Ocean science faculty from the California State University and community college systems in the San Francisco bay area have developed the Ocean Network of Science Educators using Technology (ONSET), a program for the enhancement of K-16 science education through the use of technology and field-based methods. A pilot program of ONSET will introduce teachers to the ocean sciences through a series of workshops, coastal and sea-going field excursions, and school site visits. Teachers will be assisted in developing innovative curricula that combine the best attributes of technology-enhanced and field-based instructional methods. World Wide Web (WWW) technology will be used to develop a cummunity of teachers to share classroom resources that incorporate inquiry-based methods in student learning. Six days of teacher workshops, divided evenly between electronic and field-based concentrations, will be held in 1999, culminating in the fall 1999 ONSET conference at the Bay Conference Center of the Romberg-Tiburon Center where marine research scientists will discuss educational outreach projects and current research issues with local educators, including potential future participants in the ONSET program.
