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Release date: Jan. 30, 2006 Emory Program Builds Excitement for Science Education
PRISM was initially funded by NSF in 2003, and the new grant will support the program for five years through 2011. Since its inception, PRISM has partnered with 39 teachers in 13 middle and high schools around the metro Atlanta area. More than 100 new curriculum units that use real-world applications to teach the basics of science have been developed and taught to more than 2000 K-12 students. "We're working to create a 'compelling need to know' within students by actively bringing the excitement of science to them through hands-on experiments and instruction," says Jordan Rose, PRISM program coordinator for Emory's Center for Science Education. Emory faculty who developed PRISM — chemistry professor Jay Justice, Center for Science Education director Pat Marsteller, and Preetha Ram, Emory's assistant dean for science education — say they are convinced PRISM has a positive effect on graduate students, teachers and schoolchildren. "Problem- and investigative case-based learning is an important trend in education because it helps students make a strong connection with science concepts by demonstrating how real and integrated it is in our lives. In the process, students also gain critical thinking and research skills," says Marsteller. For example, one sixth grade class learned concepts in chemistry and biology through an investigation of air and water quality in Atlanta. The experience prompted the students to write to legislators and the governor about the relationship between air pollution and asthma and request stronger regulation. Eighteen teachers are participating this year, and have developed diverse lesson plans with their graduate partners. Case studies include an investigation of infection control that involves swabbing surfaces at the school to find and identify different types of bacteria. Another lesson includes students who are learning about math and physics by building model planes using basic principles of engineering. PRISM recently launched a Web site called CASES Online (www.cse.emory.edu/cases) that is a collection of the inquiry-based lessons for use in K-12, undergraduate and graduate science education. Educators can search CASES Online for a varied sample of cases appropriate to different grade levels, subjects and topics of interest, as well as download materials for use in the classroom. The cases address a variety of learning objectives across the sciences and meet state and national K-12 science education standards. The PRISM graduate fellows come from a variety of mathematics and science doctoral programs at Emory and Clark Atlanta University. "Our graduate fellows overwhelmingly report that they are more confident teachers, improved communicators, better team players and more committed partners with K-12 educators," Rose says. The Center for Science Education is in the midst of doing a comparison study of recent science test scores, and preliminary results from one school show some improvement. Anecdotally, many teachers have reported that students who were previously flunking science, or struggling to pass are now making Bs and Cs. For more information on PRISM, click here. ### Emory University is known for its demanding academics, outstanding undergraduate college of arts and sciences, highly ranked professional schools and state-of-the-art research facilities. For nearly two decades Emory has been named one of the country's top 25 national universities by U.S. News & World Report. In addition to its nine schools, the university encompasses The Carter Center, Yerkes National Primate Research Center and Emory Healthcare, the state's largest and most comprehensive health care system. Subscribe to News@Emory RSS feeds for automatic updates of the latest news at Emory. |
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