Elementary Science Education Methods and Tools

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Kids Network is a telecommunications-based approach to elementary science which has been demonstrated to be very effective in stimulating students' interest in science and technology. In this project, the Technical Education Research Center and the National Geographic Society will develop models for introducing Kids Network into preservice elementary teacher education. In the first year of the project five institutions--Hampton University, Penn State, Purdue, Swarthmore, and UC Irvine--will implement, document, and evaluate methods for utilizing Kids Network in such courses as science methods, learning theory, educational technology, and practice teaching. In the second year an additional ten institutions will assist with refining these models and demonstrating their disseminability. The project will also produce a Preservice Educator's Packet providing practical suggestions for using Kids Network in preservice curricula, and a monograph containing articles by participating faculty examining the models and research results in relation to current thinking about elementary science teaching. The cost sharing will be 20% of NSF's contribution.