Rutgers Research Highlights Ocean Days

Rutgers University research took center stage in the science curriculum of students this past week through the Rutgers Ocean Days program.

Ocean Days gives students a firsthand look into current marine research being performed at Rutgers University.

The intent of the program is to "Get current ocean research into classrooms that hits on state (curriculum) standards," said Kristin Hunter-Thompson of the education and outreach branch of the Rutgers Institute of Marine and Coastal Sciences.

On Wednesday, the program hosted 125 middle schoolers from eight public, private and home schooling groups. 145 students in grades 3-5 and 120 students in grades 3-12 also participated in the program, Hunter-Thompson said.

Before coming to Rutgers, the middle school students learned about the process of tagging striped bass. They were then tasked to research that topic and present their findings at Rutgers in the company of their peers from the other schools.

After presenting, the schools split into groups and visited hands-on stations where Rutgers educators and students discussed underwater gliders, composite maps of the surface of the ocean floor, and ocean temperatures. The day also featured a lecture on fish tagging and migration patterns from Rutgers researcher Tom Grothues.

The program is sponsored by East Coast MARE (Marine Activities, Resources and Education) and the Rutgers Institute of Marine and Coastal Sciences, and funded by the Geraldine R. Dodge Foundation, according to a press release from Rutgers.