The Southeastern Regional Education Service Center of New Hampshire has initiated a series of planning activities that will establish action plans for reform of elementary and middle school science instruction in 13 school districts. These districts include 20 elementary and 10 middle schools, representing 25% of the state's total K-12 enrollment. The planning activities will include 1) surveys to establish the status of and needs for improved science instruction in each district, and 2) training and planning workshops for district teams (principals, teachers, district administrators). Each team will use the training workshops to develop action plans leading to adoption of hands-on inquiry-based curricula and teaching practices. The planning activities described above will initiate an important reform effort within each district, and will create a regional network of collaborating reformers. This planning process is critical to the long-term success of the effort, and will serve as a model for other consortia of small school districts. Cost sharing amounts to 29% of the NSF contribution.
