How do you get kids excited about science, technology and math?  Show them how the stuff they learn in books helped lead to some of the most amazing discoveries, advances and accomplishments mankind has ever seen.  That was the premise for the Flight School project, a four-part electronic field trip for middle school students with accompanying web resources.  
The primary goals of the project were: 1) to enhance the learning experience by using distance learning technology (satellite delivery, video streaming, web-based activities), 2) to provide a unique interactive opportunity that will help bring science to life, 3) to provide a useable classroom tool that increases a teachers ability to translate complex content into meaningful, memorable and inspiring lessons for students, 4) to address a declining interest and enrollment in the sciences among U.S. students, and 5) to assist students in meeting achievement standards.

The project was a three-way partnership with the Northern Virginia Chapter of the Armed Forces Communications and Electronics Association (AFCEA NOVA) as the funder, Fairfax Network (Fairfax County Public Schools) as the producing and presenting organization, and the National Air and Space Museum's Stephen F. Udvar-Hazy Center as the content partner.  With its tie to the museum, this project is a direct link to science curriculum in a tangible delivery method, making use of some of the finest artifacts, experts and educators on the planet.

Flight School used a multidisciplinary approach to provide students with direct instruction about the history of aviation and the scientific principles of flight.  Through the historical context and design of aircraft, students learned how scientific principles have played, and continue to play, a major role in not only air and space travel, but in technology as a whole.  Experts discussed the evolution of such concepts as air pressure, stability, airfoils, experimental design, reconnaissance, satellite imagery, human space travel and more.
      
Flight School also introduced students to the myriad of careers available in fields associated with aviation, often connecting classroom studies directly with real-life applications.  This opened a world of possibilities to the students and helped them to see exciting careers as attainable.  

Additionally, as an electronic field trip, Flight School brought students across the country up close and personal with people, places and artifacts they may never come face to face with in their lifetimes.  It allowed students to interact with experts electronically, encouraging their curiosity and providing answers to questions.  The series succeeded in broadening the students world view and enriching the learning experience. 

From the teacher's perspective, Flight School was designed in conjunction with educators who understand the rigorous learning standards implemented in most school systems.  As a result, the programs are easily applied to already-planned classroom lessons.  Several self-contained and easily replicated experiments and activities were demonstrated throughout the series, allowing teachers the opportunity to include them as hands-on exercises in their own classrooms.   

Finally, Flight School has an accompanying web experience that provides a repository of information about aviation to serve as a resource for students and teachers alike.  

We used technology in a number of different ways to create this project, and without it, the project simply would not exist.  We began by acquiring footage on a file-based XDCam video format to allow for simple transfer of material into an edit suite.  The material was edited in an Avid nonlinear edit suite and exported to disk for inclusion in the program. This streamlined the production process. 

Each program was presented as a live feed from the Stephen F. Udvar-Hazy Center in Chantilly, Virginia via a mobile production truck.  Live portions of the program were interspersed with edited portions and fed back to our distribution hub at the Sprague Technology Center in Annandale, Virginia.  Multiple technologies are used in that process.   

Our production starts its travel as a digital signal used in the broadcast industry called Serial Digital Interface or SDI.  This digital audiovisual signal is then converted by a Haivision encoder to a signal that can be transported over a standard high speed internet connection.  The Haivision device was designed for broadcast networks in order to allow a very high standard of video quality to be maintained without requiring an extremely high-end video infrastructure.  Once encoded the signal is sent over a dedicated TLS line (Transparent LAN Service) that connects the Stephen F. Udvar-Hazy Center to the FCPS Sprague Technology Center.  At the Sprague Center, another Haivision device receives the signal from the TLS line and changes it back to SDI broadcast format.  Then it is fed into Sprague's large 128x128 video routing matrix, which allows us to monitor and route the signal to any of our school facilities and to a local cable hub for the local community.  The signal can then also be routed, via fiber optic link, to the George Mason University satellite uplink facility in Fairfax, Virginia. This uplink dish allows us to send our broadcast quality signal to all of North America.

Although schools are asked to register for the programs to receive the satellite coordinates, no fees are charged for subscription or registration.  The ability to distribute the program through satellite technology allows us nearly unfettered access to schools across the country.  For those schools outside of Fairfax County who are unable to afford satellite receivers, we also simultaneously send the program out over the internet as a live video stream.  Although the quality of the satellite signal is much greater than the video stream, the stream can be viewed in classrooms from any standard computer.      

