The primary objective in Phase I of the Kansas State University RAIRE project was to document three successful KSU efforts to integrate research and education. Each of these projects was designed to enhance the science education o f both inservice and preservice K-12 teachers. Documentation of these exemplary projects has resulted in written reports, a RAIRE project flier, and the development of a web-based reference site. These documentation products are currently used in Phase II of the KSU RAIRE project -- dissemination of information regarding the integration of research and education. As part of early dissemination work, a presentation at the AAPT winter meeting was given this January. Additionally, a regional conference on "Shaping the Future" was hosted by KSU and a workshop presenting the KSU RAIRE project was presented. The workshop and conference will be described in more detail below. Early groundwork for expansion efforts has begun. We have identified individuals to help develop curriculum materials in chemistry and in molecular dynamics. Work is also underway in cooperation with the department of secondary education to give education majors opportunities and motivation to get involved in research projects on campus.
The featured KSU integration of research and education projects include:
The GENE Project
The Genetics Education Networking and Enhancement program, or GENE, was initiated in 1988 as a two-year teacher enhancement program funded by the NSF. Workshops in both 1988 and 1989 nurtured an on-going network of middle school and secondary teachers and scientists who collaborated to develop and apply a repertoire of research-based, hands-on activities. GENE was broadened and strengthened with an increased relation to molecular genetics with a second NSF grant. This second project was a refinement of the successful aspects of the original one and increased the involvement of school teachers as members of the GENE staff and as members of research teams on the KSU campus.
GENE developers were guided by the belief that research-oriented, hands-on laboratories that are directly related to science content, using living organisms, are an effective means to both increase science learning and to instill enthusiasm for science in both teachers and students. The goal of the GENE project has been to help teachers with diverse backgrounds and teaching responsibilities acquire the knowledge and materials which are needed to teach technical, quantitative, and interdisciplinary science by using experimental procedures from current genetics research. The central strategy has been to establish a network among teachers, science education specialists, and research scientists.
The GENE project effectively integrated current scientific knowledge and techniques to education through:
The MST Project
Developers and participating faculty of the Mathematics, Science, and Technology Elementary Education Program (MST) realized that the preparation of elementary teachers to teach science, mathematics, and technology effectively requires close, collaborative efforts by scientists and mathematicians, education specialists, and existing school teachers and administrators. One assumption in the project had been that without an integration of an in-depth background in the content of science and an understanding of the research process, elementary teachers are unable to teach science effectively to elementary students, regardless of either the pedagogical approaches or the involvement of school staff.
The collaborations created through the MST project effectively integrated research and education through:
The greatest overall impact of the MST project has been enhanced collaboration and understanding among all participants. The collaborative projects and the very dynamic nature of the project itself created a climate of experimentation and risk taking among the university participants and the elementary school teachers. Research faculty adapted their teaching to ensure that the preservice teachers were adequately prepared to present science, mathematics, and technology content and concepts to elementa ry school students.
KSU’s effort to develop a university-wide model also demonstrated that integrating research with education is critical in enabling elementary education student teachers to move beyond the novice stage of teaching (characterized by skill development) into the competent stage much earlier in their careers than other teachers.
Finally, the project results indicate that teacher education programs can be improved by increasing the science and mathematics content preparation of preservice teachers. Deeper content understanding enhances a teacher’s ability to teach for conceptual understanding. Research scientists in the MST project played a vital role in facilitating this increased content understanding, while simultaneously modeling for the preservice teachers how scientists think, approach challenges, and work toward soluti ons.
The VQM Project
Research, education and research into the teaching-learning process are inseparable components of the VQM project. The preservice teaching students attain conceptual understanding of some of the main theories of quantum physics as they gain knowledge about current physics research, employ computer visualization in their studies, and develop technical skills with laboratory equipment. In addition, the VQM project is a forum where students develop habits of mind that take them from the stage of observing a phenomenon, to using content knowledge and research approaches so that they can devise and test strategies to understand what is happening, to finally reconceptualizing the event and extending those new, research-based concepts to other situation s.
The in-service teachers complete all of the activities discussed above. In addition, they become active members of the research and development team as they work on the creation of new instructional materials. Further, they use their knowledge of modern research to engage their students in similar activities.
Research and education are integrated in the VQM project through:
Although the impact of Visual Quantum Mechanics not clear at this time, the outcome of involving a variety of research faculty in the education process is apparent. For example, an important component of this project is the use of inexpensive solid state devices in the teaching of quantum mechanics. To select the most appropriate devices, the project staff has interacted regularly with faculty whose research is experimental and theoretical solid state physics. These collaborations are resulting in the transfer of very recent research into the undergraduate course for future secondary science teachers. Further, the model established by this project has had an impact on other researchers at KSU. Two recent research proposals -- one each in surface physics and cosmology -- included components that would translate the basic research to lessons for the undergraduate classroom. Neither of these proposals were funded. However, feedback on both encouraged us to resubmit them. If future versions of thes e proposals are funded, they will provide a model that other research universities can emulate in their integration of research and teaching.
Shaping the Future Conference Held at KSU.
As a means of disseminating and expanding the integration of education and research KSU, along with the NSF, hosted a conference based upon a report to the NSF entitled "Shaping the Future, New Expectations for Undergraduate Education in Science, Mathematics, Engineering and Technology". This conference was held January 12-13, 1998 with approximately 100 registered participants. The feedback from the conference was overwhelmingly positive.
The KSU RAIRE program was presented to a workshop of 25 participants. In addition to the KSU RAIRE presentation, RAIRE recipients from other institutions made presentations, including University of Oregon, University of Michigan, University of Missouri-Columbia, and University of Delaware.
The major objectives of the regional Shaping the Future conference were to:
The University of Delaware (UD), one of ten NSF RAIRE award recipients, participated in the KSU-STF conference. UD integrates research and education in two ways: by involving as many undergraduates as is feasible in faculty research through the Undergraduate Research Program and by providing a discovery-oriented learning environment for all students through Problem-Based Learning.
SME&T faculty from KSU studied the UD model for ways in which it might be useful in preservice teacher education. KSU, also an NSF RAIRE award recipient, has focussed on ways to better prepare prospective and practicing K-12 teachers in SME&T instruction
The UD program provided a model for KSU SME&T faculty to involve preservice teachers in research in a way that extend and complement the three formal programs mentioned above. Following the KSU-STF conference a dialogue was initiated between KSU research faculty and the Chair of the Department of Secondary Education in the College of Education. Although this dialogue is in an early stage, tentative plans are for preservice secondary education students to expand their understanding of science by working part-time in an SME&T research laboratory. Students who complete this apprenticeship would receive course credit from the College of Education. Following the UD example, the preservice teachers would engage in true research activities and contribute in meaningful ways to the success of the research project.
Future Work
In the next year we will be using some of our documentation in our efforts to disseminate and expand our project. The RAIRE flier that has been created will be distributed campus wide to educate other faculty about our efforts and to invite them to participate in our work. We will also be actively informing targeted individuals that we feel might be appropriate for involvement in the integration of education and research. We will also continue dissemination efforts through presentations at professional meetings.
Identifying individuals to expand upon previous work on integrating education and research will be another focus in the following year. We will also continue work with the department of secondary education to revise their graduation requirements to allow future teachers opportunities to be involved in research labs and help to prepare them to use this experience in the teaching. Along this line we will need to find opportunities for preservice teachers to work in research labs. This entail identifying researchers that are not only willing to work with preservice teachers, but are also willing to provide them guidance about how to use their research experience in future teaching situations.