Citizen scientist programs are a means to efficiently conduct large-scale surveys of ecosystems or managed species, provided that concerns over the quality and use of data generated by nonexperts can be addressed. This study presents actions taken in a citizen science program to assure data quality and demonstrates the validity of citizen-generated data. In this case the accuracy of data collected by secondary school students as citizens in a program that quantitatively sampled benthic rocky intertidal communities at 13 sites on Maui, Molokai, Oahu, and Hawai'i island during the years 2004-2007 was evaluated. In 2007, two independent research teams collected data simultaneously with students at five sites on eight sampling dates. Comparisons of Shannon diversity and Bray-Curtis similarity values computed and simulated from student and researcher collected data revealed that nonexpert students accurately collect community-level data within the range of the variation that occurs between researchers. Students were, however, likely to misidentify cryptic and rare species. These findings have direct implications for the conservation goals of the monitoring program as the assessment reveals that students are likely to misidentify early alien introductions but are able to monitor the abundances of native and introduced species once they become established. The validity assessment designed for this investigation is unique in that it directly compares consistent errors made by citizens in data collection to expert variability to identify usage limitations and can be a guide for future studies that involve the efforts of trained volunteers.

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The microtides, wave regimes, and relative isolation of the Hawaiian archipelago may provide unique environmental and biogeographic effects that shape the structure of tidepool fishes. We sampled fishes across a narrow gradient at low tide from 6 sites on the island of O`ahu. We tested predictions of the hypotheses that environmental conditions (pool depth, volume, macroalgal cover, temperature, and salinity) would result in a vertically structured tidepool fish assemblage unique to basalt or limestone rocky shores. 343 fish were recorded from 40 pools, and 19 species from 10 families were identified. Tidepool fish diversity (H': O`ahu=2.4; Sites Average=0.0-0.9) was typical for tropical islands, with members from Gobiidae (5 species), Blenniidae (4 species), Pomacentridae (3 species), Acanthuridae (2 species) and Kuhliidae (2 species) among the most common. Endemism (32%) was higher than other well studied assemblages yet similar to Hawaiian reef fishes (25%). Assemblage abundance varied among shores with basalt or limestone substrate, among sites, and vertically among high, mid, and low pools. In general, blenniids occurred at higher proportions on limestone shores and gobiids were more common on basalt shores. High pools were characterized by an abundance of a small sized (29.0 mm median standard length) blenniid Istiblennius zebra, while the blenniid Entomacrodus marmoratus and wrasses Thalassoma spp. were more common in low pools. Temperature was the best environmental predictor of assemblages and this relationship warrants further investigation. Our findings indicate that assemblages can vary across a narrow geographical range and intertidal shore.

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A hybrid (face-to-face and online) professional development (PD) course focused on energy science for middle and high school teachers (N = 47) was conducted using the teaching science as inquiry (TSI) framework. Data from the PD indicates that online opportunities enhanced participation and that the TSI structure improved teachers' inquiry implementation. Teachers found the TSI modes of inquiry easily accessible and effectively implemented them (modes correspond to the inquiry mechanisms of investigation, such as product evaluation, authoritative, inductive, deductive, and descriptive). On the other hand, the TSI phase structure (i.e. learning cycle) was most helpful for teachers novice to inquiry teaching, suggesting that modification of the PD is needed to promote more in-depth use of the phases in the TSI framework. In terms of content, teacher interest in energy science was high, which resulted in implementation of energy science activities across a range of disciplines. However, teachers' confidence in teaching energy science through inquiry was low compared to similar TSI PD courses on other subjects (mean perceived pedagogical content knowledge = 8.96 ± 2.07 SD for energy compared to 15.45 ± 1.83, 16.44 ± 1.81 and 15.63 ± 1.69, for elementary astronomy, high school aquatic science, and college aquatic science, respectively). These data support current findings on the complexities of teaching and understanding energy science content and suggest the need for additional teacher PD opportunities in energy science in order to provide opportunities for teachers to increase both their content knowledge and their confidence in teaching energy science.