Once completed and broadcast, the program was transcoded and authored onto a DVD, with accompanying chapter points to allow for ease of navigation and use in the classroom.  These DVDs were provided free of charge to any school or teacher that requested a copy.  Because teachers have limited class time, it was essential to distribute the material via a technology that would allow them to easily view the programs in smaller sections, at their own pace.  Again, as many classrooms across the country operate on limited budgets, DVD provided another distribution technology easily accessed in the classroom through a computer or DVD player.  

Simultaneously, the Flight School website was built in a Flash framework, which allowed us to construct interactive components like the historical timeline of flight (see Appendix 1 screenshot).  The website was populated with a multitude of resources for both teachers and students, which included media clips, diagrams, interactive cockpit views, lesson plans, activity guides, puzzles, question/answer and numerous external links to additional resources.  The website allowed us to provide the content in a format conducive to independent study on the part of students.

Yes

Yes

The purpose of Flight School was not only to provide educational content to students, but to provide a real world connection with science and math.  Students who viewed the program were able to make a connection between their current studies and where those studies might lead.  Students were able to see how the technological advancement in aviation began with questions and problems and the review of data, not very different from the processes they use in class today.  The individuals who made history in aviation walked in similar footsteps to today's students, and that recognition helps to both encourage and inspire students to pursue interests in math and science.  It helped to make dreams a little more tangible.

Another advantage to the project, for both teachers and students, is that it provides a centralized collection of aviation-related material.  While there are vast archival collections of historical and contemporary resources, those collections can be overwhelming and time-consuming to search.  The broadcast version of the series synthesized information into a linear timeline for students, to help them logically follow the progression of flight into the space program without having to consult multiple sources to follow that progression.  

The interactive website also provided a nice hub through which to study the progression of flight.  For teachers, the website is a small repository of resources that includes video clips, lesson plans, activity guides, activity sheets and additional resources for consultation on particular topics (see Appendix 2 screenshot).  It houses numerous public domain historical clips, which teachers were grateful to be able to access easily.  The site serves as a one-stop-shop for teachers interested in building lessons around flight. 
 
For students, the website provides an interactive place to discover various concepts related to flight.  It includes an interactive timeline where students can explore, chronologically, events that influenced flight, from the development of kites and boomerangs to satellite imaging.  Each of the four installments of the series has a separate Student Interactive page, which includes various activities.  The activities range from interactive 360-degree cockpit views to trivia to crossword puzzles.

Benefits to teachers and students are further emphasized in the quotes included in the following section.

It was important to get feedback from our target audience, so we asked a class of middle school students to give us their opinions.  The teacher paired them up and asked them to review.  Here are some of their comments: "We really liked the cockpit because we felt like we were actually in there.  Everything looked so real." (Kelly & Raul) "We enjoyed viewing and learning about the setup of an actual spaceship and an airplane from World War I." (Chanel & Amanda) "We love your website.  It is so amazingly cool!" (Lam & Phuong) "It is helpful to have a timeline that is easily accessible.  For example, Google takes awhile because you have to go through many links before finding what you are looking for...This is a great and useful site." (Rachel & Molly)

In addition to the student review, we received comments from teachers within our school system and around the country:  "This program is valuable and informative for the 6th Grade curriculum.  It also stimulated a lot of valuable discussion." (Mackay Elementary School, Mackay, ID) "The students that were fortunate enough to view the whole series were asking if this was going to have an additional part.  Resources will continue to be used - especially when it fits in with the curriculum." (W. R. Thomas Middle School, Miami, FL) "Flight School brings students and educators together with pilots, scientists, and astronauts in evolving, dynamic interaction. It's one of the best examples on the web of the learning opportunities presented by next generation web technologies, balancing instructional design with user-centered navigation. But the best thing about it may be that it's simply fun." (Luther Jackson Middle School, Falls Church, VA) "After they saw the program, one student said that he would like to join the military as a pilot when he finishes school.  Another student said that he would like to work in the field of meteorology." (Lanier Middle School, Fairfax, VA) "The entire Flight School project has been such a boon and resource for the many programs we have in my elementary school. By showing our students the history and wonder of flight through the various modes, we have generated a great deal of interest in aviation and rocketry. The role models shown in the videos are particularly important to my students, as they come from diverse backgrounds and socio-economic levels and do not relate well to Wilbur and Orville Wright. They have seen that anything is possible. The fabulous interactive website is one of the most visited one in my design and engineering lab. The students love the cockpit videos and the timelines, and the teachers use the teacher resources extensively to supplement their work with flight and other science teaching. I am hopeful that this resource will inspire my students to continue their exploration of aviation as a career or hobby..." (McNair Elementary School, Herndon, VA)  As further testament to the overall success of the project, we received these comments from an official at NASA who viewed the program and shared it with several colleagues:  "We uniformly concluded that this film offers a critical and under-utilized perspective of the science and history of flight.  More specifically, we concluded that this film has the potential to excite the current generation of students to our heritage of aeronautics and flight.  Perhaps more importantly, this film also offers educators an exceptional opportunity to invigorate the next generation of scientists, engineers and mathematicians to the excitement these fields offer to their and our future." (NASA's Ames Research Center, Moffett Field, CA)

