, Gordin, and Pea 1997; Krumhansl et al. 2012; Quintana et al. 2004; Sandoval 2001). To tackle these challenges, Oceans of Data, a National Science Foundation-funded project, set out to find and summarize what is known about designing data interfaces and visualizations for high school students. Guidelines emerged (Krumhansl et al. 2012) that are being implemented and tested in the Ocean Tracks project described in this article. This article can spur further exploration of using big data in the high school classroom. Armed with the right tools and instructional strategies, the possibilities for learning about the world through data are boundless.

Attracting K-12 students to pursue careers in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) is viewed as a critical element for benefiting both the economy and society. This paper describes an outreach program, conducted in a Brooklyn, New York, USA, public middle school, aimed at educating students in mechatronics, biology, and bioinspiration. The program is designed to foster student interest in STEM subjects, especially engineering-related concepts, by actively demonstrating their application in solving tangible real-world problems. It consists of a series of lectures and practical activities that culminate with a hands-on bioinspiration-based event at the New York Aquarium. Survey results show that students who participated in the program have a better understanding of the relationship between engineering and nature, demonstrate improved knowledge of select STEM topics, and are more interested in pursuing STEM careers.

This article reports on formative research as part of a broader interdisciplinary campaign to increase voluntary environmentally responsible boating in a local lagoon. A telephone survey was conducted with a sample (N = 404) of targeted boaters to explore their views on the environmental issue and motivations to perform the desired behavior. Results reveal over half of respondents were unaware of the environmental damage caused by recreational boating but were somewhat concerned. Importantly, many believe they are able to engage in environmentally responsible boating and that it would help to protect this marine ecosystem. The article concludes by discussing scholarly and practical contributions and future research considerations.

Studies show that overall seafood consumption in the United States is rising (Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada 2012). Other research estimates that as much as 40% of the seafood caught worldwide is discarded, while countless sharks, whales, dolphins, birds, sea turtles, and other animals are unintentionally killed or injured by fishing gear (Kledjian et al. 2014). This capture of non-targeted species--known as bycatch--is a worldwide challenge to maintaining sustainable fisheries and protecting endangered species. In this activity, students use a simple classroom model to design and test solutions to bycatch in the tuna fishery. They collect and use data to optimize their design and consider how their model might look in real life. The lessons we tested in a high school marine science course, but it could be adapted to an environmental science or biology course from eighth grade up. After this lesson, students should be able to: (1) discuss the need for sustainable fishing in the world's oceans; (2) design, evaluate, and refine a solution for reducing bycatch; and (3) relate their model design to real life. The activity takes 90-100 minutes as written--less if background reading is done as homework or more if discussion of the reading or data analysis is extended or if students do deeper research of real-life bycatch reduction strategies. Students should work in groups of four. The authors had good results blending students who have diverse talents and skill levels.

Pioneering Mars: Turning the Red Planet Green with the Earth's Smallest Settlers (http://pioneeringmars.org) provides a partnership model for STEM (science, technology, engineering, and mathematics) learning that brings university scientists together with high school students to investigate whether cyanobacteria from Antarctica could survive on Mars. Funded by NASA, and aligned with the Next Generation Science Standards, this work engages high school students in every aspect of the scientific method, culminating with students designing and implementing experiments in a university lab--experiments that will be replicated on board the International Space Station. Beyond the potential scientific breakthroughs it may produce, Pioneering Mars provides a STEM education model for project-based learning using university and school partnerships. Our team consists of a university marine science professor, a STEM education researcher, four high school science teachers, and 85 high-achieving students. The model can easily transfer to leaders and learners across the United States who will be able to replicate and extend this effort in their own educational settings.

Rare's approach to promoting sustainable fishing through social marketing in the Philippines is exemplified in the Cortes Pride campaign. The Cortes Pride campaign is a social marketing behavior change program that was part of a cohort of 12 similar sustainable fishing campaigns in the Philippines, all of which used a unique blend of social marketing, barrier removal, and community mobilization to bring about sustainable behavior change. The campaigns centered on the use and enforcement of Fisheries Replenishment Zones (FRZs; No-Take Zones) in Marine Protected Areas (MPAs).

This biology investigation on "Pristipomoides filamentosus" larval development, survival, and aquaculture research was developed with three educational objectives: to provide high school students with (1) a scientific background on the biology and science of fisheries as well as overfishing, its consequences, and possible mitigations; (2) exposure to field and laboratory techniques in marine science; and (3) practical skills in scientific inquiry and investigation. We teach this investigation at the Hawai'i Institute of Marine Biology, where we have access to captive broodstock of the pink snapper, "P. filamentosus." During this investigation students follow several steps scientists take to study aquaculture: collecting spawn from outdoor fish pens, quantifying the number of eggs, determining the percentage of fertilisation, and estimating the time of spawning and hatching. Additionally, students perform hypothesis-driven science activities with the embryos to test the effects of water quality on their development and survival. In this paper we discuss background information of aquaculture, specifically of "P. filamentosus," and thoroughly describe the several components of delivering the investigation. Lastly, we provide possible outcomes of students' performances in the laboratory activities, and discuss how effectively the exercise met its educational objectives.

