4.E.2 Education and Human Resources Development:
C-SPIN’s educational and human resource plans are based upon the nation’s need for more scientifically literate citizens, including the untapped resource of populations currently underrepresented. The situation is even more acute in Oklahoma and Arkansas, both of which lack a tradition of high technology and suffer from lower than average funding and resources for educationG?01. Thus our goal at the K-12 level is to improve the content, and delivery of science instruction by using inquiry-based methods to stimulate ongoing interest in science; while at the collegiate and graduate levels our goal is to provide rich research opportunities and mentorship to foster future scientists. These goals are strategically integrated with one another and with Center research goals. Center undergrads and graduate students are the primary contact with the K-12 population in our outreach programs. Through direct teaching activities they not only develop a sense of professional obligation to improve scientific literacy, but they also develop the excellentcommunication and teaching skills required for their own professional success.
K-12 Science Education: Since its inception C-SPIN has been committed to quality science instruction at the K-12 level. Therefore, the Center will continue its support of its established programs Sooner Elementary Engineering and Science (SeeS) at OU, UA K.I.D.S. (“K-12, I Do Science”) and our Research Experiences for Teachers. We also propose new partnerships with the Community After School Program (CASP), the Sam Noble Museum of Natural History and the K20 Center in this recompetition.
SeeSis an after-school K-5 science club run with the aid of undergraduate student mentors. The K-5 age group was carefully chosen in order to attract girls before they lose interest in science.G?02,?03 C-SPIN runs the program for a local Title I school with a relatively large minority population for Norman (14% African-American, 6% Hispanic and 9% Native American). A team of undergraduates, supervised by our Outreach coordinator, conducts a monthly after-school science session with approximately 35 students. Each session is designed to maximize hands-on participation, with five separate experimental stations for each child to visit in a small group that advances from station-to-station. A coordinating theme is chosen for example, flight and propulsion, and all the activities relate to the theme. Thus far C-SPIN has developed 12 separate kits related to a particular theme in mechanics, chemistry, electricity, and magnetism. Each kit is well documented with full scientific explanations and suggestions for interactive dialogue. In addition the Center pays the stipends for the undergraduate mentors of whom 33% are female and the salary of the part-time program coordinator (also female). Research shows that early and frequent exposure to female scientists positively influences both girls and boys attitudes to scientists and to women in science?G04; hence we are committed to maintaining a high level of female participation at both the mentor and participant levels. Presently 60% of our young participants are female.
CASP(Community After School Program, see is a non-profit Norman-based program that provides after school care every weekday throughout the school year, including arts and crafts, physical activity and homework aid for more than 700 elementary children at 16 separate school sites. The CASP administration wishes to enhance the educational content of the program and a new partnership with C-SPIN will enable a science component. In this alliance, C-SPIN will provide both the science kits and training of the site coordinators greatly expanding dissemination. This new development is a win-win for both CASP clientele and coordinators, since the majority of site coordinators are themselves OU undergrads culled from the ranks of elementary education majors. Hence training the site coordinators in the particular scientific themes reinforces their own knowledge, and better prepares them for the use of hands-on activities in their future classrooms.
SciGirlsisa newly developed program at OU’s Sam Noble Museum of Natural History based on SciGirls PBS KIDSG?05. This weekly after-school program is designed to maintain interest in science during the crucial middle school years. Presently, sessions take place at two middle schools with 25 girls each. C-SPIN has committed to developing new modules based on our science kits plus on-site visits with our portable scanning electron microscope (SEM). See below for more details.
GK-12 K.I.D.S is a UA program sponsored by NSF with administrative support from C-SPIN that places physics, engineering, and chemistry graduate students into Arkansas middle schools. UA will institutionalize the KIDS program beyond the GK-12 funding, permitting C-SPIN to continue its commitment to this valuable program. The graduate students, guided by their major research professor, are trained to work in partnership with middle school teachers to bring an approach to the classroom that emphasizes student learning through their wonder of how things work. The middle school students identify an interesting question or puzzle, propose their own ideas or answers, identify what they perceive is needed to make a feasibility test of their answer, set up experiments to carry out that test, team together to gather data from experiments, analyze data, and evaluate the results. Since 2005, 54 NSF Fellows (40% female) have been paired with teachers to develop inquiry-based modules. 25% perform their research in C-SPIN labs, using their research backgrounds in materials science to develop and implement lessons. C-SPIN contributes both time and resources to the program, as exemplified by the lessons that utilize our portable SEM including: crystals; organic structures; reproduction (seeds, pollen and eggs); and a visual lesson on scaling (see figure). Recently, we have acquired a second portable SEM for OU allowing both campuses to benefit from the GK-12 developed lesson plans. Results indicate that these NSF Fellows are becoming more confident in their ability to communicate their knowledge to others; teachers are increasing their use of inquiry-based activities; and students are reporting higher interest levels in science.
