TARGETED INFUSION GRANT: Enhancement of the Undergraduate Physics Program in the Department of Physics and Astronomy at Howard University

定向输注补助金：加强霍华德大学物理与天文学系本科物理项目

• 批准号: 1238383
• 负责人: Prabhakar Misra
• 金额: $ 30万
• 依托单位: Howard University
• 依托单位国家: 美国
• 项目类别: Standard Grant
• 财政年份: 2012
• 资助国家: 美国
• 起止时间: 2012-09-15 至 2017-08-31
• 项目状态: 已结题
• 来源: https://www.nsf.gov/awardsearch/showAward?AWD_ID=1238383&HistoricalAwards=false
• 关键词: TARGETED; INFUSION; GRANT; Enhancement; Undergraduate

The project entitled - Enhancement of the Undergraduate Physics Program in the Department of Physics and Astronomy at Howard University - has the overall goal to expand and enhance the learning experiences of undergraduate students taking targeted Physics courses in the Department of Physics and Astronomy at Howard University. It is expected that there will be an improved learning environment driven by four activities: implementation of an Atmospheric Physics minor; conversion of the existing General Astronomy course into a hybrid on-line/laboratory class; upgrade of the Howard University Planetarium and Astronomical Observatory; and development of a recruitment and scholarship program and a peer support program for undergraduate Physics majors.The proposed activities take advantage of the well-established track record that the department has developed in Physics and Atmospheric Science education and research. This approach can be modeled by other Physics Departments that face similar challenges. The lessons learned from these efforts have the potential to improve and enhance smaller Physics programs that struggle with issues of low enrollment. The activities are centered in a department where minority students compose nearly 100% of the undergraduate population, thus assuring participation of members of such groups. The improvement of the department's facilities will strengthen outreach efforts to the public at large. The results of the project activities will be disseminated to the broader Physics community through presentations at meetings of professional Physics educators.

该项目名为“增强霍华德大学物理和天文系的本科生物理课程”，其总体目标是扩大和增强霍华德大学物理和天文系有针对性的物理课程的本科生的学习经验。预计将通过以下四项活动改善学习环境：开设大气物理学辅修课程;将现有的普通天文学课程改为混合在线/实验室课程;升级霍华德大学天文馆和天文观测台;并为本科物理专业的学生制定了一个招聘和奖学金计划以及一个同伴支持计划。拟议的活动利用了该部门在物理学和大气科学教育和研究方面建立了良好的记录。这种方法可以由面临类似挑战的其他物理部门进行建模。从这些努力中吸取的经验教训有可能改善和加强与低入学率问题作斗争的小型物理课程。这些活动集中在一个少数民族学生占本科生近100%的部门，从而确保这些群体的成员参与。 改善部门设施后，将加强对广大公众的外展工作。项目活动的结果将通过在专业物理教育工作者会议上的演讲传播给更广泛的物理界。