RET Site: Research Experiences for Teachers in Neural Engineering

密苏里-哥伦比亚大学（MU）为期3年的NSF RET神经工程网站专注于快速发展的神经工程领域，旨在解决全球挑战，不仅要了解正常和病理大脑的功能，还要设计解决神经限制和功能障碍的方法。该领域需要一支经过物理和生命科学培训的劳动力队伍，这种培训应该从K-12水平开始，将工程方法（包括使用模型）纳入STEM教育。一个多学科的MU团队与来自工程，生物学，心理学和医学的神经科学教师，将主办10名教师/年跨越所有年级，为期6周的时间在夏季，从主要农村地区周围的哥伦比亚，密苏里州。 目标是从农村或一级学校招聘90%的教师。教师将在6周的大部分时间里在相关实验室进行研究活动，由教授和研究生指导。该计划将提高教师在核心神经科学概念和工程方法方面的研究能力，这些概念和方法分别与国家教育和技术标准有关。教师将从事神经工程项目，并将为K-12教室开发课程。除了研究技能，在每周的课程中，教师还将学习现代技术工具，这将影响他们的课堂教学。他们还将探索学习的神经生物学基础及其与通过小组阅读改善学生体验的联系，这本有影响力的书“让它坚持”提供了一个共同的科学主题，统一了教师看似多样化的神经研究项目。为期一年的后续行动将侧重于帮助教师满足他们的需求，包括将工程方法，课程模块和技术工具纳入课堂，并规划他们的会议演讲。 由RET项目教师开发的课程模块将提交给NSF支持的同行评审门户TeachEngineering.org。该奖项反映了NSF的法定使命，并被认为值得通过使用基金会的智力价值和更广泛的影响审查标准进行评估。

The 3-year NSF RET site on Neural Engineering at University of Missouri-Columbia (MU) focuses on the rapidly growing field of neural engineering that aims to address the global challenge of not only understanding the functioning of normal and pathological brains, but also devising approaches to address neurological limitations and dysfunction. The field requires a workforce trained across the physical and life sciences, and such training should begin at the K-12 level by incorporating engineering approaches, including the use of models, into STEM education. A multidisciplinary MU team with neuroscience faculty from Engineering, Biology, Psychology and Medicine, will host 10 teachers/year spanning all grades, for a 6-week duration during the summer, from primarily rural districts around Columbia, MO. The goal will be to recruit 90% of the teachers from rural or Title-1 schools. Teachers will spend the majority of the 6-week period in relevant labs engaging in research activities under the mentorship of a professor and graduate students. The program will increase research competency of teachers in core neuroscience concepts and in engineering approaches, that are linked to national education and technology standards, respectively. Teachers will work on neural engineering projects and will develop curricula for K-12 classrooms. In addition to research skills, during weekly classes, teachers will also learn modern technological tools that will influence their classroom teaching. They will also explore the neurobiological underpinnings of learning and its link to improving student experience via group readings from an influential book "Make it Stick" providing a common scientific theme unifying the seemingly diverse neural research projects for the teacher. Year-long follow up will focus on assisting teachers with their needs including incorporating engineering approaches, curricular modules and technological tools into their classrooms, and with planning their conference presentations. The curricular modules developed by the RET program teachers will be submitted to the NSF-supported peer-reviewed portal TeachEngineering.org.This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.