Dive Into Science - Antelope Valley Foster Youth

Instruction in arts, science, technology, engineering, and mathematics that connects nature experiences, or environmental stewardship. The Dive into Science program was designed to provide scuba training, marine science education, ocean stewardship, and, ultimately, scientific diving opportunities to youth from communities historically absent from these fields. Participants learned basics about kelp forest ecology and dive science (physiology and physics) while scuba diving on Catalina Island and through the scuba curriculum. Nightly activities utilized Reef Check Kelp Forest Monitoring indicator species flashcards. These flashcards are study materials used by scientific diver trainees to learn about species of the kelp forest environment. Flashcards include a photo of the species, scientific and common name, identifying features, range and other interesting facts about the species. Participants learned through presentations and discussion with Reef Check staff what it means to be an ocean steward and how learning to scuba dive enables them to be stewards of the ocean. Students were supplied with field journals to document their experience and reflect on their connection to the marine environment.

Foster stewardship of the environment using curriculum pursuant to Public Resources Code, Division 34, Part 4: Statewide Environmental Education (Sections 71300-71305). Scuba diving opens up opportunities to learn about the underwater world and marine science, increases awareness of ecology and changing environments, opens pathways to dive for conservation efforts, and enables participants to advocate for ocean protection.

Curriculum that is aligned to the content standards for California public schools adopted by the State Board of Education, including, but not limited to, the Next Generation Science standards, or the California History-Social Science Standards. This phase of Reef Check’s Dive into Science program, focused on Open Water scuba training and introduction to marine science, supports the following Next Generation Science Standards (NGSS) Disciplinary Core Ideas, as informed by the National Marine Educators Association Ocean Literacy Committee: ESS2.C: The Roles of Water in Earth's Surface Processes ESS3: Earth and Human Activity, LS2.A: Interdependent Relationships in Ecosystems, LS2.C: Ecosystem Dynamics, Functioning, and Resilience, LS4.D: Biodiversity and Humans This program also supports all 7 Ocean Literacy Principles (OLP): OLP 1: The Earth has one big ocean with many features, OLP 2: The ocean and life in the ocean shape the features of Earth, OLP 3: The ocean is a major influence on weather and climate, OLP 4: The ocean makes Earth habitable, OLP 5: The ocean supports a great diversity of life and ecosystems, OLP 6: The ocean and humans are inextricably interconnected, OLP 7: The ocean is largely unexplored.

Additional Learning Opportunities include: Coordinate instructional resources and strategies for providing active pupil participation with onsite conservation efforts, Promote service-learning opportunities between schools and local communities, Assess the impact to participating pupils of the unified education strategy on pupil achievement and resource conservation, Healthy lifestyles and sound nutritional habits, Community outreach methods and civic engagement related to ENVIRONMENTAL JUSTICE, career pathway mentoring related to natural resource agencies, environmental protection agencies, park operations, and therapeutic recreation.

This Dive into Science project exposes participants to careers and higher education pathways into natural sciences or marine biology, ocean conservation, and marine resource management. This first scuba training is only the beginning of participants’ explorations of scuba and marine science. Participants learned about the variety of jobs available with scuba certification, including marine scientists/ ecologists, dive masters in ecotourism, industrial divers, commercial divers/ fishers, boat maintenance, underwater photographers and videographers. As they advance their scuba skills through Phases 2 and 3 of this progressive program — and increase their depth of knowledge about marine science and ocean conservation while earning higher level diving certifications — they will have more opportunities to engage in Reef Check’s volunteer citizen science-based monitoring activities. We mentor our citizen science divers-in-training by encouraging them to develop their own connection to the oceans and reefs—and through finding opportunities for them to continue their diving experiences. The combination of skills, experience, and community service as Reef Check citizen scientists will expand their horizons on what is possible.

All educational goals (1-4) were achieved. Field Trips Students participated in behind-the-scenes tours of the California Science Center and Aquarium of the Pacific, where they met with scientific divers, learned about kelp forests and how climate change and human activities impacts these ecosystems, and explored cutting-edge aquarium technologies. The tours demonstrated how the study and care of marine ecosystems in an aquarium setting are deeply connected to the natural world and serve as hubs for research, education, and conservation. Tours emphasized that human involvement, when guided by science and care, can positively impact the environment. They also showcased different career opportunities that come with scuba diving. Snorkeling, Scuba & Advanced Scuba Students became ‘Underwater Naturalists’. Each course advanced their diving skills and enhanced their understanding of the underwater environment by focusing on marine life identification and the relationships between organisms.

