The Institute for Secondary Mathematics and Computer Science Education is a national program at Kent State University for secondary school teachers of mathematics and computer science, and was funded originally through Teacher Enhancement in 1988. The original program has been streamlined and reshaped to include a substantial emphasis on implementation and school change. In the summers of 1991 and 1992 a cadre of 60 teachers will study topics in computer science, data analysis, discrete mathematics, number theory, geometry, and abstract algebra. Current thinking from research in mathematics pedagogy pervades the program. The summer institute is six weeks long. As a central feature, teachers prepare to implement project philosophy and ideas in their classrooms and schools through the development of instructional units and preparation to conduct inservice. During the academic year, project staff and previous participants will support teachers in their implementation and outreach efforts through local meetings and school visits. Institute participants are brought together twice annually in a formal conference, and meet in small groups at other times. It is an expectation that participants or participant teams from a region conduct a series of four day-long inservices sessions locally. Project staff includes nationally known mathematicians, computer scientists, and educators. This program is attempting to make a transition to a permanent, self-supporting institute, and efforts toward this transition are central to the current project. Cost sharing is provided by Kent State University and the Ohio Board of Regents as 19 % of the NSF award.