K20alt: The K20 Center is an OU-based regional education research and development center that promotes innovative learning through school-university-community collaboration. The K20 Center interacts with principals and superintendents as well as teachers throughout the year via conferences, summer workshops and school visits. To date the K20 network includes more than 500 schools, reaching more than 1,000 school leaders, 3,000 teachers and 40,000 students. One of the center’s newest projects is K20altG?06, a virtual community of 1100 registered users from around the country who develop “authentic learning”G?07lesson plans that meet the National Common Core Curriculum. The lesson plans are developed with supervision from K20 Center pedagogy specialists. The project was piloted in English, mathematics, and biology, however demand from the online community has grown for lesson plans focused on chemistry and physics. A newly established partnership with C-SPIN will target this deficit. Teams consisting of center scientists from both OU and UA, K20 staff and a highly qualified high school chemistry/physics teacher will work collaboratively to form the blueprint for specific lesson plans before they are released to the larger virtual community for refinement. The online nature of the effort allows not only C-SPIN scientist from both campuses to provide scientific content, but also educators from both states can contribute and use the lessons. Topics will be selected to be contemporary and interdisciplinary, for example nanotechnology or energy issues, but will embed fundamental math and science principles. C-SPIN’s specific contribution to the collaboration will be the summer stipend for the high school chemistry/physics teacher as well as the scientific expertise for the lesson plans content.
Additionally, the K20 Center has also through its GEAR UP program established strong partnerships with 36 economically disadvantaged high schools throughout the region enrolling 36,000 students to increased their and their families’ knowledge of postsecondary education options, preparation, and financing. The GEARUP program is designed to encourage more students to consider college in their futures. Both C-SPIN campuses will provide lab tours during campus visits and perform on-site outreach using such tools as our portable electron microscopes.
Research Experience for Teachers: Since 2005, C-SPIN has supported via stipends and/or scientific mentorship, 16 summer experiences for middle- and high-school teachers. The program has provided opportunities for learning and collaboration within and across the OU and UA communities. As of late, teachers have concentrated on the development of chemistry and materials related projects that could be transitioned to their home classrooms (i.e. detection of contaminants in groundwater). Teachers from both campuses interact via teleconferencing to share ideas and their classroom experiences. C-SPIN will continue its commitment to teacher support for summer research opportunities, recruiting from the C-SPIN sponsored academic year K-12 programs, while leveraging parallel Center developments in improved science curriculum.
Undergraduate & Graduate Education: C-SPIN’s commitment to developing future scientists includes quality research experiences, topical instruction in nanotechnology, and professional development. With this recompetition, we are striving to improve access for traditionally underrepresented groups.
Research Experiences for Undergraduates: Historically, both campuses have had a history of successful NSF REU programs with nano-science components. Four REU programs will continue beyond 2011: one at OU (Physics) and three at UA (Chemistry, MicroEP, and Mechanical Eng.). Students from all four programs will continue to partake in research within C-SPIN labs. In addition the Center will supplement the sites with funding for two extra students on each campus per year within the existing REU infrastructure. Students will be selected based on talent and lack of access to research at their home institution. C-SPIN will also continue to coordinate a joint-campus field trip for all program participants to high tech companies in Dallas. We have a new initiative in our ongoing commitment to underserved groups and have identified faculty liaisons at regional institutions with large minority enrollments: Hicks at Northeastern State University in Tahlequah, OK (with the largest number of full-time Native American students enrolled nationally); Mortazavifrom the University of Arkansas-Pine Bluff, Collinsfrom Fisk University in Nashville, and Bonner from Norfolk State University in Virginia (all HBCUs). These faculty liaisons will serve as a conduit to direct talented undergraduates to our REU program (and will themselves conduct summer research/collaborate with C-SPIN scientists).
Nano-themed Courses: On both campuses C-SPIN students benefit from a host of nano-themed courses including instruction in transmission and scanning electron microscope use and sample fabrication. On the UA campus, several courses are taught by C-SPIN faculty participants, including advanced nanotechnology in chemistry, physics and fabrication. Under previous NSF-ILI support Bumm and Johnson developed Nanolab, a laboratory based course in nanofabrication accessible to all science and engineering majors, attracting students from sophomores to graduate students. As part of the renewal, C-SPIN will offer this course in the summer allowing students from either C-SPIN campus to enroll. Additionally, C-SPIN will sponsor two Nanolab scholarships providing tuition and housing allowance to students from our targeted minority serving institutions (see Diversity Strategic Plan for more detail).
Professional Training:Center graduate students and postdocs engage in professional ethics training. At OU this consists of a two-day workshop developed by the Graduate College, whereas on the UA campus, training is provided by a summer course developed by the microEP program. Courses in proposal writing, scientific writing and entrepreneurship are also available to our students on both campuses.
Management of Educational Resources: Mullen serves as the Director of Education Outreach, while Christy Wilson and Morgan Ware are the Outreach Coordinators at OU and UA, respectively.
Assessment and Metrics: Starting in 2011, C-SPIN will be a participant in the professional cross-site evaluation of Center education and outreach programs run by Tai (University of Virginia). Tai is an expert in early STEM education and factors influencing future success in science, including gender differences in performance and perception of science. Tai and his team will meet with C-SPIN outreach staff to develop research design and evaluation instruments that are tailored for our specific programs.
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