msp regional meeting: nih resources to support stem education
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MSP Regional Meeting: NIH Resources to Support STEM Education. Bruce A. Fuchs, Ph.D., Director Office of Science Education National Institutes of Health , DHHS [email protected] http://science.education.nih.gov. http://www.pisa.oecd.org - PowerPoint PPT PresentationTRANSCRIPT
MSP Regional Meeting:NIH Resources to Support STEM Education
Bruce A. Fuchs, Ph.D., Director Office of Science EducationNational Institutes of Health , [email protected]://science.education.nih.gov
Programme for International Student Assessment (PISA)
• http://www.pisa.oecd.org
• Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD)
• Policy oriented-determined by needs of governments
• “Literacy”- capacity of 15 year old students to apply knowledge
• Not limited to curricular competencies- lifelong learning
• 49 countries- OECD members + others
Problem Solving Example
PISA 2003 Problem Solving
USA
Argument:What About Our Top Students?
PISA
Sco
re (9
5th
Perc
entil
e)
Science.education.nih.gov
Science.education.nih.gov
• Categorized educational resources (1600+)
Science.education.nih.gov
• Funding opportunities
NIH Challenge Grants in STEM Education
• http://science.education.nih.gov/callbruce• (See information page)
• http://dpcpsi.nih.gov/osc/challengegrants/stem.asp
SEPA(Science Education Partnership Awards)
• http://www.ncrr.nih.gov/science_education_partnership_awards• For program announcements
• http://www.ncrrsepa.org/• To see examples of funded projects.
Science.education.nih.gov/LifeWorks
NIH Curriculum Supplements Series
Targets grades K-12
16 teaching units developed to date
Developed in collaboration with NIH scientists
Created with outside curriculum development experts (e.g., BSCS, EDC)
Interactive teaching units that combine cutting-edge science from the NIH with innovative pedagogy.
Over 340,000 supplements requested by educators in more than 16,700 zip codes http://science.education.nih.gov
Inquiry in Science
• Inquiry refers to the way scientists study the natural world and propose explanations based on evidence
• Scientists ask questions about the world• What causes earthquakes?• Is the climate changing?• What causes human illness?
• Inquiry in different fields of science is similar• Rigorous reasoning• Considers evidence (observations, lab experiments, etc.)• Hypothesis testing• Build models and/or theories that are predictive and subject to further testing
• Inquiry is central to the nature of science
Inquiry in Science Education
• Inquiry refers to a way of teaching science that incorporates aspects of the scientist’s approach
• Inquiry can be used to teach science content
• Inquiry is also a skill students should master
• Inquiry is not…• Best learned simply by reading about it• A procedure that can be memorized (e.g., “the scientific method”)
Inquiry in Other Occupations
• Inquiry is used in other careers–not just science• Physician diagnosing illness in a patient• Assembly line worker investigating production line errors• Office worker using database to solve customer’s problem
• Businesses report that employees with problem solving and critical thinking skills are in short supply
• These skills are rewarded in the U.S. economy
Doing Science: The Process of Scientific Inquiry
• Inquiry in the “foreground” of lesson
• Discuss how scientists work• Evidence• Teamwork• Sharing data and explanations• Working with questions
• Scientific• Testable
• Solve a community health problem
Challenges to Inquiry
• Preparing teachers• Inquiry intimidating if teacher is unsure of content• Professional development• Supportive curricular materials
• Myths about inquiry• All instruction should be inquiry based• Students must generate their own questions• Good “hands-on” curricular materials = good inquiry• Inquiry is independent of subject content matter
Assessment: A Major Challenge
• Most state and national-level assessments do not measure inquiry skills• We measure what is cheap and easy • We don’t measure some things we value most
• Assessment should measure both content knowledge and specific inquiry skills
• Businesses assess these skills in prospective employees
• Schools need effective, inexpensive ways to assess these skills
Office of Science EducationOffice of Science Policy
Bruce A. Fuchs, Ph.D., Director Office of Science EducationNational Institutes of Health , [email protected]://science.education.nih.gov
Mathematics and Science Mathematics and Science Partnership (MSP) ProgramsPartnership (MSP) Programs
U.S. Department of U.S. Department of Education: Education:
San Francisco San Francisco Regional MeetingRegional Meeting