This report is part of a four-year evaluation assessing the impact that the Working with a Scientist Program at the University of Texas at El Paso (UTEP) had on its first cohort of participants. Participants were students from a regional high school that were selected to take part in research activities every other Saturday during the Spring semester and on weekdays during the summer. The evaluation components included in this report focus on assessing students’ academic performance and the gains the students made while in the program. It also focused on an assessment of students’ perceptions
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TEAM MEMBERS:
Guadalupe CorralJacqueline LowereeJoseph Negron
This project will advance efforts of the Innovative Technology Experiences for Students and Teachers (ITEST) program to better understand and promote practices that increase students' motivations and capacities to pursue careers in fields of science, technology, engineering, or mathematics (STEM) by producing empirical findings and/or research tools that contribute to knowledge about which models and interventions with K-12 students and teachers are most likely to increase capacity in the STEM and STEM cognate intensive workforce of the future.
The LinCT (Linking Educators, Youth, and Learners in Computational Thinking) project at the Science Museum of Minnesota (SMM) will engage female teachers-in-training and youth from underrepresented demographics in immersive technology experiences and STEM education. LinCT will guide teachers to develop their understanding and use of technology in the classroom, as well as prepare youth for a future where technology plays a key role in a wide range of professional opportunities. The project aims to inspire teachers and youth to see the possibilities of technological competencies, as well as why the incorporation of technology can build meaningful learning experiences and opportunities for all learners. The LinCT program model offers learning and application experiences for participating teachers and youth and provides an introduction of technological tools used in SMM educational programs and professional development on approaches for engaging all learners in STEM. Both groups will provide instruction in SMM technology-based Summer Camps, reaching 1,000 young people every year. In each following school year, project educators will develop and deliver technology-based programs to nearly 1,000 under-served and underrepresented elementary students. The project will allow teachers and youth to deliver exciting and engaging technology-based programs to nearly 4,000 diverse young learners. As a result, all participants in this project will be better equipped to incorporate technology in their future careers.
The LinCT project will investigate effective approaches for broadening the participation of underrepresented populations by providing female pre-service teachers and female youth with opportunities to lead programming at the Science Museum of Minnesota (SMM). Over three years, the LinCT project will employ 8-12 female teachers-in-training [Teacher Tech Cadres (TTC)] and 12-24 female youth [Youth Teaching Tech Crews (Y-TTC)] from demographics that are underrepresented in STEM fields. The integration of these groups will result in relationships fostered within an educational program, where all participants are learners and teachers, mentors and mentees. The results of this unique program model will be assessed through the experiences of this focused professional learning and teaching community. The LinCT research study will focus on three aspects of the project. First, it will seek to understand how the teachers-in-training and youth experience the project model's varied learning environments. Next, the study will explore how the TTC's and the Y-TTC's motivation, confidence, and self-efficacy with integrating technology across educational settings change because of the program. Finally, the study will seek to understand the lasting aspects of culture, training, and community building on SMM's internal teams and LinCT partner institutions (University of St. Catherine's National Center for STEM Elementary Education and Metropolitan State University's School of Urban Education).
This evaluation reports on the Mission: Solar System project, a 2-year project funded by NASA. The goal of the Mission: Solar System was to create a collection of resources that integrates digital media with hands-on science and engineering activities to support kids’ exploration in formal and informal education settings. Our goal in creating the resources were: For youth: (1) Provide opportunities to use science, technology, engineering, and math to solve challenges related to exploring our solar system, (2) Build and hone critical thinking, problem-solving, and design process skills, (3)
The overall goal of the current proposal is to adapt the interdisciplinary research-based curriculum created at the School for Science and Math at Vanderbilt (SSMV) for implementation of a four-year program in three Metropolitan Nashville Public School (MNPS) high schools. The specific aims of the proposal are to adapt the on-campus (at Vanderbilt) model for implementation in three public high schools with different academic profiles (SSM Academies); to define the variables and features required to sustain the program and to replicate the model in any high school setting; and to define a strategy for disseminating the model to additional schools. Students entering 9th grade in a school in which an SSM Academy has been implemented will be encouraged to apply. Those who are accepted into the program will spend three hours every other day in two courses based on the adapted curriculum. As with the SSMV, rising seniors will have opportunities to enter Vanderbilt laboratories for summer research internships. Teachers from the high school will work with Center for Science Outreach scientists to adapt the SSMV curriculum for implementation. Ongoing, year-long teacher professional development will be conducted to ensure that the curriculum is dynamic and the teachers are well-prepared to engage and guide the students in the curriculum. The anticipated outcomes include enhanced student achievement as measured by GPA, and scores on ACT science reasoning and end of course tests; increased SSM student interest in careers in science; increased district-wide enrollment in SSM programs; increased graduation rates and postsecondary education enrollment by SSM students; development of unique curricular science units that can be adapted for a novel four-year interdisciplinary research- based curriculum; development of a sustainable model built on effective features of each SSM that can be exported to other high schools within and outside Nashville; enhanced community and family involvement in the SSM programs and school community in general; a strengthened partnership between Vanderbilt and MNPS that will serve as a national model of a successful university-K-12 collaboration to enhance science teaching and learning.
