Examining the effectiveness of the second year of the Middle School Science Academy

CHED 83

M. Danielle Barker, mdbarker@ku.edu1, Joseph Heppert, jheppert@ku.edu1, Philip S. Baringer2, Allen Macfarlane3, Douglas W. Huffman4, Steven B. Case5, Thomas R. Baker4, and Joann Walker6. (1) Department of Chemistry, University of Kansas, 1251 Wescoe Hall Dr, Room 2010, Lawrence, KS 66047, (2) Physics, University of Kansas, (3) Kansas Geological Survey, University of Kansas, (4) Department of Teaching & Leadership, University of Kansas, 1122 West Campus Rd., JRP Room 421, Lawernce, KS 66047, (5) Center for Research on Learning, University of Kansas, 1122 West Campus Rd., JRP Room 702A, Lawrence, KS 66047, (6) Topeka Public School District
The Middle School Science Academy (MSSA), an intensive two week workshop for middle school science teachers, has now completed its second year. While the first year focused on physical science, the second year focused on earth and space science and a conscious effort was made to show cross-discipline connections to the material taught during the first year of the workshop. The purposes of the workshop and the methods of instruction remained the same, but some implementation strategies were altered based on responses from participants during the first summer. Data from pre-/post-concept tests illustrate teacher content knowledge gains in earth and space science and in the related chemistry topics. Also, a comparison of post-workshop surveys from both summers identifies how teacher experiences differed from the first year of the program to the second. Finally, to determine what content the first-year participants retained from the previous summer, data from the readministration of the physical science concept test has been collected and analyzed.
 

General Posters
7:30 PM-9:30 PM, Sunday, 10 September 2006 Moscone Center -- Hall D, Poster

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8:00 PM-10:00 PM, Monday, 11 September 2006 Moscone Center -- Hall D, Sci-Mix

Division of Chemical Education

The 232nd ACS National Meeting, San Francisco, CA, September 10-14, 2006