A part of the SERC Teacher Professional Development Program Collection

Earth seen from Apollo 17 Page prepared for SERC by Heather Rissler in consultation with Dr. Susan Gallegher, GLOBE

GLOBE Teacher Workshops

Program URL: http://www.globe.gov/
Program Type:
Professional Development Workshops

Program Size:
In-service, K-12 Teachers


Dr. Susan Gallagher, Education Technology Manager

Program Summary


Global Learning and Observations to Benefit the Environment (GLOBE) is an international program with over 100 global partners and over 100 US partners. US partners lead workshops and are located in school districts, informal science centers, and in Education or Geosciences Departments at Universities. The workshops have various degrees of availability ranging from workshops that are open to all teachers to workshops that are restricted by regions. Topics of workshops are determined by individual GLOBE partners, including topics such as hydrology or atmospheric science. In-service teachers participate in the workshops and receive training in content and specific protocols so that their students can collect and share data with other students and scientists.

What was the impetus for the program?

The GLOBE program was started in 1994 to create collaborations between students and scientists around the world. The program allows students to be involved in hands-on data collection and analysis where students collect and report on environmental measurements that are maintained and shared via an international database.

Recently the GLOBE program conducted and in-depth evaluation and created a new strategic document called The Next Generation of Globe (NGG). While NGG goals and objectives are built on the goals below, there is a greater emphasis on student research, internationalization of the program, and long-term program sustainability.

How is the program structured?

The GLOBE program offers multiple opportunities to support professional development of K-12 educators. GLOBE partners throughout the US offer professional development workshops (see schedule) that cover content including:
  • Atmosphere/Climate
  • Hydrology
  • Land Cover/Biology
  • Soils
  • Phenology

Workshops instruct participants in content and the methodology necessary for their students to make scientific measurements that can be contributed to the GLOBE database.

Who is involved?

Faculty from GLOBE partnerships participate in leading workshops that cover various topics. An online training workshop is available for faculty interested in leading workshops. Faculty who are interested in leading workshops can get involved by contacting GLOBE partners in their regions.

Teachers should consult the workshop schedule to find a workshop that fits their specific content needs. By attending workshops, teachers will gain hands-on experience, content and pedagogical instruction related to the earth and environmental science concepts, and GLOBE measurement protocols that they can implement in their classroom.

How is the program maintained and funded?

The GLOBE program is funded through NASA and NSF, with in-kind support from the US Department of State.

References and Notes:

  • GLOBE: A Worldwide Environmental Science and Education Partnership: An article from the Journal of Science Education and Technology that describes the GLOBE program. (Finarelli, 1998)
  • A GLOBE Collaboration to Develop Land Cover Data Collection and Analysis Protocols: An article from the Journal of Science Education and Technology that describes the robustness of using student gathered data based on GLOBE land cover studies. (Becker et al., 1998)