Help Us Study New Orleans' Waters with Testing Kits and Equipment
The cost of lab supplies to study water quality--including a digital camera, a video microscope, lab coats, and water supply kits--from Carolina Biological Supply and other suppliers is $2652, including shipping and <a target="new" href="http://www.donorschoose.org/html/fulfillment.htm" onclick="g_openWindow('http://www.donorschoose.org/html/fulfillment.htm', 300, 800, 'fulfillwindow');return false;">fulfillment</a>.
This project is part of the Black History Month celebration because it supports a Black teacher or a school where the majority of the students are Black.
I am a biology teacher in one of the newly formed charter schools in New Orleans. Prior to becoming a charter school, the school was a citywide access school open to any student with a 2.0 or better average. As a part of a new charter, the school has emerged as an open-enrollment school accepting all students on a first-come-first-served basis during the second half of the 2005-2006 school year, regardless of their GPA. In the beginning of the 2006-2007 school year, as a staff and led by the administration and the counseling department, we have reviewed available data to assist us in focusing the programs to meet the needs of all students.
This year the biology classes will investigate the water quality of New Orleans waters-- Mississippi River, Lake Ponchartrain, Bayou Segnette, Industrial Canal, Chalmette Swamp, and Brechtel Parl Lagoon. The students will measure temperature, pH, BOD, nitrates, phosphates, dissolved oxygen, carbon dioxide, turbidity, and coliform bacteria using a water quality test kit. Then the students will collect macroinvertebrates using the kick net or the dip net methods. (A macroinvertebrate sample may provide more information about pollution or overall water quality.) The students will gather all data and present the information on a data table and graph. They will then make a comparative study of the water quality of New Orleans water at different locations.
This activity is designed
--to reduce by 10 percent the number of students scoring below basic on state-mandated achievement test;
--to improve students' understanding and application of higher-order thinking skills/problem-solving skills;
--to enhance the students' ability to apply content knowledge and skills to real world applications.
The mission of the school is to teach all students to be active learners and achievers for life through the involvement of all stakeholders, including teachers, staff, students, parents, and community. Because we are a newly chartered secondary school in New Orleans, the stakeholders in the community, through the leadership of our charter association and school administration, are designing and implementing a high-quality educational program. To provide quality education, we are exposing the 150 tenth-grade students in biology classes to this science-investigation project to enhance the skills necessary to achieve in life. This activity will also involve parents as chaperons on the field trips. Six trips will be scheduled to collect water samples and conduct water-quality tests in different areas of New Orleans. The results will be presented to New Orleans community to provide an awareness of the water quality.
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As a teacher-founded nonprofit, we're trusted by thousands of teachers and supporters across the country. This classroom request for funding was created by Ms. L. and reviewed by the DonorsChoose team.