Category Archives: Education

Sweden’s Vasa Museum offers lesson in maritime history

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Author Terry Lee Marzell explores the Vasa Museum in Stockholm, Sweden. This museum is where the historic Swedish warship known as the Vasa is housed. Photo credit: Terry Lee Marzell

Summer is prime time for teachers—and students—to incorporate travel into their vacation plans. Many people, both young and mature, know that travel, in addition to being fun and intellectually stimulating, is one of the most meaningful learning opportunities available. Last month, I was able to enjoy the fun, stimulation, and learning opportunities to be gained from a tour of four Scandinavian countries.

Scandinavia is a region that abounds with watercraft. When Hal and I were there, we indulged in numerous cruises, and we visited a number of maritime museums. One of these included the Vasa Museum located in Stockholm, Sweden. This museum was built specifically to house the Vasa, a mighty ship of great importance to the country’s nautical history. The vessel is one of Sweden’s most popular tourist attractions. In fact, more than 35 million people have visited the ship since the Vasa Museum opened in 1989.

The Vasa was a warship that sank in Stockholm’s harbor on her maiden voyage on Aug. 10, 1628. In fact, the ship went down immediately after she was launched for the first time. After 333 years lying hidden on the harbor seabed, the ship was salvaged, fully intact. Today, the Vasa is the world’s best-preserved 17th century ship.

The Vasa was armed with 64 bronze cannons and was magnificently decorated with royal and national symbols, carved and painted in dazzling colors. Photo credit: Terry Lee Marzell

The man-of-war was built on the orders of Sweden’s King Gustavus Adolphus as a weapon for his military campaign against Poland and Lithuania. Constructed between 1626–1627, the Vasa was armed with bronze cannons. In fact, she was one of the most powerfully armed ships in the world in her day. In addition, she was magnificently decorated with royal and national symbols, carved and painted in dazzling colors.

Unfortunately, the king ordered the last-minute construction of an additional deck and the installation of extra cannons. The Vasa had not been designed to carry this extra, upper-deck tonnage. The weight made the ship dangerously top heavy, and therefore precariously unstable. But nobody wanted to incur the ire of their impatient and short-tempered king, so despite her lack of stability, the ship was launched anyway—amid much fanfare and celebration. Shipwrights pushed the vessel out to harbor and held their breath, hoping for the best. Their worst fears were realized. With the first strong gust of wind, the Vasa promptly tilted, swamped, and sank. The sinking not only represented a significant financial loss, but also cost the lives of numerous Swedish sailors—plus their womenfolk and children who were aboard to celebrate the inaugural voyage.

Among the many exhibits in the Vasa Museum are the remains of numerous individuals who went down with the ship. Photo credit: Terry Lee Marzell

In 1956, the vessel was located on the bottom of Stockholm Harbor, and in 1961, after 333 years underwater, covered in the rich silt of Stockholm Harbor, the Vasa was raised. In the years that followed, she was painstakingly restored. Then the Vasa Museum was built around her, and the facility was opened in 1989.

The museum houses a collection of over 40,000 artifacts, including the intact warship herself, six of the ship’s ten original sails, and two of the original 64 bronze cannons. In addition, the exhibits include the skeletal remains (encased in glass) of at least 15 individuals who went down with the vessel and some objects belonging to those individuals, including clothing, tools, coins, weapons, and cutlery.

Learning about the Vasa would make a great lesson in European history, geography, ship design (and design flaws), the technology used to raise the ship intact, or the science behind her natural preservation in the Scandinavian harbor. If you choose to fit a lesson about this historic ship into your curriculum, you and your students can learn more by visiting the museum website. A virtual tour of the ship is also available.

As always, teach a great day!

Texas teacher earns 2024 National High School Musical Theatre Award

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It is always my pleasure to shine a spotlight on an exceptional teacher who has earned accolades for his work with young people. Today, I highlight Paul Fillingim, an artistic director at Reagan High School in San Antonio, Texas. He is one of two teachers in the country who has been honored with the 2024 Inspiring Teacher Award from the Jimmy Awards. The Jimmy Awards, also known as The National High School Musical Theatre Awards, is known for showcasing the best talent that the country has to offer.

To learn more about Paul Fillingim, view this four-minute YouTube video below:

TN teacher Emily McDonald garners Excellence in STEM Teaching Award

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Congratulations to high school STEM teacher Emily McDonald of Chattanooga, Tennessee. She has garnered an Excellence in STEM Teaching Award. Photo Credit: Emily Ann McDonald

Congratulations are due to high school STEM teacher Emily McDonald from Chattanooga, Tennessee. She has garnered an Excellence in STEM Teaching Award.

The Excellence in STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics) Teaching Award acknowledges a teacher who embodies STEM-integrated teaching strategies, classroom innovation, and whose efforts have resulted in positive student learning outcomes.

