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Eberly College faculty participate in science education institute

Morgantown, WV, September 13, 2006: Eberly College of Arts and Sciences faculty members Kasi Jackson, assistant professor in the WVU Center for Women’s Studies, and Jane Caldwell, General Biology Coordinator in the WVU Biology Department, recently attended a summer program sponsored by the National Center for Science and Civic Engagement.

In August, Jackson and Caldwell joined participants from 53 other institutions at Santa Clara University in California as part of a national initiative called Science Education for New Civic Engagements and Responsibilities (SENCER). During the four-day institute, teams and individuals developed courses that will teach rigorous science content by utilizing problems that require scientific knowledge and expertise.

Jackson and Caldwell are involved in a year-long planning process to enhance science education at WVU. Plans include development of a course that will teach biology to non-majors using a “Biology in the News” theme. They are also interested in collaborating with other college or university faculty, community members, students, and K-12 educators on this or similar SENCER projects. Caldwell finds the SENCER approach to course design particularly promising. “Many students who choose majors outside the sciences seem to worry that science courses will be dull or difficult; we are excited that this method will help engage our students by placing scientific content in an interesting and engaging context.”

“WVU prides itself on being a student-centered research university, and efforts like SENCER will further enrich this goal by linking course concepts with issues that affect students outside the classroom,” said Mary Ellen Mazey, Dean of the Eberly College.

David Burns, executive director of the National Center for Science and Civic Engagement and principal investigator for the SENCER initiative, expressed his appreciation for the leadership that WVU is bringing to the national effort to change and enhance science education. “So many of our most significant civic challenges require a knowledge of science and mathematics. We are pleased to be partnered with WVU in focusing the intelligence and capacity of students, faculty, and academic leaders on some of the hardest problems of our time.”

The SENCER project is a national dissemination project designed to promote reform through faculty development, a focus on local systemic change, and improved assessment strategies. The project is supported with a grant from the National Science Foundation and is designed to improve science education, especially for students who are not science majors; to connect science education reform to more robust and relevant general education programs; and to stimulate informed civic engagement with scientific questions by today’s students.

For more information, please contact Kasi Jackson at kasi.jackson@mail.wvu.edu or at 304-293-2339, ext. 1154.

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	NEWS Eberly College faculty participate in science education institute Morgantown, WV, September 13, 2006: Eberly College of Arts and Sciences faculty members Kasi Jackson, assistant professor in the WVU Center for Women’s Studies, and Jane Caldwell, General Biology Coordinator in the WVU Biology Department, recently attended a summer program sponsored by the National Center for Science and Civic Engagement. In August, Jackson and Caldwell joined participants from 53 other institutions at Santa Clara University in California as part of a national initiative called Science Education for New Civic Engagements and Responsibilities (SENCER). During the four-day institute, teams and individuals developed courses that will teach rigorous science content by utilizing problems that require scientific knowledge and expertise. Jackson and Caldwell are involved in a year-long planning process to enhance science education at WVU. Plans include development of a course that will teach biology to non-majors using a “Biology in the News” theme. They are also interested in collaborating with other college or university faculty, community members, students, and K-12 educators on this or similar SENCER projects. Caldwell finds the SENCER approach to course design particularly promising. “Many students who choose majors outside the sciences seem to worry that science courses will be dull or difficult; we are excited that this method will help engage our students by placing scientific content in an interesting and engaging context.” “WVU prides itself on being a student-centered research university, and efforts like SENCER will further enrich this goal by linking course concepts with issues that affect students outside the classroom,” said Mary Ellen Mazey, Dean of the Eberly College. David Burns, executive director of the National Center for Science and Civic Engagement and principal investigator for the SENCER initiative, expressed his appreciation for the leadership that WVU is bringing to the national effort to change and enhance science education. “So many of our most significant civic challenges require a knowledge of science and mathematics. We are pleased to be partnered with WVU in focusing the intelligence and capacity of students, faculty, and academic leaders on some of the hardest problems of our time.” The SENCER project is a national dissemination project designed to promote reform through faculty development, a focus on local systemic change, and improved assessment strategies. The project is supported with a grant from the National Science Foundation and is designed to improve science education, especially for students who are not science majors; to connect science education reform to more robust and relevant general education programs; and to stimulate informed civic engagement with scientific questions by today’s students. For more information, please contact Kasi Jackson at kasi.jackson@mail.wvu.edu or at 304-293-2339, ext. 1154. W-V-U