PARENT SESSION
Poster Session 11: Ecology Education.
Tuesday, August 3 Presentations from 5:00 PM to 6:30 PM, Exhibit Hall A 1.
Enhancing education in biology, mathematics, and physical science in a New York City public school: A NSF GK12 program between I.S. 89 and Columbia University.
Bowman, William*,1, Hedden, Matthew 1, Willis, Amanda 1, Willett, Kristin 2, Webster, Gary 2, Ng, Chi-Man2, 1 Columbia University, New York City, NY, USA2 I.S. 89, New York City, NY, USA
ABSTRACT- In the summer of 2003, Columbia University began a partnership with three middle schools in the New York City public school system. This partnership was funded through the National Science Foundation GK12 program, which serves to facilitate graduate students acting as resources for teachers in science and mathematics instruction. This program has resulted in enriched learning for 6-8th grade students, improved teaching, communication, and organizational skills for the graduate fellows, and produced a model for developing partnerships between universities and local school districts. At I.S. 89, located at the southern end of Manhattan, this collaboration has produced a number of innovative and interdisciplinary lesson plans/projects focused on a variety of subjects including Hudson River ecology, surface- and groundwater hydrology, cryptography, plant photosynthesis and respiration, solid waste management, and genetics.
Key words: GK12, Science Education