Emily teaches mathematics at University High School in the Hamilton County School District. University High is part of a unique partnership between the school district and the University of Tennessee, Chattanooga (UTC). In fact, the high school is located right on the university campus. The school serves students at no cost. The cost of the program is supported financially through grants and shared resources. Emily has taught at the school for nine years. Throughout her career, Emily has taught courses in Algebra, Geometry, Statistics, Pre-Calculus, Calculus, Honors Calculus, and ACT Prep.

This innovative educator has a reputation for engaging her students by presenting them with real-world scenarios and relevant problems, while at the same time nurturing their independence. “In my classroom, I strive to foster a culture where students understand the application of mathematics in their everyday lives,” she declares. In developing her curriculum, she allows for diverse perspectives and interests, and she values choice. She strives to empower her students with problem-solving skills that set them up for success in their future educational and career choices. Furthermore, by emphasizing the interdisciplinary nature of STEM fields, she illustrates how mathematics connects to technology and practical applications.

Emily earned her Bachelor’s degree in Mathematics in 2014 and her Master’s degree in Curriculum Instruction in 2015, both from Tennessee Technical University. She earned her PhD in STEM Education with a concentration in Mathematics from the University of Tennessee, Knoxville, in 2015. She is also a Google Certified Trainer.

Elem teacher De’Shawn Washington named 2024 Massachusetts Teacher of the Year

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Elementary school teacher De’Shawn Washington of Lexington, Massachusetts, has been named his state’s 2024 Teacher of the Year. He is the first African American man to be so honored. Photo credit: Massachusetts Teachers Association

It is always my pleasure to share the story of an outstanding educator who has earned accolades for their work in the classroom. One of these is De’Shawn Washington, an elementary school teacher from Massachusetts. He has been named his state’s 2024 Teacher of the Year.

The honored educator is the first African American man to be honored with Massachusetts’ top educator honor. “It starts with having the Black students in the classroom seeing their future selves as an older person, as a teacher, in a classroom,” De’Shawn asserts.

De’Shawn teaches a fourth grade inclusion classroom at Maria Hastings Elementary School in Lexington. His career as an educator spans eight years, four of them at Hastings Elementary. “It’s all about the passion, right?” declares De’Shawn. “Teaching is a calling. I’m very fortunate to be in education and be in this work today,” he concludes.

In addition to his work with his young students, De’Shawn is a member of his district’s Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion Community Input Team; the Elementary Schedule Review Committee; and the Student Success Team. He is also a member of the School Site Council. Prior to his work in Lexington, he taught in Boston Public Schools.

As if all that were not enough, De’Shawn organizes workshops at the University of Massachusetts, Boston, to help pre-service teachers pass the Massachusetts Tests for Education Licensure. He has presented and published about culturally responsive instruction. He also volunteers as a Big Brother.

He received Lexington Public Schools’ Core Values Award in April 2021 for building and sustaining a sense of community in his classroom.

De’Shawn earned his Bachelor’s degree in Accounting and Finance in 2013. He earned his Master’s degree in Elementary Education in 2018 and a second Master’s degree in Special Education in 2022, all from the University of Massachusetts, Boston. Currently, he is working on his PhD in Educational Leadership and Policy from Vanderbilt University.

 

Michigan STEM teacher Colleen Cain conducts experiments in zero gravity

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Middle school STEM teacher Colleen Cain from Troy Michigan, got an opportunity to test classroom experiments during a zero gravity flight. Photo credit: The Oakland Press

It is always exciting when an educator gets an opportunity to enjoy a unique experience that sharpens her teaching skills. Colleen Cain, a middle school STEM teacher from Michigan, was given such an opportunity last March. She travelled to Fort Lauderdale to test classroom experiments during a zero gravity flight.

Colleen experienced 11 minutes of weightlessness during a series of maneuvers aboard a specially-modified Boeing 727 aircraft. The flight, which has been compared to riding a roller coaster up and down steep hills, allows teachers and researchers to float freely at the top of each maneuver. Over the course of 30 maneuvers during one flight, Colleen conducted several experiments that her students had been working on for over a year.

The outstanding teacher was offered the opportunity when she attended a conference at the Johnson Space Center in Houston, Texas, during the summer of 2022. There she met educators involved in the Embedded Teacher Program,  a partnership between the Wisconsin Space Grant Consortium, the National Space Society, and Space for Teachers.

The most difficult part of the experience, says Colleen, was designing experiments that could be performed in short time periods, since the window of time in which the participants were weightless was so brief. “It was a challenge because you had to design an experiment in micro-gravity you had to do in 20-second bursts,” Colleen examined. “Your first instinct is to start swimming, but they warn you not to, since you have nothing to push off on or stabilize yourself.” In the future, Colleen says, her experience will impact how she teaches her students. “t was so incredible,” she remarked. “It’s such a unique experience that I get to share with my students.”

Colleen teaches science to seventh graders at Larson Middle School in Troy, Michigan. Her career as an educator spans 19 years, nine of them at Larson. She is a National Geographic Certified Teacher.