Canadian-Philippine linkages on multi-year coastal Action Research and learning cycles are detailed within established participatory development strategies. Philippine sustainable development is further considered as a function of inter-jurisdictional considerations, and reflexive role shifts for academe. An organizational process is outlined to enhance partnerships and communication between the public and Philippine authorities. Public participation evaluation is suggested through a community-based consideration of goal attainment, social process and ecological assessment. Positive change is demonstrated for a related Action Research cycle in one of six marine bioregions. Action Research is further considered as a career strategy for sustainable development and global equity goals.

Migrant speakers of endangered languages living in urban centers in developed countries represent a valuable resource through which these languages may be conveniently documented. Here, we first present a general methodology by which linguists can compile a meaningful set of visual (and sometimes audio) stimuli with which to carry out a reasonably detailed ethnobiological elicitation session in an "ex-situ" setting, such as an urban university. We then showcase some preliminary results of such an elicitation carried out on the Dumo, or Vanimo, language of north-western Papua New Guinea during a linguistic field methods course at the Australian National University. With the help of a region-specific set of visual stimuli obtained from various sources, it was possible to document many fascinating aspects of the fish, and other marine-biological, knowledge of Dumo speakers, along with detailed ethnographic notes on the cultural significance of marine creatures.

This exploratory study examined the perceptions of, and relationship with, marine organisms of 81 urban sixth grade Korean students using a specifically designed survey questionnaire. The study outcomes revealed that these Korean students have limited experience with and different levels of connectedness to marine organisms. Viewed through Kellert's framework of biophilic typology, these Korean students' perceptions of valuing marine organisms were highly utilitarian, negativistic, and scientific in character. This research provides marine environmental educators and practitioners with insights into the varied perceptions of Korean elementary school students. The study's findings may provide insights on the development of ideas on how to more effectively design marine environmental educational experiences that increase ocean literacy within this demographic and possibly other students with similar cultural backgrounds.

This bioacoustics activity combines concepts in invertebrate taxonomy, animal communication, and acoustical physics while providing a unique opportunity for physics and biology teachers to collaborate and introduce their students to an exciting, interdisciplinary research field. Here, we propose a lab-and field-based activity that uses hydrophones to explore how shrimp snapping behavior changes in response to different stimuli and introduces students to the process of scientific inquiry. Using free software, students use spectrograms to visualize and analyze their experimental data. Furthermore, we propose potential modifications to the lab for classrooms without easy access to marine environments or snapping shrimp.

A hypothesis-driven laboratory is described that introduces students to the complexities of ecosystem function. Students work with live algae, brine shrimp, and sea anemones to test hypotheses regarding the trophic interactions among species, the exchange of nutrients and gases, and the optimal ratio of producers to consumers and predators in enclosed, artificial-seawater ecosystems. In the initial iteration of the activity, multiple ecosystems that differ in their composition of organisms are assembled according to simple recipes by individual students or small lab groups. Two weeks later, the ecosystems are deconstructed, and the students tally the organisms and assess key water-quality measures, including salinity, pH, and ammonia levels. Some sample data and results are presented, as well as tips for successful implementation.

As a result of shifting marine environmental conditions caused by global climate change and localized water pollution, marine organisms are becoming increasingly exposed to changing water quality conditions. For example, they are exposed to more extreme salinity fluctuations as a result of heavier rainfall, melting polar caps, or extreme droughts. Additionally, polluted coastal runoff into near-shore marine habitats has become more prevalent, carrying contaminants such as fertilizer from farmland or golf courses and other manmade harmful chemicals. At the Marine Science Research Learning Center at the Hawai'i Institute of Marine Biology, we focus on teaching hypothesis-driven and inquiry-based labs to stimulate students' scientific thinking and to increase interest in the fields of marine biology and environmental science. In this lab, we raise awareness of marine pollution and allow students to experiment with the consequences of reduced water quality on sea urchin fertilization success and early embryonic development. The labs consist of three sections: (1) a preparatory literature research and group discussion; (2) hands-on hypothesis-driven science activities; and (3) evaluation, data analysis, and scientific writing. In this article, we discuss background information on water quality changes and sea urchin fertilization, thoroughly describe the three components of the lab, and discuss possible alternatives to the lab's implementation.

Mollusks, such as mussels and snails, are a great group to noodle because they are prevalent in banks and bottoms of river basins and in sandy beach habitats. Furthermore, their shells are easy to come by and safe to handle. There are six classes within the phylum Mollusca. In the activities described in this article, the authors focus on the gastropod (e.g., snails) and bivalve (e.g., mussels) classes. Bivalves serve as good water-quality indicators due to their intolerance of wastewater treatment effluent and other anthropogenic (human-introduced) pollution sources. Mollusks play important roles within their ecosystems, but degradation of natural habitat, decreasing water quality, and increasing artificial structures contribute to the decreasing prevalence of freshwater species. In the two activities the authors describe in this article, designed for middle or high school life science or biology classes, students noodle bivalves and gastropods from a covered container, determining organism density as number per square meter and catch per unit effort. Students analyze their results and learn about using species as indicators of reduced habitat quality. (Contains 2 figures and 3 online resources.)