Through "Addressing the Science of Really Gross Things: Engaging Young Learners in Biomedical Science Through a Fulldome Planetarium Show and Supporting Curricula," Morehead Planetarium and Science Center at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, in close collaboration with NIH-funded researchers at the UNC and a leading children's book author, will develop an informal science education media project and a suite of hands-on, inquiry-based curricula based on the media project for use in science centers, museums and schools. This project will build the pipeline of future researchers and create awareness of NIH-funded research by generating interest and excitement among children age 9-13 in the health sciences and related careers and building their science content knowledge. To achieve the objective, the investigators will develop a fulldome planetarium show; create correlating curricula for summer camps, afterschool programs, scout programs, science center field trips, science clubs and schools; and produce a DVD highlighting careers in the health sciences. In addition, the project will use several methods to target populations traditionally underrepresented in the biomedical fields, including featuring professionals from underrepresented populations in the multimedia and curricula products, making outreach visits to counties with large populations traditionally underrepresented in health science research careers, and producing a Spanish-language version of the products. The use of a known brand, "Grossology," is an innovative way to connect to children in the target age range and to encourage the informal science education community to embrace health-science content in their fulldome theaters. In addition, the project's hub-and-spoke approach further encourages adoption of this programming by providing informal science venues with both an engaging experience (hub) and the supporting curricula (the spokes) that is necessary to extend the show's potential for having significant educational impact. A strong project team maximizes the project's likelihood for success. The team includes fulldome producers and educators from Morehead and NIH-funded researchers with expertise in appropriate science content areas. In addition, the investigators have created a network of consultants, advisory board members and evaluators that will create feedback loops designed to ensure high-quality, scientifically-accurate, educationally-effective products. The investigators will use a combination of free and revenue-based dissemination strategies to ensure that the products of this award are broadly distributed. These strategies hold significant promise for creating broad use of this project's products in the nation's science centers, museums and classrooms.
Over 200 zoos and aquariums in North America are accredited members of the Association of Zoos & Aquariums (AZA), with a shared vision of the future: a world where all people respect, value and conserve wildlife and wild places. Through programs & experiences that reach millions of people each year, we hope to encourage caring and empathy towards all living things, but we lack the tools that are needed to assess whether – and how – we’re reaching this goal. The overall goal of this 2 year collaborative project is to create tools that zoos and aquariums can use to assess whether they’re meeting their goal of encouraging caring and empathy towards wildlife. Project partners (Woodland Park Zoo, Point Defiance Zoo & Aquarium, & Seattle Aquarium) aim to develop, test and share tools that can be used by accredited zoos & aquariums to assess whether their educational programs are having the desired impact of encouraging children’s empathy towards animals. To better inform our understanding of the empathic experience and the role it plays in human relationships with animals, an advisory team comprised of conservation psychologists and evaluation practitioners in the zoo and aquarium field, has been formed to aid in this two year project.
The integration of research with education and outreach is an essential aspect of our Center's mission. In order to assure the most effective use of our expertise and resources, we have developed a multi-faceted approach with activities that focus on coherent themes that address our three primary audiences: research community, our neighborhood, and the general public. These activities include research internships, enrichment programs for students & teachers, and informal science opportunities.
The UMN MRSEC conducts an ambitious and multi-faceted education and outreach program to extend the impact of the Center beyond the university, providing undergraduates, college faculty, high school teachers, and K-12 students with opportunities that augment their traditional curriculum and increase their appreciation of materials science and engineering (MS&E). Our summer research program provides high-quality research and educational experiences in MS&E to students and faculty, drawn primarily from undergraduate institutions with limited research opportunities, while placing a strong emphasis on inclusion of women and members of underrepresented groups.
The National Science Foundation and other funding agencies are increasingly requiring broader impacts in grant applications to encourage US scientists to contribute to science education and society. Concurrently, national science education standards are using more inquiry-based learning (IBL) to increase students’ capacity for abstract, conceptual thinking applicable to real-world problems. Scientists are particularly well suited to engage in broader impacts via science inquiry outreach, because scientific research is inherently an inquiry-based process. We provide a practical guide to help
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TEAM MEMBERS:
Lisa KomoroskeSarah HameedAmber SzoboszlaiAmanda NewsomSusan Williams
Xraise provides experiences that empower individuals by making science familiar and accessible. Immersed with scientists themselves, we facilitate hands-on, minds-on activities that involve the direct exploration of physics phenomena. Our relationship with K12 students, educators and community partners provides us with a platform for exploring personal intuitions, developing understandings and fostering excitement in science.