A three-year project, Science Experiences and Resources for Informal Education Settings (SERIES), involves collaboration between the 4-H Youth Development Program, practicing scientists, science education centers, and community service agencies to provide community-based science experiences for youth. Goals for national dissemination of the SERIES project are: 1) Increase the quality and quantity of science experiences for youth as leaders and as learners; 2) For youth to actively experience how science concepts and processes relate to their everyday lives; 3) Provide opportunities for youth to take positive leadership roles in their homes and communities; and 4) Provide opportunities for youth to investigate educational and career possibilities in science and technology through a scientist mentor relationship. SERIES builds upon the materials, and instructional/coaching model successfully developed and tested during the Califronia SERIES Project. National dissemination by 4-H assures SERIES availability to the 5,100,000 youth currently enrolled in 4-H. Expected outcomes of SERIES are: 1) Refine and produce final versions in English and Spanish of four SERIES community service science units; 2) Develop two new units; 3) Development of an "inquiry coaching" module for adult volunteers; 4) Develop and asses apprentice-like mentoring experiences for SERIES teens to work directly with scientists; and 5) Establish four SERIES regional dissemination centers, working collaboratively with 4-H, science centers and other youth serving agencies to provide national dissemination of the SERIES program model to 28 states.
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TEAM MEMBERS:
Richard PonzioLaurel DeanHerbert Thier
Award-winning Scholastic Productions, Inc. proposes to produce 39 fully animated, half hour television programs, based on the successful children's science book series, The Magic School Bus. We are seeking funding for the initial three seasons (13 episodes per season) which will be produced over a four year period. Designed as an informal science education series for PBS, it is targeted primarily for 6-9 year-olds, with special attention given to reaching girls and minority children. The series has clear science pedagogical goals: 1) to motivate children to further science study, 2) to present science facts, concepts and systems, and 3) to inspire positive attitudes towards science and education for students and teachers. Throughout the production, audience research and field testing will ensure that the programming is effectively meeting these goals. The series features a remarkable teacher, Ms. Frizzle, who takes her class on equally remarkable field trips. While other teachers may go to a museum, Ms. Frizzle leads her class onto a yellow school bus that shrinks (along with its students) to the size of a cell to journey through the human body, rocket into outer space, or travel into the eye of a hurricane. Thus, the series makes science tangible and relatable for an audience of children who are still concrete thinkers. We will create a broad outreach program, utilizing the publishing and distribution resources of Scholastic Productions' parent company, Scholastic Inc., (the largest publisher of children's materials in the English-speaking world), and other targeted organizations. Through viewer guides, series publicity and promotion, magazine editorials, community and after-school programs, we expect to reach a large and culturally diverse audience, including minorities frequently not served by PBS.
"3-2-1 Contact," the nationally broadcast award winning children's public television science series, has been reaching children aged 8-12 with daily half hour science programming since 1980 with support from both the National Science Foundation and the U. S. Department of Education. In seven seasons of production, CTW has produced 225 regular and two special shows, generating an estimated 633 million viewings by the target audience and more than 1.66 billion viewings by viewers of all ages. With completion of primary show production, the series will begin repeat broadcasts in the fall of 1989 drawn from the library of existing programs. This final award will support continued broadcast of the series and insure the widest possible distribution and utilization of "3-2-1 Contact." CTW will implement a Transition Plan to sustain series broadcast, establish series access as a VCR based science resource, and insure permanent access for teachers, schools, and out of school resources to the "3-2-1 Contact" program library. Broadcast activities will include supporting a portion of the costs of residuals for rebroadcast for a five year period, production of five "3-2-1 Contact EXTRAS" -- single topic half hour specials with high visibility -- and encouraging increased off air taping of the series by teachers. Support for school use of the series will be strengthened with the development and distribution of topic indexing software and teacher guides, the creation of short "3-2-1 Contact" segments specifically tailored to the classroom needs of teachers and a series blockfeed to schools to create a permanent archive of shows. Community outreach partnerships will be strengthened and home video opportunities explored as well. This five year award will allow millions of American children the continued opportunity to view science programming after school on a regular basis, and will assist their teachers in making effective use of "3-2-1 Contact" program materials in classroom settings.