The University of New Mexico

NEWS RELEASE

Media Contact: Steve Carr, (505) 277-1821
e-mail: scarr@unm.edu

March 10, 2008

Sandia National Laboratories Provides Funding to UNM for Professional Development Programs for K-12 Science Educators
Funding by Sandia National Labs and Lockheed Martin aids K-12 teachers

For the 5 th year, Sandia National Laboratories has provided financial support for summer science classes for K-12 educators. Personnel from Sandia, UNM College of Arts and Sciences, Albuquerque Public Schools, and the New Mexico Museum of Natural History and Science use these funds to collaboratively develop and offer these free university-level courses in earth science, biology and astronomy for K-12 teachers designed to help enhance their science content knowledge and curriculum within their classrooms. The collaboration has led to the formation of the Science Education Institute of the Southwest (SEIS), which supports the teaching and learning of science in New Mexico. The skill-building courses also have helped fill requirements for “highly qualified” teachers in meeting the No Child Left Behind standards.

“Sandia National Labs is excited about collaborating with the University of New Mexico and the Museum of History and Natural Science,” said Bruce McClure, manager, Community Involvement, Sandia National Laboratories. “Of course, knowledge and skill in science and related applications are key to the country’s and the Lab’s future success. One of the keys to ensuring that happens rests with the classroom teacher.”

“Most people who teach K-12 science don’t necessarily have a lot of experience with field-based science,” said Matt Nyman, lecturer, Earth and Planetary Sciences. “We started offering the courses in 2005 for middle school teachers in order to provide teachers opportunities to fulfill requirements to become highly qualified.”

SEIS’ mission is to help strengthen K-12 science teaching and learning in New Mexico. SEIS aims to promote advancement in the teaching and learning of science by: providing high quality professional development and research opportunities for K-12 educators; building a network of educators to support best teaching practices and intellectual growth; facilitating partnerships and community involvement to promote high quality science education; and collecting data and publishing the results on the effectiveness of SEIS activities.

“The courses are taught by UNM faculty,” said Nyman. “We take teachers out on weeklong field courses that are immersive in field learning content and skills. The last two summers we have had many successful collaborations including one with the biology department and Professor Tim Lowrey at the Sevilleta Long Term Ecological Research site and a second with

Dinesh Loomba in Physics and Astronomy. We have also had successful classes where we team teach courses with K-12 classroom teachers.”

Along with summer coursework for K-12 teachers, SEIS has supported middle and high school science teachers as summer research fellows. In this SEIS program, teachers work with UNM researchers and their research groups on current research problems. This provides an important opportunity for teachers to participate in authentic scientific research.

SEIS has also developed a lecture series, in which current classroom teachers meet with future teachers to discuss how they teach science to elementary students. SEIS also has developed a series of hands-on, one-day weekend workshops for K-5 teachers to improve science content knowledge and the teaching of science.

“No Child Left Behind provided a lot of momentum for SEIS to get started,” said Earth and Planetary Sciences lecturer Amy Ellwein. “The generous funding from Sandia National Labs has allowed us to provide a variety of really cool science opportunities for teachers. We could not have developed these programs without this assistance from the labs. Recently, we have taken our programs to the New Mexico Public Education Department to get additional funding to support our efforts.”

The courses are offered through the UNM College of Arts and Sciences. Tuition and course materials are offered at no cost to teachers due to the support of SNL and Lockheed Martin as well as grants from the New Mexico Public Education Department and other sources. Participants can earn three credit hours or a stipend for the weeklong courses.

“We know that a skilled and knowledgeable classroom teacher is critical to developing confidence, interest, and competence in children,” added McClure. “We are very proud at SEIS of the impact we have had on science teaching here in New Mexico, and appreciate the support from Sandia Labs and Lockheed Martin.”

To learn more about SEIS visit http://www.seisinstitute.org/ or call Nyman at (505) 277-4355 or Ellwein at (505) 277-1639.

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