Electronic Field Trip on Yellowstone Pronghorn

The Formal Education Branch of Yellowstone National Park developed an electronic field trip on the conservation of Yellowstone pronghorn entitled “Speed Goats in Court: the Strange Case of the Appealing Pronghorn.” This 50-minute program, designed for a middle-school audience, premiered during September 2005 on the Windows into Wonderland website. The program uses local students from the Yellowstone ParKids program to help tell the pronghorn’s story and includes lesson plans guided by National Education Standards to extend the online experience. Montana State University is evaluating this eTrip to provide formative feedback on the usability, effectiveness, and best teaching practices of the Windows into Wonderland eTrips from middle-school teachers and students. The evaluation design has as its foundation two of the leading evaluation models: theory of change and utilization-focused evaluation.