In2Deep: Scuba dive shop partner who supplied scuba gear and instructors for the Open Water course at Catalina. In2Deep staff safely and successfully taught our Dive into Science students during this trip. Seven of the eight students passed their scuba skills tests and earned their Open Water certification. The other student will continue in the program and receive additional support and scuba training from Reef Check dive instructors.

Western Los Angeles County Boy Scouts of America: Managers of the Emerald Bay Boy Scout Camp. This camp supplied accommodation, boat transportation, and food for the group during the scuba course.

Lancaster Community Center: Community Home Base. During a brief closure resulting from water damage, Paving the Way offered use of their computer lab.

Paul Freese, Esq., and Sherri Sobel (Retired Judge) of Foster Care Legal Network (Simply Friends) & BEST (Bolstering Education & Successful Transition): foster youth advocacy. Convened agencies serving youth in and aging out of the foster care system in Los Angeles County; Suggested Matt Weber as the Community Liaison; Coordinated with foster care agencies; Recruited participants; Collaborated on program details such as the necessity of offering swimming lessons for participants.

Christy Jilavdaryan, Community Liaison and participant of Cohort 1 for Dive into Science. Christy has shown real motivation and dedication to the program after completing Phase 1 of the Dive into Science program. She assists with recruiting and supporting participants of the program and maintains constant communication to ensure participants stay motivated. She offers her in-person support.

Keep constant communication with participants, we hired Community Liaisons from within the community, who are familiar with the target demographic and partnering agencies. Liaisons managed recruitment, transportation, meet-ups and ensured all participants were present. This was extremely helpful to have an on-the-ground liaison to assist participant needs, handle immediate roadblocks and give in-person support. Lessons Learned: Scuba is best taught in small cohorts, and most dive shops limit that number to 10 with two instructors. However, we should expand the number of youth enrolled in each cohort to account for last minute illnesses and other unforeseen circumstances. Furthermore, scuba diving is a physically and mentally demanding activity, and there will be some attrition of participants during the length of the program. It is impossible to gauge who will participate for the entire length of the program, particularly before participants experience diving, along with the exhilaration and demands that come with it.

Some students will drop out. We have several ways to address these issues: By having sequential cohorts from within the communities, we can address some of this by adjusting the number of participants in following cohorts. We can also combine students across cohorts should they need more training or practice. Begin scuba training in swimming pools rather than the ocean, which will offer youth a more reassuring space for their first dives and for practicing basic scuba skills. Bring some of the scuba instruction in-house in order to have a higher ratio of scuba instructors to youth. Most of Reef Check’s staff scientists are highly-qualified dive instructors who can provide a more complete place-based marine science experience for participants. While we aim to empower all participants to complete the entire program, some will leave early. We don’t see this as failure as they will have gone through an experience and learned skills they would have never been exposed to otherwise. These skills and experiences will serve them well in future endeavors — diving or not.

Additional lessons learned about working with this demographic include: We supplied participants who wear prescription glasses with contact lenses or prescription scuba masks to increase their comfort levels underwater and help them achieve personal success; We also supplied a few participants with much-needed swimsuits, towels, sleeping bags, and sun protection. Lessons Learned: Scuba instructors from the dive shop did not directly interact with the participants prior to arriving on the Island because prior lessons were taught by Reef Check staff. Staff had already built personal relationships by the time the in-water instruction began. In future cohorts we will aim to have in-house staff teach the scuba lessons to foster these relationships and create more cohesiveness among students and instructors that will ideally go through the entire program together.

Tips: Community Building is important when diving, which inherently relies on trust, communication, and collaboration to ensure both safety and success. We added more field trips and group activities to strengthen bonds between youth. Challenges: Not every person who tries scuba will continue. This is not unique to this program. However, our foster youths’ life circumstances create further barriers and challenges and attrition poses a challenge. Solutions: We added snorkeling before scuba as a less demanding foundational activity, thus permitting youth to approach scuba with greater confidence in the water, leading to safer and more enjoyable experiences. This shift laid the groundwork for future scuba success. Lessons learned: We scheduled swim practice early on to evaluate readiness, and added swim lessons and snorkeling to build their skills and confidence before attempting scuba. This is both a safety measure and an opportunity to set participants up for success.