The Extension Connection
The Iowa 4-H Tech Team takes on a variety of community service projects, from teaching Internet skills to seniors, to recycling old computers.
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Last update: April 2003
A quarterly publication
of Iowa State University Extension
4-H kits teach students the latest in navigational technology
When Northview Middle School science teacher Morgan Masters
teaches a unit on mapping, his students don’t just pore over atlases.
They go outdoors and use compasses and global positioning systems (GPS).
Masters, who teaches in Ankeny, simply opens a kit of equipment, topographic
maps and lesson plans developed by Iowa
State University Extension’s 4-H Youth Development program, Extension–Science,
Engineering and Technology (E-SET).
The kit teaches students how GPS works and its many applications. GPS,
which uses satellites and receivers to measure time and distance, is used
in everything from rental cars (to track where they have been driven)
to road construction. Perhaps one of the best-known applications is car
navigation systems.
“It shows where you are and how to get to where you want to go,”
Masters said. After learning the basics of compasses, the students do
simplified geocaching exercises using GPS to find hidden prizes. The exercises
are so popular, Masters is thinking of developing an evening event for
middle school parents to try GPS mapping and tracking.
To date, more than 2,000 Iowa students have used the E-SET kits. Development
and pilot testing was conducted with assistance from the Iowa Technology
Team. The Tech Team, as it is known, is a group of about 15 Iowa 4-H’ers
who plan and participate in a variety of workshops and meetings, teaching
technology skills and enhancing their own. 4-H’ers apply to be part
of this team that is supervised by staff of ISU Extension’s E-SET
program.
Community service is a primary component of Tech Team activities. Members
oversee a variety of projects, from teaching Internet skills to seniors
to recycling old computers. Throughout their activities, team members
pick up on the latest in technology and hone their leadership skills.
They’ve become so well versed in GPS they helped conduct the GPS
Learning Experiences and Activities at the National Youth Technology Conference
in Minneapolis last summer.
Currently about 10 GPS kits are available across the state, and E-SET is putting together 10 more. Before the borrowers of the kits check them out, they must undergo training by E-SET staff. “We’ve trained ISU Extension staff; agriculture, science, math and geography teachers; county conservation personnel and nature mappers,” said Jay Staker, E-SET program director.
