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Selling Your Soul for Science

Selling Your Soul for Science. Notes on Being an NSF GK-12 Fellow By Ted Pavlic Wednesday, May 30, 2007. Agenda. About: Definitions, Mission, Topics Fellowship Benefits and Requirements Conclusions: Reflections, Pros, and Cons Questions. Some Definitions.

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Selling Your Soul for Science

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  1. Selling Your Soul for Science Notes on Being an NSF GK-12 Fellow By Ted Pavlic Wednesday, May 30, 2007

  2. Agenda • About: Definitions, Mission, Topics • Fellowship Benefits and Requirements • Conclusions: Reflections, Pros, and Cons • Questions

  3. Some Definitions • NSF: National Science Foundation • GK-12: Graduate Teaching Fellows in K-12 Education • GRFP: Graduate Research Fellowship Program • STEM: Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics • CPS: Columbus Public Schools • NCLB: No Child Left Behind (“nickel-be”)* • EOY: End Of Year • PI: Principal Investigator • PC: Program Coordinator *Reference to Nicholas Nickleby, Charles Dickens novel & 2002 Douglas McGrath movie (see also: Hard Times).

  4. Synopsis from NSF* • Provides funding to STEM graduate students to . . . • acquire additional skills to prepare for 21st century careers • improve communication, teaching, collaboration, and team building skills • enrich STEM learning and instruction in K-12 schools • gain a deeper understanding of own STEM research • Encourages universities to add inquiry-based learning to STEM graduate programs • Strengthened and sustained partnerships in STEM between universities and local school districts *Summarized from http://www.nsf.gov/funding/pgm_summ.jsp?pims_id=5472.

  5. Scientific Inquiry* Repackaging of scientific method for use in teaching • Motivate students to ask a question • Develop hypotheses • Test them • Draw conclusions • Show that process should continue possibly forever *Image taken from http://acept.asu.edu/courses/phs110/si/chapter1/main.html.

  6. OSU GK-12 • Collaboration with CPS • Focus on 3rd, 4th, and 5th grade students • 9-11 year old students • Each fellow paired with two teachers • Usually different schools • Usually different grades • Huge testing pressures • NCLB • NSF reporting • Job is NOT to teach students!

  7. Topics to Teach • Grade 3 • Earth Science: Properties/composition of rocks and soils • Life Science: Animal life cycles, morphological classification, habitat, adaptations • Grade 4 • Matter: Physical and chemical properties • Life Science: Plant life cycle, parts, adaptations, habitat • Earth Science: Water, weather, geological processes • Grade 5 • Earth Science: Solar system • Life Science: Food chains, webs • Physical Science: Electricity, energy, light/sound waves • Design Process: positive and negative impacts of technology • Common Elements • Observation, Measuring, Classification • Communication • Technology and Careers

  8. Concrete Fellowship Benefits • Bona fide NSF fellowship • Looks great on a CV • 12-month NSF GRFP level stipend (e.g., $2500/month) • 12-month tuition • Administered by OSU • Fewer applicants = Better award chances • Delivery via OSU payroll = Funded graduate student health insurance subsidy (note: after tax deduction) • 1099 Income • No social security or PERS (+?) • File estimated taxes quarterly (-) • Easy to milk/exploit social service aspect • Looks great on CV • Social do-gooders attract public attention (for personal gain)

  9. Fellowship Time Requirements • Time Requirements • 10 hours per week in classroom • 5+ hours per week for lesson planning and development • 1 hour biweekly meeting of fellows and PI’s • 2 half-day focus meetings (January and May) • 1 hour EOY summary of experience (e.g., right now) • ~4 half-day training meetings as trainees (June) • ~2 half-day training meetings as trainers (June) • Adviser requirements • Adviser must visit classroom once per semester • Adviser must meet with PC at EOY

  10. Fellowship Deliverables • On-line Course: Human Research(once for 2-3 hours) • On-line NSF EOY survey(once for 0.5 hour) • Pre-test and post-test data (one per quarter) • Lesson plans: MS Word chemistry-lab format (one per week (ish)) • Biweekly reports: one page form (one every two weeks) • Presentations: focus meetings and EOY summary (three total) • Possible additional tracking information

  11. Heart of Educational Darkness* • Classroom control • NCLB always an obstacle (spinning out of control) • Testing pressures are huge • Schedules/resources frequently change • Teacher expertise in wrong areas • Homework not an option • Schools serve as foster parents • Cannot count on parent involvement • Inquiry-based teaching incompatible with testing requirements • Program mission: avoid teaching to test • Program performance measures: test • NSF reporting (contradictory) • NCLB requires high test scores • How to teach vocabulary and inquiry? *Reference to Joseph Conrad’s The Heart of Darkness(see also F. F. Coppola’s 1979 Apocalypse Now).

  12. Pros and Cons • Pros • Interface with graduate students from other fields • Financially attractive • Learn about inner-city public schools • Expand content knowledge to surprising extent • Cons • Can be a major time burden • Can lead to an attenuated sense of personal efficacy • Future • Continuously improving fellowship experience • Web resources getting better • PI’s and PC sincerely want to make program a success

  13. Conclusions (“Selling Your Soul for Science”) • Investment • Time • Energy • Returns • Cash / CV • Expanded content knowledge • Expanded awareness • Impact on teachers’ future lessons • Hopefully plant seeds of citizen scientists

  14. Questions? • For more information . . . • NSF GK-12 Website: http://www.nsfgk12.org/ • OSU GK-12 Website: http://gk-12.osu.edu/ • OSU GK-12 Program Coordinator • Mary Allison Timby (“Mary Allison”) • (614) 688-0501 • mtimby@chemistry.ohio-state.edu • Ted Pavlic: pavlic.3@osu.edu

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