Eleven high school students participated in a one-week STEM summer camp focused on designing and building parachutes to deliver fragile objects safely. Using the Engineering Design Process (EDP) as a framework, students explored how canopy size affects performance. They applied physics concepts such as terminal velocity, forces, and acceleration,…

Undergraduate research opportunities have expanded from elite universities in the United States to universities and institutions of all ranks and sizes. Research studies have shown positive outcomes in regards to the research experience for undergraduates (REU), such as enhanced research skills and competencies. However, with the widespread…

The purpose of the study is to evaluate the effects of chemistry activities applied in summer science camp on secondary school students. Action research was used in the study as the method. The sample of the study consists of 48 7th grade students who study at elementary school in Çayeli district of Rize province, in Turkey. Each week 24 students…

Ongoing efforts across the U.S. to encourage K-12 students to consider engineering careers have been motivated by concerns that the workforce pipeline for this profession is shrinking. Enlightening K-12 teachers about engineering is one strategy to encourage student interest in the discipline. The Enrichment Experiences in Engineering…

This report is based on several evaluations of NSF-funded geoscience projects at Stony Brook University on Long Island, NY. The report reviews the status of K-12 geoscience education, identifying challenges posed by the Next Generation Science Standards (NGSS), the experiences of university faculty engaged in teacher preparation, state…

Many countries all over the world have recently integrated nature of science (NOS) concepts into their science education standards. Providing professional support to teachers about NOS concepts is crucially important for successful implementation of the standards. For this purpose, a summer science camp was offered to elementary and science…

We evaluate the extent to which ePortfolios can be used to assess applied and collaborative learning and academic identity among community college students from underrepresented minority groups who participated in a summer research program. Thirty-eight students were evaluated by their research sponsor and two or three naïve faculty evaluators.…

This report was requested by the National Aeronautics and Space Administration's (NASA), Office of Education in July 2009 to evaluate the Informal Education Program. The goals of the evaluation were twofold: (1) to gain insight into its investment in informal education; and (2) to clarify existing distinctions between its informal education…

The Texas statewide assessment of academic skills in 1997 indicated that >55 % of the student population failed to master the mathematics objectives set by the test criteria and 42 % of the mathematics teachers at the secondary level in the East Texas region were categorized as underqualified to teach mathematics at that level. The issue of…

This publication is a comprehensive report on the George Engelmann Mathematics and Science Institute's Scholar Research Program (SRP) and its activities in 1993. The SRP provides high school students who have successfully completed an earlier Engelmann program the opportunity to experience and practice the active components of the scientific…

This publication is a comprehensive report on the George Engelmann Mathematics and Science Institute's Science Scholar program (SSP) and its activities in 1993. The SSP provides high achieving high school students an introductory, 4-week summer curriculum designed to demonstrate the connecting thread running through all scientific thought. The 52…

The Institute in Physical Science was developed to address the need for updated information and training in physics, chemistry, and technology among elementary and secondary teachers of physical science. Four major objectives were addressed: (1) improve teachers' understanding of fundamental concepts in physics and chemistry; (2) improve fifth-…