Why the Secret of the Great Smoky Mountains Institute at Tremont Should Influence Science Education—Connecting People and Nature
Jenkins LL, Walker RM, Tenenbaum Z, Sadler KC, Wissehr C. 2014. Why the Secret of the Great Smoky Mountains Institute at Tremont Should Influence Science Education—Connecting People and Nature. Pages 265-279. In Tippins DJ. EcoJustice, Citizen Science and Youth Activism. Environmental Discourses in Science Education. volume 1
The Great Smoky Mountains Institute at Tremont (GSMIT) is an environmental education center located within the boundaries of Great Smoky Mountains National Park (GSMNP hereafter) near Townsend, Tennessee. Found at the southern end of the Appalachian mountain chain, GSMNP straddles the border between Tennessee and North Carolina and is the largest national park east of the Mississippi River. GSMNP is widely recognized for its rich biodiversity of plant and animal species, due primarily to the variety of climatic conditions and elevations within the park. Temperature and rainfall fluctuations within this region create numerous ecosystem types, which support a wide variety of species (Linzey 2008). This species richness, in addition to GSMIT being located within a protected park system, provides a unique environment that allows the center to have far reaching effects on student learning through citizen science.
- Type
- Book Chapter
- Authors
- Jenkins, Lynda; Walker, Ryan; Tenenbaum, Zena; Sadler, Kim; Wissehr, Cathy
- Units
- GRSM
- Keywords
- citizen science, Environmental Education, Great Smoky Mountains Institute at Tremont, GRSM-01069, GRSM-01092, science education, stem