F/V Skimmer, Nino
Randazzo
and Essex Agricultural High School, Amy Holt Cline(11th/12th grade)
Final project update
The Adopt a Boat program has benefited the Marine Biology class at Essex
Agricultural High School significantly. Over the past year, Amy Cline
and her junior students took part in studying about how the New England
fisheries are managed in order to compare them to how Nova Scotia manages
their marine resources.
The Adopt A Boat program is an excellent addition to a marine, biology,
or science class because it is completely teacher directed. The program
is a place to gather ideas, share resources and invent new curriculum
for all ages. The following explains how the AAB was used in an 11th grade
setting and was a major component to the year’s curriculum.
Since the class meets 4 times a week for 3 hours a day, these students
had the luxury of learning in depth about such topics as the politics
of fishing, how to fish, who fishes, who works in the fishing industry,
how fishing has changed historically and what changes have been happening
recently.
The curriculum began by studying the geography of the sea floor of the
Gulf of Maine. With access to computers and needed software, students
created GIS (Geographic Information Systems) maps combining themes that
affect the fishing industry. These themes may include shipping lanes,
fishing grounds, fishing closures, whale strandings or sightings and many
others. These maps were then shared with scientists at Woods Hole, USGS
Field Research Center. This visit gave the students a sense of how unique
their skills are and how sea floor mapping information plays a key part
in how scientists and fishermen manage the ocean.
As students continue to practice their GIS skills, students also learn
about the biology, anatomy and behaviors of fish while they are raising
cod and haddock in a 100-gallon re-circulating system. Throughout each
of these activities students are also learning about the fishermen Nino
Randazzo who we have been paired with in Gloucester. In addition, students
also learned about how non-profit, governmental and education related
agencies are responsible for managing the oceans.
The great thing about working with Nino is that the students get to learn
about his story, where he grew up, how many generations of fishermen are
in his family and much more. Standing on Nino’s boat as he demonstrated
how to repair a dragging net was an unforgettable moment for these 16
and 17 year old students. Nino explained what the Loran was, which charts
he uses most, and what part his GPS unit plays in his everyday life.
As the students were learning about each of these components, Gloucester
coincidentally staged a fishermen’s protest to better publicize and
gather support around the amount of days available to each type of fishermen.
This took place on a Sunday morning, which allowed me to film the protests,
speeches and short interviews of those listening in the crowds. The students
watched the video on Monday and took notes and asked questions about the
positions of each of the players. Meeting Nino, watching the video in
addition to learning about how to raise fish by hand gave these students
a real sense of the fishing industry. These things worked out because
of the connection to the Adopt A Boat Program.
This program can enhance any classroom because there are so many different
aspects to be studied about fishing. The Adopt a Boat program can only
make this goal more achievable.
Project update January 4, 2002
 |
The activity for the 3-D model of the Gulf of Maine (GOM) was used to introduce the unique formation of the GOM and how this formation has made GOM such an important fishing ground and habitat for so many marine species. The students will use this model for reference through the Adopt-a- Boat project. Check out the activity. |
Project Summary
Studying the ocean, what lives in it, and how we rely on it is a great
way to understand ourselves as humans.
Working with Nino Randazzo and the F/V Skimmer, students will analyze
the data he collects from the internet
to make charts showing what species of fish are being collected and how
much. While analyzing the trends in
catch, students will also be reading the book" Cod" by Mark
Kurlansky. During this unit, the class will meet
Nino in Gloucester to see his boat, learn about the type of gear he uses
and what a typical day is like as a
commercial fisherman. We are hoping to take a trip beyond the harbor to
set a trawl so students can identify,
measure and get to know the local ground fish species.
Students will also visit National Marine Fisheries to hear from those
who make the regulations that Nino
and other fishermen have to abide by. To better understand ground fish
biology, students will raise codfish,
haddock or another cold-water species by maintaining a 100-gallon re-circulating
system. Brandy Moran
and Cliff Goudey at MIT Sea Grant built this system during a previous
aquaculture project.
In addition to meeting with Nino, analyzing catch data, studying ground
fish biology and understanding
government regulations, students will use GIS Technology to make maps
showing how permanent and
rolling fishing closures, shipping lanes and marine sanctuaries play a
role in keeping the Gulf of Maine
a sustainable resource for the Northeast.