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The Long-Term Successes of a Virtual Great Barrier Reef Education Program P.F

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The Long-Term Successes of a Virtual Great Barrier Reef Education Program P.F Vol. 3, Issue 2, August 2020 Educate to Keep It Great: The Long-Term Successes of a Virtual Great Barrier Reef Education Program P.F. Francis1, J. Spencer2, and C. McGrogan2 1School of Life and Environmental Sciences, Deakin University, Waurn Ponds Campus, Geelong, Australia and 2Great Barrier Reef Marine Park Authority, Reef HQ Aquarium, Townsville, Australia Keywords: Community Outreach, Distance Education, Environmental Education, Great Barrier Reef, Virtual Field Trip Publication Date: August 10, 2020 DOI: https://doi.org/10.15695/jstem/v3i2.03 ABSTRACT: The Great Barrier Reef (GBR) is under pressure from climate change and other threats, and part of the solution is to raise awareness of the GBR and its threats beyond a local audience (Great Barrier Reef Marine Park Authority, 2019). Reef HQ Aquarium (the national education centre for the Great Barrier Reef Marine Park Authority) implemented a virtual marine education program focussed on the GBR in 1998. The program uses videoconferencing technology to con- nect real-time marine biology experts to participants around the world. We report on > ten years of participant trends for this program to assess whether the program is a mechanism for increasing community educational outreach. Since 2005, the program increased the Aquarium’s community and educational outreach by 4.8% by connecting an additional 83 388 participants from 19 countries worldwide. While the videoconference technology has evolved overtime, the program content remains a unique, interactive virtual experience that has proven to be an effective way for an informal learning institute to increase their outreach on a national and international level, particularly as there has been a transition to online learning and educational programs due the recent global Coronavirus pandemic. INTRODUCTION Today, distance or outreach education using interactive is commonplace and more educators around the world are videoconferencing technology is used on a regular basis adopting VFTs as a regular component to their curriculum following the improvements of technology and internet ac- (Lawson et al., 2010). Generally, teachers find VFTs to be cessibility. Classrooms are connecting to informal learning a flexible learning tool (Norris et al., 2015), and VFTs have institutes such as aquariums or museums, to engage with an been documented to enhance and improve science education expert on the topic covered in class. This type of connection (McCombs et al., 2007). The benefits for students learning is commonly referred to as a virtual field trip (VFT). VFTs through VFTs have been shown to increase their motivation are a great solution for student cohorts to visit places that and their engagement with the content due to the connection might not otherwise be possible due to location, time, cost or to the real world (McCombs et al., 2007; Tuthill and Klemm, risk associated with a physical field trip (PFT) (Majherová 2002). et al., 2014; Placing and Fernandez, 2002; Spaulding and Given the benefits to VFTs, there is still resistance based Ranney, 2008). For example, students in Alaska can connect on several factors: lack of ICT training in this area, time to to marine biologists on the Great Barrier Reef in Australia or incorporate VFTs in an already heavily prescribed curricu- Australian students can interact with experts at the Johnson lum, and student’s concerns of VFTs replacing PFTs (Nor- Space Center in America. Both these examples would gen- ris et al., 2015; Spaulding and Ranney, 2008; Spicer and erally not be achievable via a PFT, as cost, time and location Stratford, 2001). The solution may be to offer a blended ap- would play major hurdles in achieving this. proach; where VFT could be used as a precursor for PFTs As we now face a new learner, the use of information or alternatively, used as a revision tool post PFT (Spaulding and communications technology (ICT) in the classroom and Ranney, 2008; Spicer and Stratford, 2001). This blended Journal of STEM Outreach 1 Virtual Great Barrier Reef - Francis Vol. 3, Issue 2, August 2020 method has been adopted in classrooms before where en- important for the primary Agency responsible for managing hanced knowledge was shown by students who participated the GBR; the Great Barrier Reef Marine Park Authority (the in this combined learning experience (VFTs and PFTs) com- Authority). pared to students who only participated in a learning expe- One of the many ways the Authority achieves this is via rience with just a PFT or a VFT (Majherová et al., 2014). A their national education center - Reef HQ Aquarium. Locat- specific example of this blended approach is a school based ed in Townsville, Queensland, the Aquarium offers visitors in Western Australia using a coral reef VFT experience (e.g. living exhibits that showcase the diversity of the GBR com- Great Barrier Reef virtual connection with Reef HQ Aquar- plemented by interactive educational experiences to