The Association of Science-Technology Centers, representing some 170 science museums, receives regular requests for information on the status of science museums, their education programs, exhibits and other activities. To respond to this need, the organization will collect and analyze data on the status and activities of both member and non-member science museums. The material will be published as three reports and made available on computer disks for further study. The information is particularly useful to communities considering new museums, and to trustees and contributors to current museums and others who have an interest in the priorities and policies of education and exhibits programs. The project will be assisted by an advisory committee and Dr. Sue Smock, Director of the Center for Urban Studies, Wayne State University.
The Mississippi Museum of Natural Science (MMNS) will develop a program over the next two years aimed at teachers and students in grades 3-7. The project will develop teacher kits and "hands-on" exhibits tied to the new state curriculum and to the science television series "3-2-1 Contact". The MMNS is a division of the Mississippi Department of Wildlife Conservation and is designated as the official natural science museum by the State Legislature. The Museum has been in operation for 50 years and, since its inception, has served as a resource for classroom teachers. Mississippi has approximately 500,000 public school students attending about 1,000 schools. One third of these children are considered to live below the poverty level and 50 percent are from minority groups--a priority for the NSF. The MMNS has had success with a small pilot project which coordinates science concepts taught in the television series "3-2-1 Contact" with exhibit programs at the Museum. Over the next two years MMNS will expand their "hands-on" exhibits and develop science kits for use in the classroom in coordination with the new state curriculum and the television series. The kits will include museum objects, suggested activities and a teacher's guide. During the first year a series of "Contact Days" will be held with teachers and students across the state to develop and test the effectiveness of the project along with a lecture program by minority and women scientists. During the second year the exhibits will travel to schools across the state.
This project will establish adult lecture-discussion series on scientific topics at libraries throughout the United States, modeled after the "Lets Talk About It" humanities series offered by the American Library Association. Programs and program materials will be extensively tested and evaluated in Colorado libraries before introduction into libraries in five additional states, followed by national distribution. This program seeks to make effective use of libraries for informal science education. Libraries are highly effective neighborhood resources that are well positioned to offer programs and services, but that have in the past offered few science- related programs. This project's combination of prepared packages of lecture discussion series organization materials and the use of local scientists and engineers as speakers and discussion leaders should substantially increase the science offerings of public libraries. An award of $ 98,533 for FY87 is recommended.
The Girls Clubs of America (GCA) plans to develop over a three year period informal science learning activities to increase the participation of women aged 14-18 in mathematics and science. These materials are part of an overall program, "Operation SMART," that is a major national commitment by the Girls Clubs of America to include science and mathematics education as a major component of GCA activities at all age levels. Prior projects have developed and implemented successful materials directed at elementary and middle school girls; the present project extends this effort into the critically important high school age years. The materials will be developed by project staff in association with developers at the Educational Development Center (EDC), piloted and tested in four Girls Clubs sites along with training chapters nationwide. A publisher will be identified for national distribution and sales of activity materials sets and a book-length publication designed for use by education programs of other youth-serving organizations. A partnership with the Business and Professional Women's Association (BPW/USA) and its 3400 local chapters and with the AAAS Linkages Project will create many non-Girls Club sites. Dissemination to other youth- serving organizations will be carried out through the National Collaboration for Youth. As a result, Operation SMART's high school age materials should reach several hundred thousand young women. Foundations and businesses will provide substantial additional project support; approximately 51% of the total $ l.4 million project budget is requested from NSF.
The Franklin Institute Science Museum will, over a three year period, develop a regional Girl Scout leader training programthat provides science education experiences for Girl Scouts. The Girl Scout Council of Greater Philadelphia and the Washington Rock, NJ Council will be primary partners and the source of volunteer leaders and the target audience of member girls. Science Education kits will be developed and tested for Brownies and Juniors, training materials for staff trainers and volunteer leaders developed, leaders trained, and several post.training support mechanisms developed. Program materials are designed for continued use by the Girl Scouts; more than 2,000 leaders will be trained and 20,000 girls will participate in project activities during the three year period. This project is directed at the substantial under representation of women in many science and engineering fields by working with girls in informal settings to overcome patterns of science and mathematics avoidance. Replication and dissemination will be undertaken both within the Girl Scout Council system and among museums, youth organizations, and other informal educators. The proposers are contributing nearly $250,000 in resources to the project; NSF support will be 55% of the project total.
The Mississippi Museum of Natural Science proposes to build on its program of activities that involve children in science and bring them into contact with the approaches, objects and equipment that scientists use, with each activity designed to stimulate thinking and heighten interest in science. Cardinal features of the program are the development of hands-on exhibits, science kits for classroom use and a studied tie with the children's television program, "3-2-1 Contact." The goals are to coordinate these activities with hands-on science activities for students in grades 3-6, and to coordinate classroom activities with those at the museum, which conducts "3-2-1 Contact Days" throughout the year when students come to the museum and take part in experiments, observations and enrichment lessons and actively manipulate museum objects. The museum now will refine the program components, including improvement and duplication of the hands-on kits, continuation of the workshops for elementary teachers and development of new participatory exhibits dealing with insects and endangered species, and will present them to an expanded audience. One-third of the children in the state live below the poverty level, and fifty per cent represent minority populations. As most of these children lack such out-of-school experiences these informal science activities are particularly meaningful.