There are other programs and websites that cover aviation in many forms.  However, we believe this project is the most effective at presenting information in a synthesized and concise way that is both multidisciplinary and student-friendly.  Above all, Flight School is an educational tool for the classroom.  It is designed to supplement math, science and technology that students are already required to learn.  However, it helps students meet that requirement in a fun and exciting environment.  Part of the draw for student viewers is that the story is told primarily by their peers.  Several students were incorporated into the production of the project as on-camera hosts to make the topics more accessible.

Also, because the Fairfax Network is a non-profit, school-based operation, and because of the organizations we partnered with, we were allowed access to areas, individuals and artifacts that many of the top production companies would not be allowed to access.  This makes the project a rare compilation of material.

While the project incorporates a number of different kinds of technology to create and deliver the content, perhaps its greatest value is in demonstrating the evolution of technology itself.  The term technology has a much greater meaning to a student who can view the principles behind floating the first hot-air balloon, lifting the first aircraft off the ground, or beaming back the first photographs from space.  Technology seems less abstract and intimidating and more a natural course of discovery and advancement that has existed for thousands of years.  On top of that, Flight School presents technology as a course of discovery that regenerates itself with every generation.  It helps students to get excited about the possibilities inherent in innovation.  It sends a message to them that they, too, can participate in experimentation and invention.  In fact, within the series, student hosts actually demonstrate the aviation equation, perform experiments and study the forces of flight.  Student viewers see that these are not complex themes that only scientists can understand.  The project empowers students to own their learning.  

The biggest challenge with the project was taking thousands of years of flight history and paring it down to basic content a student could understand.  We felt it was important for students to understand that human fascination with flight didn't begin with the Wright brothers, but we didn't want to overwhelm students with too much historical detail.  The series needed to follow a natural progression through aviation to the space program and satellite imaging.  Telling the story in a succinct way that was visually appealing enough for students meant incorporating some historical images and video, some special effects and some rare glimpses into aircraft and careers.  

All of this required a great deal of coordination among archive collections, experts and other educational organizations willing to share of their time and resources.

Historical images and footage needed to be acquired in a digital format, which often involved some type of conversion.  Even contemporary sources in the form of images from NASA, Boeing and other organizations came in a myriad of formats which had to be pulled together into a cohesive program.  Though it presented a challenge to assemble everything, in the end the result was a much more rich educational experience for students. 

The concept of the Flight School project was strongly supported within our organization.  However, as a school-based operation, we knew we would need to seek external funding to bring the project to fruition.  Finding the level of funding required to successfully execute the project was a challenge.  Identifying organizations or corporations able to provide this level of support is a lengthy and time consuming process.  Fortunately, after several exploratory meetings, we were asked to submit a formal proposal to the Northern Virginia Chapter of the Armed Forces Communications and Electronics Association (AFCEA NOVA).  The organization's mission area is to promote the study of math and science, but it had previously focused at the college level.  Our proposal was able to show the benefits of reaching children at an earlier age, where they begin to cultivate interests and make choices that will ultimately affect their career paths.

Exceeded

Internally, the Flight School project resulted in our first Flash-based website.  Its success has really broadened the possibilities for housing educational resources online within FCPS.  As a result, teachers will have access to more lesson plans, activities and media clips to supplement classroom teaching.  The trickle down effect of this is a more enriching educational experience for students.  

In a broader sense, the dream of flight is one of the most tantalizing in all of the human experience.  The feeling of soaring above the earth has a unique magic to it, and this project is a step by step account of how that magic became reality.  For middle school students, this project may be their first exposure to the concept that dreams are attainable.  It is nearly impossible to measure the lasting impact of that kind of inspiration on a students life, whether that student pursues a career in aviation or not.

Among today's students likely sits the next person to walk on the moon or harness the next form of energy or establish the next great technology.  If this program kindled that student's interest in science or math or technology, then the long term affect of this program could very well be global.

An average of nearly 16,000 schools nationwide registered for the four installments of the Flight School series, representing an audience of millions of students. The program has been very well received by the audiences, and as our feedback indicates, students and teachers have been actively using the web resources to explore concepts related to aviation.  We have purposefully created in Flight School what the broadcast industry calls an "evergreen" product, meaning that it will have a long educational shelf life.  The content is based on long-standing principles and scientific fact, ensuring that it will have value for many years to come.