T C E B TRIANGLE COALITION ELECTRONIC BULLETIN SEPTEMBER 13, 2001 VOL. 7, NO. 33 _____________________________________________________ Published by the TRIANGLE COALITION FOR SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY EDUCATION _____________________________________________________ THIS WEEK'S TOPICS: REGISTER NOW FOR TRIANGLE COALITION CONFERENCE "MEETING THE CHALLENGES OF THE DECADE: SUCCESS THROUGH COLLABORATION" EXPLORAVISION INVITES CREATIVE YOUNG MINDS OF TODAY TO ENVISION TECHNOLOGIES OF TOMORROW ACADEMY OF SCIENCE OF ST. LOUIS SEEKS TO SHOW DIVERSE FACE OF SCIENCE WITH 2002 OUTSTANDING ST. LOUIS SCIENTISTS AWARDS SENATORS LIEBERMAN, BOND, AND FRIST TO INTRODUCE 'TECH TALENT BILL' NSF FUNDS NEW PHYSICS TEACHER PREPARATION PROGRAM TOSHIBA AMERICA FOUNDATION SMALL GRANTS PROGRAM FOR SCIENCE AND MATH EDUCATION TEACHERS AND STUDENTS DO REAL SCIENCE WITH CASSINI TEAM ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCE TEACHERS SOUGHT FOR SUMMER LEADERSHIP PROGRAM ____________________________________________________ REGISTER NOW FOR TRIANGLE COALITION CONFERENCE "MEETING THE CHALLENGES OF THE DECADE: SUCCESS THROUGH COLLABORATION" Don't forget... register NOW for the Triangle Coalition conference "Meeting the Challenges of the Decade: Success Through Collaboration." Registration fees and hotel rates will increase after September 17. Join us at the Washington Court Hotel on Capitol Hill for a reception/dinner on October 18th and a full day of interactive sessions the following day. Speakers include: U.S. Senator Jim Jeffords; Bruce Alberts, President, National Academy of Sciences; Tom Ferrio, Vice President, Education and Productivity Solutions, Texas Instruments Incorporated; and Linda Rosen, Senior Vice President, Education, National Alliance of Business. Attendees will also will hear from leaders of successful business/education partnerships and help identify key characteristics, both from a business and education point of view, that make partnerships effective. Conference attendees are also invited to share information about their programs/partnerships at an information exchange on Thursday evening. More information about the conference, including registration materials, group rates, a conference agenda, and speakers may be found at www.triangle-coalition.org/conf.htm. ************************************ EXPLORAVISION INVITES CREATIVE YOUNG MINDS OF TODAY TO ENVISION TECHNOLOGIES OF TOMORROW Celebrating its tenth year as one of the largest K-12 student science and technology competitions in the nation, the Toshiba/National Science Teachers Association (NSTA) ExploraVision Awards program has encouraged more than 200,000 students to develop exciting and innovative technologies that could improve life in the 21st century. The ExploraVision program again invites students of all grades, interests, and skills to participate in one of the most exciting and rewarding science program of the 2001-2002 school year. Funded by the Toshiba Corporation, the Toshiba America Group Companies, and the Toshiba America Foundation, and administered by NSTA, the ExploraVision program encourages students in grades K-12 to use their imagination, along with the tools of science, to create a vision of an innovative technology that could be used 20 years from now. Top awards include $10,000 and $5,000 savings bonds. The deadline for ExploraVision entries is February 4, 2002. For more information about the Toshiba/NSTA ExploraVision Awards program or to obtain an entry kit and a copy of the official rules, visit www.toshiba.com/tai/exploravision, e-mail [EMAIL PROTECTED], or call 800-EXPLOR9. ************************************ ACADEMY OF SCIENCE OF ST. LOUIS SEEKS TO SHOW DIVERSE FACE OF SCIENCE WITH 2002 OUTSTANDING ST. LOUIS SCIENTISTS AWARDS To focus attention on the world-renowned scientists and engineers who are working in St. Louis, Triangle Coalition member, the Academy of Science of St. Louis will honor several individuals with its 2002 Outstanding St. Louis Scientists Awards, to be presented next April. To find these individuals, the Academy is mailing requests for nominations to more than 3,000 scientists and engineers working in industry, at universities, and other public and private institutions. The deadline for submission is midnight Friday, November 2. "We are particularly eager to represent the face of science in St. Louis and the diversity of the people involved. The scientists who will select the honorees hope to have a diverse pool of talent from which to choose. Because St. Louis is a world leader in engineering and technology, we also encourage nominations for an award created last year, the James B. Eads Award," says Thomas A. Woolsey, M.D., president of the Academy of Science of St. Louis. "The judging panel of Academy Fellows will consider a wide range of accomplishment," says Dr. Woolsey. "We urge that anyone with a suggestion for an honoree call the Academy's office at 314/533-8083 or go to the Academy's web site at www.jracademy.com for nomination forms." The Academy of Science of St. Louis, founded in 1856, carries out its mission to improve scientific literacy in the St. Louis region by