Workshop Overview

Goals and Format

The central focus of this 2 and 1/2-day workshop will be to discuss the ways that participants currently teach the process of science and to explore new ways to teach the process of science. We will examine new resources, including Visionlearning's Teaching the Process of Science online text, the Understanding Science website, and more traditional texts. We will consider the importance of teaching the process of science in different contexts, including courses for pre-service teachers, introductory science courses, and courses for majors. A major goal is develop resources that will help others teach the process of science.

Professor Cam Davidson and a few of his students at Carleton College discussing a map

During the workshop, participants will have the opportunity to:

Discuss examples from their own teaching
Examine common misconceptions and discuss how they might be addressed
Articulate strategies for teaching the process of science and assessing student learning
Review available texts and online resources
Examine a variety of techniques and instruments for assessing understanding the process of science
Develop recommendations for engaging more faculty in teaching the process of science

The workshop format will include plenary talks, large and small group discussions, and time for planning changes to your own course and activities. In addition, all participants will contribute to development of the online collection of process of science courses, activities, and texts.

Students attending the Bowling Green State University Geology Field Camp using GeoPads

Expectations

By registering for the workshop, participants agree to do the following:

contribute both a course description and an activity to the website by July 1
in advance of the workshop, review one or two text or online resources that may be used in teaching the process of science
participate in assessment validation
participate fully in the entire workshop and preparatory online discussions

Logistics

Dates

The workshop begins at 5 pm, Tuesday, July 14th, and ends at 6 pm, Thursday, July 16th. Participants must attend the entire workshop, and are encouraged to stay for dinner on Thursday.

Application and Selection Criteria

This workshop is open to college faculty and high school teachers and is limited to 30 participants. The final list of participants will be established with the goal of assembling a group that has expertise in teaching the process of science across the disciplines, to different audiences, and in different institutional settings.

Your application must be submitted by May 15, 2009. Applicants will be notified of selection in early June.

Cost

Room, board, and workshop materials are provided. Participants or their home institutions must provide transportation to and from the workshop. In cases of unusual hardship, we will be able to offer a few small stipends to help defray travel costs. For more information about travel funds, please contact the workshop conveners.

This workshop is part of the activities of Visionlearning and Pedagogy in Action. The workshop is funded by grants from the Fund for the Improvement of Postsecondary Education (FIPSE), U. S. Department of Education (P116B06-0183) and NSF Division of Undergraduate Education (DUE-0532768). However, this does not necessarily represent the policy of the Department of Education or the National Science Foundation, and you should not assume endorsement by the Federal Government.