| |
 |
| Paper: |
Authentic Astronomy Research Experiences for Teachers: The NASA/IPAC Teacher Archive Research Program (NITARP) |
| Volume: |
457, Connecting People to Science |
| Page: |
329 |
| Authors: |
Rebull, L. M.; Gorjian, V.; Squires, G.; NITARP Team |
| Abstract: |
How many times have you gotten a question from the general public, or
read a news story, and concluded that “they just don't understand how
real science works?” One really good way to get the word out about how
science works is to have more people experience the process of
scientific research. Since 2004, the way we have chosen to do this is
to provide authentic research experiences for teachers using real
data (the program used to be called the Spitzer Teacher Program for
Teachers and Students, which in 2009 was rechristened the
NASA/IPAC Teacher Archive Research Program, or NITARP).
We partner small groups
of teachers with a mentor astronomer, they do research as a team,
write up a poster, and present it at an American Astronomical Society
(AAS) meeting. The teachers incorporate this experience into their
classroom, and their experiences color their teaching for years to
come, influencing hundreds of students per teacher. This program differs
from other similar programs in several important ways.
First, each team works on an original, unique project. There are no canned
labs here! Second, each team presents their results in posters at the AAS,
in science sessions (not outreach sessions). The posters are distributed
throughout the meeting, in amongst other researchers' work; the
participants are not “given a free pass” because they are teachers.
Finally, the “product” of this project is the scientific result, not any
sort of curriculum packet. The teachers adapt their project to their
classroom environment, and we change the way they think about science
and scientists. |
|
|
|
|
|
