Science and Technology Enhancement Program Project STEP

STEP项目涉及研究生和本科生研究员、中学科学和数学教师、辛辛那提大学教师和一名图形/网络开发人员，他们组成团队设计、开发和实施与学生社区问题有关的实践活动和技术驱动的基于调查的项目，作为教授科学和数学技能的工具。活动将纳入课程，演示，实验室练习，个人和小组项目，以及实地经验，使初中和高中学生直接体验真实的学习实践，需要他们使用高阶思维技能;鼓励创造性的解决问题的技能，需要协作学习，团队合作，写作和演示;培养学生积极参与服务学习的兴趣，取得可产生明显影响的成果，并进行评价性反思;更好地激励中学生接受高等教育并为之做好准备。 研究员将接受培训，通过学习教育方法课程、教育技术高级课程，以及担任指导初中和高中学生暑期学校的助教和导师，来创建和实施这些活动。 将进行定量的形成性和总结性评估，以评估该项目对研究员教学技能的有效性，其对初中和高中科学和数学教育的影响，并随着项目的发展不断改进。 该项目得到工程局的部分支持。

Project STEP, involves graduate and undergraduate Fellows, secondary science and mathematics teachers, University of Cincinnati faculty and a graphics/web developer, working in teams to design, develop, and implement hands-on activities and technology-driven inquiry-based projects which relate to the students' community issues, as vehicles to teach science and math skills. Activities will be incorporated into lessons, demonstrations, laboratory exercises, individual and group projects, and field experiences to enable middle and high school students to directly experience authentic learning practices that requires them to use higher-order thinking skills; encourage creative problem-solving skills that require collaborative learning, teamwork, writing, and presentation; cultivate an interest in service learning in which students are active participants, achieve outcomes that show a perceptible impact, and engage in evaluative reflection; and better motivate and prepare secondary school students for advanced education. The Fellows will be trained to create and implement these activities by taking an educational methods course, an advanced course in instructional technology, and by serving as teaching assistants and tutors in guiding summer academies for middle and high school students. Quantitative formative and summative evaluation will be conducted to assess the project's effectiveness on Fellows' teaching skills, its impact on middle and high school science and mathematics education, and to continually improve the program as it develops. This project is receiving partial support from the Directorate for Engineering.