serving as a community resource to increase public knowledge and support of science and technology and by stimulating collaboration and exchanges among the public, scientists, teachers, students, scientific institutions, and businesses through programs in schools and in the community and through publications and lectures. The Academy is supported by over 700 members and 60 Fellows who are internationally-recognized scientists and engineers. ************************************ SENATORS LIEBERMAN, BOND, AND FRIST TO INTRODUCE 'TECH TALENT BILL' At a press conference Tuesday, September 11, Senators Lieberman (D-CT), Bond (R-MO), and Frist (R-TN) introduced the "Tech Talent bill," aimed at increasing the number of scientists, engineers, and technologists in the United States. Senator Barbara Mikulski (D-MD) is also a co-sponsor of the legislation. House Science Chairman Sherwood Boehlert introduced a companion bill in the House of Representatives. The decline in our technical workforce is becoming a major U.S. economic problem. This legislation aims to address the problem by establishing a competitive grant program at the National Science Foundation that rewards universities and community colleges pledging to increase the number of U.S. citizens or permanent residents obtaining degrees in science, math, engineering, and technology (SMET) fields. The pilot program, which will award three-year grants, is authorized at $25 million in FY02 with funding expected to increase in the future. The sponsors estimate that a funding range of $200 million a year may be reached depending on pilot program results. ************************************ NSF FUNDS NEW PHYSICS TEACHER PREPARATION PROGRAM A five-year, $5.76 million grant has been awarded by the National Science Foundation to the American Physical Society (APS), in partnership with the American Association of Physics Teachers (AAPT) and the American Institute of Physics (AIP). These professional societies will create a nationwide initiative, the Physics Teacher Coalition (PhysTEC), to dramatically improve the science preparation and teaching skills of future secondary and elementary teachers and to establish an Induction/Mentor program for new teachers. "PhysTEC will be established with an initial set of six primary institutions and more than twenty-five universities and colleges that share a strong commitment to revise their teacher preparation programs," according to PhysTEC principal investigator Fredrick Stein. "This includes improving the preparation of both elementary and secondary science teachers." The program incorporates exemplary components of past NSF-supported projects that have proven to be successful in making long-term positive changes in teacher preparation. These include: * A Teacher-in-Residence program that provides for a local K-12 science teacher to become a full-time participant in assisting faculty with both team-teaching and course revisions * A long-term, active collaboration between the physics department, the education department, and the local school community * The redesign of content and pedagogy of targeted physics courses based on results from physics education research as well as utilization of appropriate interactive technologies * The redesign of content and pedagogy for elementary and secondary science methods courses with an emphasis on inquiry-based, hands-on approaches to teaching and learning * The participation of physics faculty in increasing and improving field-based experiences of prospective teachers and in establishing an induction program and a mentor program for novice PhysTEC teachers In addition to assisting colleges and universities with improving the preparation of future teachers of physical science and physics at all levels, APS/AAPT/AIP will broadly disseminate the best practices developed through these efforts. For additional information, contact Dr. Fredrick M. Stein, Director of Education and Outreach, American Physical Society, at 301-209-3263 or via e-mail to [EMAIL PROTECTED] ************************************ TOSHIBA AMERICA FOUNDATION SMALL GRANTS PROGRAM FOR SCIENCE AND MATH EDUCATION The October 1st deadline is fast approaching for applications for the Toshiba America Foundation's Small Grants Program for Science and Math Education for kindergarten through sixth grade. The foundation will award 75 grants of up to $1,000 each to encourage the project-based teaching of science and mathematics. Projects must be implemented between December 1, 2001, and May 15, 2002, must be in addition to the regular curriculum, must span at least three class periods, and must take place during the school day. Any teacher working with K-6 students may apply. Grants are awarded to the teacher's school and are restricted for use in the teacher's classroom. Only one application per teacher is permitted. Call 212 588-0820, e-mail [EMAIL PROTECTED], or visit www.toshiba.com/about/taf.html for applications and information. ************************************ TEACHERS AND STUDENTS DO REAL SCIENCE WITH CASSINI TEAM (Source: NASA Space Science Newsletter, September 2001) When the Cassini spacecraft flew past Jupiter this year, not only