CRESTVIEW

A teacher is seeking corporate sponsorship to continue the program.
By NANCY TULLIS
VINDICATOR SALEM BUREAU
COLUMBIANA -- Crestview eighth-graders saved the world -- at least a little corner of it.
Eighth-graders in Scott Workman's science classes culminated a three-month study this week with E-Mission: Operation Montserrat, an online mission scenario through the Challenger Learning Center at Wheeling Jesuit University.
What they did
The challenge was for pupils to work as a team to gather, process and communicate information about an erupting volcano and approaching hurricane that threatened the inhabitants of Montserrat Island in the Caribbean Sea.
Mission preparation was the focus in science, math, language arts and social science classes since last November. On Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday, the eighth-graders then acted as the command center to inform and evacuate residents of the island for the simulated disasters.
What they learned
The online mission drills pupils in math and science skills to gain an understanding of the workings of the atmosphere, hydrosphere, biosphere and lithosphere. They then used the knowledge they gained and the skills they honed in their specialty areas, working in communications, hurricane and volcano information and evacuation teams.
The evacuation teams used information sent from Wheeling Jesuit and gathered by the hurricane and volcano teams to make decisions about evacuating residents.
"It's a lot of fun and a great experience, but I didn't expect it to be that hard," said Corey Vernaccini. "They took our buses away."
He was a member of an evacuation team. The mission commander later said his group was doing so well, she chose to make four of the ten buses unavailable.
The group successfully evacuated 800 people using six 40-passenger buses and some personal vehicles.
David Fristic was on a communications team and relayed the pupils' messages to mission control.
"You have to be patient and have good social skills for this job," Fristic said. "You have to pay attention and keep everyone from talking all at once."
The commander at Wheeling Jesuit coordinated the efforts of the university's Challenger Learning Center staff and provided updates as situations changed.
In the next few days the eighth-graders will discuss the experience and write reports detailing their individual roles and the results of their team's decisions.
Workman said the mission shows the importance of distance learning and he wants to continue it. The project is funded through a grant, and he plans to seek corporate sponsors next year and in future years.
He said the mission is good experience for eighth-graders because the focus is on teamwork, a skill they will need as they move into high school and then into college and careers.
According to information provided by the university, Wheeling's Challenger Learning Center is part of a growing network of nationwide centers established by the Challenger Center for Space Science Education in memory of the ill-fated Challenger Space Shuttle crash in 1986. The families established the center to continue the mission of the crew by providing a unique hands-on learning experience designed to foster student interest in math, science and technology education.
The families of the crew helped establish the Challenger Center for Space Science Education in Alexandria, Va. The nonprofit organization provides each of the 43 nationwide centers with technical support and computer programs for various missions.