9816809 According to a 1996 NRC report, fewer than 25% of teachers in grades 5-8 majored in science, and less than 45% completed more than 10 credit hours of college science. The goal of this proposal is to improve the quality of science teaching in grades 6-12. Improving science teaching requires a complete overhaul of the traditional science-teaching models, however in-service teachers have few opportunities to see alternate techniques modeled. The PI proposes to develop a pilot short course that will help in-service science teachers incorporate inquiry-based and research-based education into their teaching techniques. During this short course, the teachers will do their own geoscience research on a local watershed and develop instructional plans to take their research activities into their classroom. The course is based on a similar course that was developed for instruction of undergraduates and graduate students. Although this course will be based on the local watershed, the result will be a model workshop that could be adapted for any location. This award is collaborative with proposal # 98-09826 by Dr. Barbara Cooper.
