ASU offering summer modeling workshops

June 30, 2008

By hammersmith

120 Arizona teachers and 50 out-of-state teachers are coming to ASU this summer. You are invited to visit them. Our ten Modeling Workshops and other graduate courses this summer are for lifelong learning for teachers of high school physics, chemistry, physical science and math, and grade 8 science and math. And they are part of ASU’s Master of Natural Science (MNS) degree program. All courses are content-intensive; and integration of physics, chemistry, and math is emphasized. The ultimate target is not the teachers themselves but their students. Therefore each course addresses the subject at a level that prepares them to entice and inform their students.

  • Modeling Workshop in mechanics (July 7-25)
  • Modeling Workshop in 8th-9th grade physical science (July 7-25, 8:30 a.m. to 1 p.m., MTWThF at South Mountain HS)
  • Modeling Workshop in integrated math & physics (July 7-25, 8th-9th grade)
  • Integrated physics & chemistry (July 7-Aug 5 pm. Rich Clawson, instructor)
  • Light & electron optics (July 7-Aug 4, MTTh am. Regents Prof. David Smith, instructor)
  • Leadership Workshop (four Fridays in July. 1 credit. Colleen Megowan, instructor)

These modeling workshops are peer-led and modeling instruction is recognized by the U.S. Department of Education as an EXEMPLARY K-12 science program. We have an ABOR grant to fund Arizona teachers. ABOR requests that priority be given to teachers in a high-poverty school or who aren’t highly qualified (NCLB) or are in a rural school or are preparing to be a teacher-leader. Salt River Project granted us $10,000 via the ASU Foundation for tuition scholarships.

TEACHERS’ COMMENTS:

  • “Thanks to taking physics modeling course work, I am highly qualified in physics.”
  • “I learned a tremendous amount and am all fired up to teach physics this fall!”
  • “I learned more about teaching and physics this summer than in 5 years of college!”
  • “Great chem workshop.”
  • “I LOVE this program!”
  • “It was, without a doubt, the single greatest professional development experience of my career.”

For more information: Jane Jackson, Co-Director, Modeling Instruction Program: P.O. Box 871504, Dept.of Physics, ASU, Tempe, AZ 85287; 480-965-8438; fax 480-965-7565; http://www.modeling.asu.edu/