Science Teachers Computer Workshops

This program increases the overall abilities, enthusiasm and confidence of Pittsburgh area science teachers in the general use of computers as instruction tools and for lab data analysis. Secondary school teachers from the Pittsburgh public schools participate in a series of four week-long workshops that provide them with the resources and time necessary to make determinations of what constitutes good educational software for the science classroom and lab. Teachers evaluate commercial software, select software suitable to their classroom, and develop lesson plans incorporating the software. Teachers also are introduced to "state-of-the-art" computing systems and software that illustrate the possibilities for the use of technology in science education.

A new series of workshops focusing on multi-media content also are part of the program. The first one successfully introduced teachers to linear and branched forms of multi-media development and generated "software" that the teachers then field-tested in their own classrooms. Teachers were introduced to electronic communication via the internet, and a common site through the Carnegie Science Center was developed to deploy and access teaching/learning materials.

Contact:

Bill Brown (412) 268-3416 wb02@andrew.cmu.edu