The federal government and a number of nonprofit, non-governmental agencies have invested heavily in programs designed to provide research opportunities, financial support, and mentorship to undergraduates in science-related fields. These efforts are aimed at supporting students' matriculation in science majors and into science-related careers.…

Graduates' retrospective program evaluations can provide relevant and reliable feedback on an institutions' performance in delivering quality instruction and services to its students. This descriptive survey research ascertains graduates' evaluations of science education program areas, including curriculum adequacy and relevance. Study…

We describe interim results of an ongoing longitudinal pedagogical study investigating the efficacy of the Honours Integrated Science Program (iSci). We describe the pedagogical methods we use to prompt research skill development in a model from instructor-dependence to independent original research. We also describe a tool we use to help students…

There is emphasis in the educational policy of Ghana for the promotion of Distance Education programmes to widen access to education at all levels and facilitate human resource development. This study examined the level of access and challenges faced by learners in science oriented programmes offered by distance in the Kwame Nkrumah University of…

College and university science programs generate hazardous waste that must be dealt with and disposed of in accordance with state and federal regulations. During a recent renovation and addition project for the State University of New York at Plattsburgh (SUNY Plattsburg), the author was contracted to analyze existing regulations, research best…

Encouraging nonprofessionals to participate in ecological research through citizen science programs is a recent innovation and an effective strategy for gathering ecological information across broad geographical areas. In this paper, we demonstrate how reporting field-based observations through eBird, a citizen-based birding and data-recording…

Bringing Up Girls in Science (BUGS) was an afterschool program for 4th and 5th grade girls that provided authentic learning experiences in environmental science as well as valuable female mentoring opportunities in an effort to increase participants' academic achievement in science. BUGS participants demonstrated significantly greater amounts of…

Primary research articles discuss aspects of scientific inquiry that are important in understanding the nature of science. Yet, most introductory science courses use textbooks that ignore the scientific process; opportunities for explicit discussion of the nature of science are lost. In Hampshire College's science program, students read current…

Some of the long-term and short-term successes and the progress of the Chemistry Merit Program are highlighted and updated at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign (UIUC). The results show that the program is vital for the university and for the science and technology sectors.

An important component of many college and university science programs is that of community outreach. Some of the more typical kinds of outreach activities include teacher training workshops, public lectures, open house "science days," and school demonstration visits. The latter activity usually consists of students and faculty transporting…

Describes a summer research experience program for disabled undergraduates. Discussed are some results of the program. (YP)

Describes a college program of research collaboration with high school teachers and an academic alliance that emerged from the experiences. The background, organization, achievements, and reluctance factors related to the program are discussed. (YP)

The International Asteroid Search Campaign (IASC, fondly nicknamed "Isaac") is an Internet-based program for high schools and colleges. Within hours of acquisition, astronomical CCD images are made available via the Internet to participating schools around the world. Under the guidance of their teachers, students analyze the images with free…

Describes an undergraduate research program for minority students. The program and eight objectives of the first course of the program, "Introduction to Research," are presented. Some strengths and weaknesses of the course are considered. (YP)

Science Training Enrichment Program (STEP) is a program designed to improve high school-college cooperation. Program objectives and activities to meet the objectives are described. The latter include Saturday science seminars, lecture series, computer workshops for students/teachers, consultant program, and a two-week summer practicum for high…