were scientists able to collect high-resolution data on Jupiter's radiation belts, but students and their teachers across the country also had an opportunity to do some real science. Using the Goldstone-Apple Valley Radio Telescope (GAVRT), the research team collaborated with teachers and students from across the country to perform a series of ground-based observations of Jupiter coordinated with spacecraft observations during the Cassini encounter from November 2000 through March 2001. The GAVRT antenna, formerly known as DSS-12, was decommissioned from the Deep Space Network (DSN) in 1996. With the effort of a team of visionary scientists, educators, engineers, and community volunteers, the antenna found new life as an educational tool that offers teachers and students across the country a unique opportunity to experience the scientific process, as well as contribute directly to important, current research. The GAVRT science education partnership is jointly managed by the Lewis Center for Educational Research (http://www.avstc.org/) in Apple Valley, California, and the DSN Science Office at the Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Pasadena. An ongoing curriculum of the GAVRT partnership is called Jupiter Quest, a hypothetical mission to Jupiter or one of its moons. Students measure the radio emission from the Jovian atmosphere and its radiation belts using the radio telescope (controlled via the Internet through the GAVRT Operations Control Center in Apple Valley) and use the information in their mission plan. Forty Jupiter Quest teachers and 2300 students at 26 schools in 13 states have participated in the Cassini-JMOC. The GAVRT program allows students and teachers to reach beyond science education as the mere learning of facts and concepts. It gives them the real experience of solving unexpected problems, of collecting data on heretofore unknown or poorly understood phenomena, and of interpreting that data. Many teachers participating in Cassini-JMOC report their students were greatly excited by the experience, gaining confidence in themselves and comfort with the scientific process. For more information, visit www.avstc.org/gavrt/index.htm. ************************************ ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCE TEACHERS SOUGHT FOR SUMMER LEADERSHIP PROGRAM The Paul F-Brandwein Institute is seeking environmental science teachers who are currently engaged in field-based investigations, who would like to participate in a ten-day all expenses paid summer leadership program in the Pocono Mountains of Pennsylvania. Participants will receive follow-up grants to advance teaching and learning at outdoor laboratories. The Paul F-Brandwein Institute manages this science education leadership initiative. Applications are being accepted for the ten-day summer institute that will take place July 18-28, 2002. Next spring 20 of the nation's outstanding teachers will be selected to attend the institute along with field scientists and resource specialists. The goal of the institute is to develop teacher and scientist mentors who will share their expertise with colleagues and their students nationwide. Portions of the program will take place at Triangle Coalition member, the Pocono Environmental Education Center, located in the Delaware Water Gap National Recreation Area and will utilize National Park Service resources as an outdoor teaching and learning laboratory. For more information on the program or to download an application, please visit www.brandwein.org. The deadline for applications is January 15, 2002. Participants will be notified by February 2, 2002. _____________________________________________________ This TCEB is made possible by a grant from AT&T. Please visit www.att.com/learningnetwork for more information about AT&T's support for education. The TCEB is a newsletter provided to members of the Triangle Coalition. Members may forward individual articles or the issue in its entirety providing that credit is given to the Triangle Coalition, and all of the following contact information is included in any republication. For TCEB subscription or membership information, contact: Triangle Coalition for Science and Technology Education 1201 New York Avenue, NW, Suite 700, Washington, DC 20005 phone: 800-582-0115 fax: 202-289-1303 e-mail: [EMAIL PROTECTED] www.triangle-coalition.org To submit information for possible inclusion in TCEB, contact: Joanne Van Voorhis, Target Marketing, Editor [EMAIL PROTECTED] ************************************ THE MISSION OF THE TRIANGLE COALITION IS TO FOSTER COLLABORATION AMONG LEADERS IN EDUCATION, BUSINESS, AND GOVERNMENT TO IMPROVE SCIENCE, MATHEMATICS, AND TECHNOLOGY EDUCATION. The Triangle Coalition membership includes business, labor, education, science, mathematics, technology and engineering organizations, and community and state-based alliances. ************************************ -- This is the ISTA-talk mailing list. To unsubscribe: <mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED]> For more information: <http://www.ista-il.org/ista-talk.asp> To search the archives: <http://www.mail-archive.com/ista-talk@lists.csi.cps.k12.il.us/>
