On July 29, 2008, The State Library of Ohio hosted a meeting of librarians at the invitation of The Ohio Academy of Science to help the Academy update library-related sections of the Science Day Standards (http://www.ohiosci.org/sds.htm) and Science Day Guide http://www.ohiosci.org/ScienceDayGuide.pdf  and expand the documents to include contemporary references and links to electronic resources.

The meeting provided an opportunity for librarians to share ideas for expanding outreach and improving services to students working on science fair research. In addition, we discussed the importance of understanding the breadth and scope of science fair projects and standards.  As part of this discussion, I reviewed the differences and similarities between scientific inquiry and engineering or technological design projects.

In their presentation, Toledo-Lucas County Public Librarians Joyce Smith and David Topoleski described their SCIENCE STAR SEARCH, a science fair workshop for students in grades 5 to 12 plus parents and teachers that helps explain the process of student research projects and introduces participants to the use of a public library. (See article… Science Star Search in District 2)

We know that virtually any public library can be a gateway for students to the world of science and technology information. However, many are unaware of the vast array of available resources at their library. Our challenge is to get students to ask librarians for help in order to match their research topic with relevant resources. The purpose for updating the Science Day Guide is to help reference librarians focus students’ searches on more specific information sources.

Library Checklist Form Updated, Refined
The meeting resulted in the refinement of the one-page Student Research Library Check List form that students who pursue inquiry and technological design projects would use with the help of reference librarians to begin their searches for critical background information.

The Library Checklist form, http://www.ohiosci.org/LibraryChecklist.pdf, suggests that students first identify broad science areas such as biology, chemistry or physics. Then, they should begin to write down key words for cross reference. As their thoughts develop, they should write possible hypotheses or technological design statements.

Armed with the student project information on the completed form, reference librarians then can direct students to the library’s online catalog that may include circulating non-fiction, reference books, or other non-fiction collections that include magazines, newspapers, journals and local resources such as organizations, government agencies, college libraries or specialized information centers.

Students may also need assistance in learning to access online databases such as www.OhioWebLibrary.org and locating magazines, newspapers, journals, science abstracts and specialized collections. Most young patrons should already be familiar with locating broader resources at a local library including general science and specialized encyclopedias.

Once students have a better understanding of how to locate relevant resources, they will find specific information in handbooks of chemistry, physics, medicine and other fields. Non-print resources include DVDs, videos, CD-ROMs and audio books. The library, teachers, and advisors/mentors may recommend approved websites for additional information.

Finally, depending on the student’s project, information on research risks such as the use of vertebrate animals, human subjects and hazardous materials will also be available (material safety data sheets- MSDS)  www.msdssearch.com

Science Day Standards Revisited
Science Day Standards (http://www.ohiosci.org/sds.htm)provide specific guidance and rules that students must follow at local science days or science fairs that will also enable them to enter their projects into District and State Science Days if they qualify. All students must have research plans; some projects, such as those involving vertebrate animals, human subjects, and hazardous materials, require approval in advance of research trials (data collection/experimentation) by a locally appointed Scientific Review Committee. Overall, students must obtain planning forms and adhere to Rules for the Intel International Science and Engineering Fair http://www.scisvc.org/isef/about/rules_regulations.asp

The Science Day Guide http://www.ohiosci.org/ScienceDayGuide.pdf  is a “how to” guide for teachers, students and parents. It provides a rationale for student research projects, explains the basic components of student research programs, and projects and guides the reader through organizing a local science day or science fair. The guide also includes several helpful timelines and checklists.

Scientific Inquiry vs. Engineering or Technological design
Under the Academy’s Science Day Standards (http://www.ohiosci.org/sds.htm), inquiry projects shall have hypotheses whereas technological and engineering design projects shall have design statements with measurable criteria for success. Thus, a hypothesis is to inquiry as design is to engineering and technology. In all cases, students must present the results of repeated trials.

Engineering and technological design projects require (1) a problem or needs statement and (2) a design statement that identifies such limiting factors and criteria for success or meeting the design as cost or affordability, reliability, material limits, operating environment or conditions, ergonomics, health and safety, and general ease of use or operation.

In a manner similar to the development of methods used to test a hypothesis, engineering and technological design projects must test the “design statement” to see how close a prototype, for example, comes to meeting the design criteria. A prototype developed for an engineering and technological design project must achieve stated design objectives and satisfy specified constraints. Generally, the results of an engineering and technological design project will describe the extent to which the prototype met the design criteria. An inquiry project shall state the extent to which the results derived from experimentation validate or invalidate a hypothesis.

• Meeting Attendees:
  Others attending the July 29th meeting included:
• The host, Marsha McDevitt-Stredney, Director of Marketing and Communications for the State Library of Ohio; 
• Mary Jane Santos, Director, The Delaware County Library ;
• Lynn Edward Elfner, CEO, The Ohio Academy of Science;
• Joanne Zinser Mann, Inquiry Education Consultant and  Adjunct Instructor, Ashland University;
• Sarah Mackey, Youth Services, Columbus Metropolitan Public Library and
• Sarah L. Hintz and Shelah Stahr, Pickaway Co. District Public Library

For more information contact: Lynn Elfner at: oas@iwaynet.net