Crafting Engagement in Science Environments

Our Principle Investigator, Barbara Schneider, and Co-Principe Investigator Joe Krajcik present a project overview, and our founding principles to our colleagues from Beijing.  

  After introductions from PI, Barbara Schneider, and Co-PI, Joseph Krajcik, our research team came together and presented PIRE's methodology to colleagues from Beijing. We discussed everything from the unit development to our data collection. 

We had a great turn-out for our Professional Learning Workshop in Michigan. Teachers from all across Michigan came to share in our hands-on science projects, held right here at Michigan State University! Our workshops engage teachers in the curriculum in the same ways we are seeking to engage our students. Teachers work their way through the activities by collaborating with peers, asking questions, building models, and engaging in real scientific practices.

We have just returned home from our professional learning workshop with Los Angeles Unified School District. We had an amazing time with our PIRE teachers. This is our first year implementing hands-on lab activities for teacher participation and it was an epic success! Here are a few of the highlights! "I see really improvement in, special ed wanted to be enrolled in my class next year." "I'm serious in the terms of them getting the things I want them to learn." Last but not least, everyone's favorite moment... Always wear your safety equipment.

PhD candidate Chris Klager is scheduled to present his poster Tuesday, April 9, 2019 at the AERA conference. His current research on crafting science environments to encourage imaginative and inquisitive thinking is on the leading edge of education research.  Curious?  Here is a sneak preview! Using Project-Based Science to Cultivate Imagination and Inquisitiveness in Science Learning Environments Abstract: Imaginative and inquisitive thinking are key elements of doing science, but also important skills for non-scientists to develop. As science teachers look for ways to implement NGSS, they have the opportunity to create learning environments where students have opportunities for imaginative thinking. We test project-based science intervention for secondary chemistry and physics students. We find that in both Finland and the US, teachers were able to craft classroom environments where student reported using more imaginative and inquisitive thinking. Developing and building models was a