The Learning Brain - Interactive Inquiry for Teachers and Students

描述（申请人提供）：我们对大脑功能的理解正在迅速发展；基因与环境的相互作用；酒精、尼古丁、其他药物和环境毒素对大脑的影响；神经发育和衰老。然而，今天的学生还没有准备好运用这些新知识来改善他们自己或他们的同龄人或家庭的生活。贝勒医学院和项目合作伙伴将为小学观众开发、评估和传播新的科学和健康教学资源，重点关注与美国国立卫生研究院神经科学研究蓝图一致的神经科学新兴领域。该项目将以K-5年级为目标，因为1)这些年级几乎没有最新的神经科学教材，2)早期的年级对于培养健康的行为和技能至关重要，从而使未来能够进入科学事业。我们以成功的美国国立卫生研究院资助的课程项目为基础，包括一个专注于神经科学的中学项目和一个整合环境、健康和阅读的初级模型。该项目将在少数族裔和经济条件差学生入学率较高的学校进行评估。具体目标是：1)招募并支持一支由教师领导组成的国家团队，他们将与科学家、临床医生和教育工作者一起指导三个神经科学补充课程模块的开发，旨在在学校或非正式学习环境中提供3-6周的探究性教学，与阅读/语言艺术有关；2)与项目合作伙伴合作，采用匹配良好的比较组研究设计，先后对每个课程模块和配套材料进行实地测试；3)根据现场测试结果，修改模块和配套材料；开发基于网络的工具，如论坛、流媒体视频课程演示和可下载的教材，以创建一个动态的、基于网络的课程和教师专业发展资源；4)通过已建立的高流量网站，BioEd Online （www.bioedonline.org）和K8 Science (www.k8science.org)，以及通过其他更传统的途径，将高质量、低成本的科学教学资源传播给全国受众，传播课程和相关资源——课程演示、教师专业发展会议、学生活动和材料。该项目有可能惠及170万名教师和1900多万名K-5年级学生。项目的所有方面都将被评估，包括形式化的和总结性的，以衡量项目组成部分交付和实施的质量和有效性，以及为教师和学生提供的经验的总体价值。

DESCRIPTION (provided by applicant): Our understanding is advancing rapidly of brain function; the interplay of genes and environment; the impacts of alcohol, nicotine, other drugs and environmental toxins on the brain; and neurodevelopment and aging. Yet, today's students are ill equipped to apply this new knowledge to improve their own lives or those of their peers or families. Baylor College of Medicine and project partners will develop, evaluate and disseminate new science and health teaching resources for elementary school audiences, focused on emerging areas in neuroscience aligned with the NIH Blueprint for Neuroscience Research. The project will target grades K-5, because 1) few up-to-date, neuroscience teaching materials are available for these grades, and 2) early grades are critical in the development of healthy behaviors and skills to enable future access to science careers. We build on successful NIH-funded curriculum projects, including a middle school initiative focused on neuroscience and an elementary model for integrating environment, health and reading. The project will be evaluated in schools with high enrollments of underrepresented minority and economically disadvantaged students. Specific aims are to 1) recruit and support a national team of teacher leaders, who will work together and with scientists, clinicians and educators to guide development of three neuroscience supplementary curriculum modules, designed to provide 3-6 weeks of inquiry-based instruction in school or informal learning settings, with connections to reading/language arts; 2) successively field test each curriculum module and supporting materials, in collaboration with project partners, using a well-matched comparison group study design; 3) revise the modules and supporting materials based on field-test outcomes; and develop web-based tools-such as forums, streaming video lesson demonstrations and downloadable teaching materials-to create a dynamic, web-based curricular and teacher professional development resource; and 4) disseminate the curriculum and related resources-lesson demonstrations, teacher professional development sessions, and student activities and materials-via the established, high traffic websites, BioEd Online (www.bioedonline.org) and K8 Science (www.k8science.org), and through other, more traditional pathways to reach national audiences with high quality, low-cost science teaching resources. The project has potential to reach 1.7 million teachers and more than 19 million students in grades K-5. All aspects of the project will be evaluated, both formatively and summatively, to gauge the quality and effectiveness with which project components are delivered and implemented, and the overall value of the experiences provided to teachers and students. PUBLIC HEALTH RELEVANCE: The project will advance public understanding of the significance of basic, clinical and translational neuroscience research. Proposed activities will engage elementary school audiences in educational activities that have potential to improve science and health learning among underrepresented and economically disadvantaged students, and to promote their interest in and preparedness for biomedical careers.