K - 12 Teachers

Penn State STEM Teacher Academy

This program has been developed in collaboration with the Central Intermediate Unit #10, an office of the Pennsylvania Department of Education, local school superintendents, local science coordinators, and the Eberly College of Science Outreach Office. Science, technology, and mathematics teachers from local schools will spend a day at Penn State, observing freshman undergraduate classes to learn about the level of knowledge needed by college freshman, visit with a participating faculty member to view a lab, participate in a short, hands-on demonstration, discuss the latest research results in their field of teaching, and learn about majors, careers, college readiness and admission requirements for Penn State campuses and majors, and summer opportunities for K-12 students and teachers. Teachers will earn continuing education credits through their school district.

Participating faculty members are asked to provide 45 - 90 minutes of time during morning hours and include a lab tour or activity.

The goals of this program are:

• Build personal relationships between area STEM teachers and Penn State faculty to improve K-12 STEM education
• Encourage area STEM teachers to bring their students to Penn State for laboratory visits and activities
• Encourage area STEM teachers and students to attend summer programs at Penn State
• Provide a means for area STEM teachers to incorporate Penn State resources into their curriculum
• Improve content knowledge of area STEM teachers
• Improve recruiting underrepresented populations to the Eberly College of Science

Contact Shannon Palma, Associate Director of Outreach, for more information, at beh179@psu.edu or call 814-865-4158.

Rural Multi-District Academic Space Alliance (ASA)

The Outreach Office has partnered with Juniata College, Lock Haven University, and three local school districts (Bellefonte Area, Bald Eagle Area, and Penns Valley Area) to help develop science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) programs based on the needs of the teachers in each of those districts. We help provide resources to the teachers and the students to enhance their STEM education opportunities. This is a specific target audience for the National Science Foundation’s broader impacts section. Teachers and students are involved in NASA-funded education and public outreach programs, attend workshops designed to specifically meet a curriculum standard, and provide up to 50% of exhibits and demonstrations at a Family Science Night program. Any faculty member who is interested in developing an educational program which needs a local audience is encouraged to contact Shannon Palma, Associate Director of Outreach.

NASA-supported Science Teacher Workshops

The NASA-based Pennsylvania Space Grant Consortium, in conjunction with the Eberly College of Science, provides several week-long science teacher workshops each summer. Fully subsidized by NASA and other grant monies, these workshops provide hands-on, interactive, quality science instruction to teachers of all grades each summer. Each participant earns two graduate credits in science and takes home multiple resources to use in the classroom.

Go to http://teachscience.psu.edu for more information. Faculty members in the Eberly College of Science who are interested in creating one of these week-long workshops are encouraged to contact Barbara Houtz.

Summer 2010 Workshops

Robots, Math, and Solar System Exploration

July 12-16 • Educators Grades 6-8

The Heat is On! Confronting Climate Change in the Classroom

July 19-23 • Educators Grades 4-9

Telescopes: Tools for Astronomical Discovery & the Search for Life on Other Planets

July 26-30 • Educators Grades 6-12

Lunar Exploration: Taking Earth Science to the Moon

August 2-6 • Educators Grades K-8

Black Holes: Gravity's Fatal Attraction

August 2-6 • Educators Grades 6-12

CSATS Saturday Science

The Penn State Center for Science and the Schools provides one-day Saturday workshops throughout the regular school year. Each workshop is based on Pennsylvania state science standards, provides continuing education credits, and uses hands-on investigations and inquiry to help teachers become proficient in a specific grade-level science topic.

Go to http://csats.psu.edu for more information. Faculty members in the Eberly College of Science who are interested in creating one of these short-term workshops are encouraged to contact Shannon Palma

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Forensic Science Workshop Series: From the Scene to the Classroom

Developed by the Forensic Science department in the Eberly College of Science, this week-long summer workshop for secondary science teachers is taught by nationally-known forensic scientists. Some summer workshops are for graduate credit, while others are for continuing education credit only. Participants experience hands-on crime scene analysis using the latest technologies and techniques. Teachers are expected to be able to use the information learned in these workshops in their science classrooms and lab activities.

Forensic Science Workshop Series: From the Scene to the Classroom —
Blood, Guts, Hair, and Gore

August 8–13, 2010

Go to http://www.outreach.psu.edu/programs/forensic-science/ for more information.