Under the guidance of Dr. Richard Olenick of the University of Dallas (UD) the Mechanical Universe High School Adaption (MUHSA) will be used in workshops for leader teachers and underprepared teachers. During each of three successive summers leader teachers (4, 10 and 10 respectively) will attend intensive three week workshops at UD to hone their skills in using MUHSA materials. In turn they will offer MUHSA workshops for 10 underprepared teachers in their local area. Following their initial summer workshop these leader teachers will return to UD each summer for one-week review workshops. The leader teachers will also offer follow-up support, during the academic year, to the underprepared teachers from their workshops. Over the course of the project 24 leader teachers will participate and 140 underprepared teachers. During the third year another 240 underprepared teachers will participate with no-NSF funding. The workshops will provide underprepared teachers with important fundamental content of high school physics curricula, a new approach to many ideas of physics, historical enrichment on the discoveries of physics and instructional methodologies to effectively implement MUHSA. The quality of the MUHSA materials has been enhanced by the cycles of development, evaluation, adjustment, re-evaluation and refinement. This project design is continued in the workshops and associated activities. In following this design it avoids one of the major pitfalls associated with the curriculum development work of the 1960s. Documentation of this project's success will provide a basis for national dissemination. Follow-up activities including a newsletter and electronic communication will be facilitate using support from UD and the National Diffusion Network. The videotapes of the MUHSA will be supplied to each participant using non-NSF funds as well as VCRs for schools that cannot afford them. With NSF funding being phased out for the underprepared teachers in the third year of the project and being replaced by non-NSF funds there is an excellent possibility the project will continue after the NSF grant period. The cost sharing in an amount of $329,600 is equal to 39% of the NSF award.