raise ium in Queensland) prior to the class visiting a coral reef awareness of the threats to the GBR and in turn, encourages (PFT) closer to their physical location (e.g. Ningaloo Reef, people to adopt positive environmental behavioral changes. Western Australia). Visitation to the Aquarium averages 138,862 visitors per Not only are there benefits for the school community, annum (average calculated on 31 years of data), consisting VFTs have allowed informal learning institutions (e.g. muse- of local, national and international visitors. However, Reef ums, aquariums) and professionals working in various fields HQ Aquarium looked beyond this localized approach and of industry (e.g. scientists) to share their expert knowledge in 1998 implemented a virtual reef education program to and achieve their organization’s educational outcomes by regional schools in Queensland, Australia. Today, the pro- interacting with students in a real-time environment (Dees, gram reaches a worldwide audience where participants can 2008). Referred to as content providers, informal learning experience the wonders of the GBR through connecting and institutions can potentially expand their community and ed- interacting in real-time with a qualified marine biologist via ucational outreach range via this method (see Dees, 2008 for state-of-the-art videoconferencing technology. This paper an example). There are now hundreds of worldwide video- reports a 14-year trend of participants in the Reef Video- conferencing content providers that are listed on reputable conference program to assess whether it has been a viable online, searchable databases of distance learning program mechanism to increase outreach and deliver its core mission offering websites where schools can book their VFTs (web- of raising awareness and encouraging behavioral changes site examples include: Center for Interactive Learning and not only on a local and national scale, but also encouraging Collaboration (CILC), https://www.cilc.org; in the USA or changes at the international level. Distance and Rural Technologies Connections (DART), https://dartconnections.org.au in Australia). A content pro- vider listed on both these sites is Reef HQ Aquarium, locat- METHODS ed in Townsville, Queensland, Australia. Reef HQ Aquarium The Reef Videoconferencing Outreach Program: Evo- provides a one of a kind VFT program delivering education lution of Reef Videoconferencing. Reef HQ Aquarium content relating to the Great Barrier Reef (GBR) delivered opened in 1987 with the mission to educate and inspire vis- live by a scuba diver. itors to care for the future of the GBR. As part of achiev- The GBR is a Marine Park and a World Heritage Listed ing this mission, Reef HQ Aquarium offers daily talks and site that attracts millions of visitors to Queensland in Aus- tours to the general community as well as curriculum-based tralia every year. At approximately 2 300 km long, the GBR education programs to early childhood, school and tertiary makes up 10% of the world’s coral reef ecosystems (Great groups. While most of the curriculum-based programs are Barrier Reef Marine Park Authority, 2018). The biodiversi- delivered to students physically visiting the site, there was ty on the GBR is diverse with 600 types of soft and hard a growing need to expand the outreach beyond the GBR corals, 3000 species of mollusks, 1625 species of fish, 133 shores and take the program to a wider audience. The cre- types of sharks and rays and at least 30 species of whales and ation of “Reef Videoconferencing” was first developed in dolphins (Great Barrier Reef Marine Park Authority, 2018). 1998 following funding from Telstra IT Learning Project. Being one of the most biologically diverse ecosystems on The program began with a partnership between Reef HQ earth, the GBR is a popular topic integrated into the science Aquarium, Videolink Taskforce (TAFE Queensland), Barri- and geography learning areas of the Australian Curriculum. er Reef Institute of TAFE and Education Queensland. The For example, “Scootle” which is an online digital resource initial project saw Queensland schools partake in 3-5 week site for Australian teachers, provides the resource “Biodi- long modules focusing on marine ecology and management. versity and the Great Barrier Reef teacher resource book- In 1999, the initial funding for the program ceased and it was let” which directly aligns with the Australian Curriculum. not until 2003, Sony sponsored the program by delivering a However, with the increasing levels of environmental threats new videoconferencing system (Sony PCS-1P) that enabled facing the GBR, across multiple scales (local, regional and multisite capabilities. The technology upgrade was perfectly global) educating the wider community beyond the Austra- timed with the release of the blockbuster movie “Finding lian classroom about these threats has become increasingly Nemo” where the GBR was showcased to audiences around Journal of STEM Outreach 2 Virtual Great Barrier Reef - Francis Vol. 3, Issue 2, August 2020 been closed in response to social distancing restrictions en- forced due to the global Coronavirus pandemic in 2020.
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