In Summer 2016, the East Asian Studies Center at The Ohio State University hosted a global teacher seminar on “Water Security for the 21^st Century,” in partnership with OSU’s Department of Teaching and Learning and the university’s other area studies centers. Held from June 6 to June 10 on the campus of Columbus State Community College, the course provided Central Ohio high school social studies and science teachers an opportunity to learn about the many scientific and political facets of the world’s leading freshwater issues, hear from experts who specialize in water issues across the globe, explore how to connect these issues to state standards, and translate the knowledge they gained into lesson plans in order to challenge, educate and inspire students to learn more about water security issues.

Prof. Motomu Ibaraki of OSU’s School of Earth Sciences served as the lead instructor for the course. While this was his first experience offering a teacher training course, he reports that it was “wonderful, really, the best.” Ibaraki usually teaches undergraduate students, and found teaching a group of teachers was “very rewarding. They were mature, practical in their approach, and wanted to consider not just science, but the social aspects of water security.”

While determining at what level to pitch the material was a challenge, he found that the teachers knew the basic material well and were excited to learn about the details. “I learned a lot from the teachers, too,” he said. “The science and society connection, in particular, is something I plan to incorporate more in my classes at Ohio State due to this experience.”

Ibaraki’s teaching incorporated East Asian content and was supplemented by guest speakers on other world regions to give participants an understanding of the water security issues each region faces. Speakers were invited and supported by OSU’s Center for African Studies, Center for Latin American Studies, Middle East Studies Center, and Center for Slavic and East European Studies. 

Participants received two graduate credits from OSU’s College of Education and Human Ecology upon completion of the seminar and the final project of developing lesson plans on water security in three different world regions. Lesson plan themes ranged from “Ions in the Environment: Helpful or Harmful?” which asks students to compare water contamination events in Japan and Flint, Michigan, to “Ancient Civilizations and Water” which engages students in research on the Mayan and Garamantes Empires, from “History of Water Conflicts in the Middle East” to “Water Use and Sustainability in Eastern Europe.”

Ibaraki reported that the participants were thrilled with the experience and learned even more than he expected. Indeed, participants shared enthusiasm about the new material they received and developed for their students. “Because of this class I have a much fuller understanding of how important water is on this planet and the wide array of issues that are related to water,” said Gardner Watkins, an environmental science teacher at Dublin Scioto High School. “The week was amazing. I picked up a great deal of information and data that will allow me to improve the information I share with my students.”

“Overall, the international focus of these lectures and case studies provided me with a more solid foundation when discussing the importance of environmental policy with my social studies students,” said Adele Vergis, an American history and government teacher at Upper Arlington High School. “I teach students who are curious and interested in science. It is important for me to have a base level of scientific understanding if I am to answer their questions in the classroom. I feel more confident in developing objective lessons for students that could teach them to consider water policies as well.”

Ibaraki recommends other faculty consider getting involved in teacher training. “I could really feel the impact this course will have,” he said. “They will take this information to their high school students for years to come.”

Made possible with support from the U.S. Department of Education’s Title VI National Resource Center grant for the OSU East Asian Studies Center, this project was managed by EASC’s senior assistant director Amy Carey, while Prof. Tami Augustine of OSU’s Department of Teaching and Learning served as a consultant.