Teacher Professional Development Course Introduces Kids to Engineering

Eng-5100-3Over the summer, Michigan Tech presented the increasingly popular teacher professional development course, The Engineering Process. The course was developed by Professor Emerita Sheryl Sorby, and has been taught since 2001. The Engineering Process has grown more successful with the rise of the new Next Generation Science Standards (NGSS), which aims to transform how K-12 teachers introduce basic engineering concepts to their students. The teachers participated in the rigorous two-week course, which assisted in the development of curriculum to bring back to their classrooms this year. Aside from the fundamentals of engineering, the course also covered issues such as energy, infrastructure, and transportation.

The Engineering Process was generously funded through the Michigan Science Teaching and Assessment Reform (Mi-STAR) project, which is developing and testing a new integrated science curriculum that are aligned with the NGSS. “Mi-STAR is a perfect fit with what we’re doing,” said Professor John Irwin, “We’ve known all along the importance of getting kids interested in engineering before they get to college.” The summer institute was coordinated through the Department of Cognitive and Learning Science’s Teacher Professional Development program.

From the Mi-STAR blog, by Marcia Goodrich- Read full article here

 

 

Graduate Student Receives Prestigious Scholarship

Lavanya Rajesh Kumar, a first-year graduate student in the Department of Cognitive and Learning Sciences, was selected for the prestigious J.N. Tata Endowment Scholarship. The J.N. Tata Endowment for the Higher Education of Indians awards scholars who have distinguished themselves and have had outstanding achievments.  Lavanya is advised by Dr. Kevin Trewartha and works in the Aging, Cognition, and Action lab.

NSF Teachers Present their Research

IMG_20160818_145231Six Michigan teachers mentored by Michigan Tech graduate students during a 6-week Summer Institute on Computational Tools and the Environment presented their research in a poster session yesterday in the atrium of the Great Lakes Research Center. Research topics included water quality, forestry management, and life cycle analysis. The results of their research have been translated into curricula for science and mathematics classes. The course was instructed by Dr. Alex Mayer (CEE), Dr. Emily Dare (CLS), Dr. Noel Urban (CEE), and Shawn Oppliger (CCISD). The institute was coordinated through the Department of Cognitive and Learning Science’s Teacher Professional Development program.

The institute was sponsored by the National Science Foundation’s Research Experiences for Teachers program.

From Tech Today

 

Flint Teachers Visit Michigan Tech

Flint teachers recently participated in a four day Teacher Professional Development summer institute at the Great Lakes Research Center. The program, which was funded by General Motors, focused on the Flint River Watershed, drinking water treatment, and wastewater treatment.

“These are the people that are going to change the lives that need to get this work done over the next several decades. If we can reach these teachers, then we can stimulate a process that’s going to engage the young people and that’s where the future is,” said Martin Auer, a Professor in Michigan Tech’s Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering.

From abc 10 news. Read full article

Congratulations, Assistant Professor Jeon and Graduate Students!

Myounghoon "Philart" JeonMyounghoon “Philart” Jeon (CLS/CS) and his graduate students Jason Sterkenburg (CLS), Steven Landry (CLS) and Ridwan Khan (CS) presented five papers at the International Conference on Auditory Display (ICAD) which was held at Australian National University in Canberra, Australia July 3 through July 7.

The graduate students earned the Best Student Paper Award at the conference. Sterkenburg and Khan’s research proposals were selected for the doctoral colloquium at the conference and their travel was partly supported by NSF.

The papers presented were “Tempo-fit heart rate app: Using heart rate sonification as exercise performance feedback”, “Musical robots for children with ASD using a client-server architecture”, “Listen to your drive: Sonification architecture and strategies for driver state performance”, “LifeMusic: Reflection of life memories by data sonification” and “Towards an in-vehicle sonically-enhanced gesture control interface: A pilot study.”

Jackson Graduate Online Learning Grant Winners Announced

The William G. Jackson Center for Teaching and Learning announces the funding of three proposals intended to build and strengthen online learning at the graduate level.

These proposals were selected for their potential to expand online graduate enrollment and help instructors learn online instructional tools and current best practices.

The funded proposals are:

  • “Master’s Degree Program in Natural Resources.” PI—Andrew Storer (Associate Dean, SFRES), $21,000.
  • “Core Courses for Applied Sciences Education Masters.” PI— Shari Stockero (CLS), Co-PI— Emily Dare (CLS), Co-PI— Kedmon Hungwe (CLS), $10,000.
  • “Pilot Development for Graduate Program in Powertrain Systems.” Co-PI’s—Jeff Burl (ECE) and Jeremy Worm (ME-EM/Mobile Lab Director), $5,000.

From Tech Today, by Jackson Center for Teaching and Learning- Read full article

2016 REF Grants for Cognitive and Learning Sciences Faculty

The Vice President for Research Office announces the 2016 REF awards and thanks the review committees, the deans and department chairs for their time spent on this important internal research award process. Among the recipients are:

Research Seed (RS) Grants

Joshua Ellis, Cognitive & Learning Sciences (Co-PI); Cecile Piret, Mathematical Sciences (PI)

Portage Health Foundation (PHF) Research Seed (RS) Grants

Adam Feltz (PI), Cognitive and Learning Sciences; Selin Philips (Post-Doc), Cognitive and Learning Sciences

Scholarship and Creativity Grants

Amy Lark (PI), Cognitive and Learning Sciences

From Tech Today, by VPR

Engaging Students in Physical Science

Physical ScienceEngaging Students in Physical Science

ED 5650 2 credits, FREE!
June 13 – 17, 2016
Summer 2017 (Dates TBD)
Deadline: May 15, 2016

Cost: Free! (includes room and board.)
The purpose of the course is to increase the content knowledge and pedagogical knowledge of secondary science physics and physical science teachers. Specific content focus will be around forces and motion, energy, and properties of and change matter and the application of these content areas in engineering to prepare teachers for NGSS. These topics are the core of understanding physical phenomena all around us and address the state standards. Instructional focus will be placed on improving skills to delivery inquiry-based science instruction in the classroom. Additionally, emphasis will be placed on learning how to provide students with meaningful, real-world contexts and applications by learning about engineering design processes.

ED 5650
2 credits

Learn more and apply at Teacher Professional Development Summer Institutes.

Lake Superior Celebration 2016

Great Lakes Research Center
Great Lakes Research Center

HOUGHTON — The community is invited to the Lake Superior Celebration from 6 p.m. to 8 p.m. on Tuesday, Apr. 26, 2016, at Michigan Tech’s Great Lakes Research Center (GLRC). The event is FREE, family-friendly, and open to all.

The event is sponsored by the Lake Superior Stewardship Initiative, Michigan STEM Partnership, Western U.P. Center for Science, Mathematics and Environmental Education, Michigan Tech Center for Science and Environmental Outreach, Michigan Tech Center for Water and Society, and the Copper Country Recycling Initiative.

Visit the Lake Superior Stewardship Initiative on the web or on Facebook.

Read more at Keweenaw Now.