Science

CSE, the University of Michigan, and the Center for Applied Special Technology is applying the principles of Universal Design for Learning (UDL) so that science curricula can be customized to serve a wide range of student learning needs.

The ERP/EQUIP1 program encourages systemwide reforms by experimenting at lower levels of the educational system (i.e., schools, community, and local government authorities) to test and demonstrate effective strategies for educational improvement. Egypt’s newly developed educational standards provide the framework for the reform overall and the project activities in particular.

CSE, along with literacy consultants from the Tufts University Center for Applied Child Development, are nearing completion of a set of professional development materials to be published by Heinemann Press in the summer of 2009. The Connecting Science and Literacy Program (CSLP) is designed to enhance the understanding of this connection and its relationship to the development of scientific reasoning skills and conceptual understanding.

The Innovative Technology Experiences for Students and Teachers (ITEST) program is designed to increase opportunities for students and teachers to learn about and use information technologies within the contexts of science, technology, engineering, and mathematics. The program supports both youth-based projects with strong emphases on career and educational paths, and comprehensive projects for students and teachers.

The Boston Science Partnership is a five-year NSF-funded Math and Science Partnership project designed to improve science teaching and learning in Boston’s middle schools and high schools, to enhance university-level teaching by STEM faculty, and to ensure the university partners’ continued support for and faculty involvement in science education. The Partnership involves the Boston Public Schools, the University of Massachusetts/Boston, and Northeastern University as the principal partners. Harvard Medical School and the College Board participate as supporting partners.

In this five-year project, CSE is developing a comprehensive high school science curriculum called Foundation Science. It comprises two semesters each of chemistry, physics, biology, and earth science. Schools will be able to sequence the courses to suit the structure of their science programs. Stimulating narratives engage students with problems whose solutions lead to an understanding of major scientific concepts. Hands-on investigations supported by scientific literature help students reach those solutions.

This project provides logistical and substantive support to the IMD, TPC, and DR-K12 grantees funded by the National Science Foundation (NSF). Working collaboratively with the principal investigators and NSF program officers over a five-year period, EDC has coordinated four of five annual Principal Investigators conferences and is establishing a knowledge-transfer network that includes developing print and Web-based resources to ensure ongoing, high-quality dialogue and sharing among grantees.

In collaboration with EDC’s Education, Employment, and Community Programs, ERO promotes and supports the Ford PAS program. Ford PAS includes an interdisciplinary high school curriculum that challenges students academically and develops their problem-solving, teamwork, and communication skills. We provide ongoing technical assistance for all schools and partners implementing Ford PAS by hosting an interactive Web site and toll-free hotline, designing and conducting an annual national networking and training conference, and offering professional development activities.

CSE is directing the external formative and summative evaluation activities for Harvard University’s Learning to RECAST Students’ Causal Assumptions in Science Through Interactive Multimedia Professional Development Tools project. This five-year project develops tools that enable teachers to assist their students in learning the nature of causality underlying scientific concepts. CSE’s role is to monitor the project’s progress on materials and technology development as well as to determine the impact of the tools on teacher practice.