Helping Develop America’s Technological Workforce K. Whelan Oregon QuarkNet Meeting, June 2012 QuarkNet 101 Kris Whelan University of Washington

Helping Develop America’s Technological Workforce

K. Whelan Oregon QuarkNet Meeting, June 2012

QuarkNet 101

Kris Whelan

University of Washington



Current Status

Outline

• Overview

• Basic Structure

• Evolution since 1999

• Personnel/Responsibilities



Program Context

Reform-based teaching and learning - national standards

Scientists as partners in education reform

Nature of particle physics research

• Long-term

• Distributed

Best practice professional development

• Research appointments

• Research-based workshops

• Follow-on program



Building relationships that develop & support

a research community of physicists, high school teachers & their students

Goal: Engage teachers & their students with scientific investigations.

Goal: Confront particle physicists with current issues in science education.

Vision & Goals



Engagement with Scientific Investigations

• Enable teachers to teach basic physics concepts in an exciting & rewarding context.

• Build a teacher’s confidence to bring current science into the classroom.

• Link high school classrooms with frontier experiments.

• Attract students to careers in science & technology.

• Help develop science literacy.

Vision & Goals



Program Structure

---------Center 1

Typical Center

Center 2

2 Mentors

2 Lead Teachers

Center 58

Center 3 Center 59

Center 60

10 Associate Teachers

Advisory Group

Outside Evaluato

rs

4 PIs5.6 Staff Members

Staff Teachers

Program Support

Fellows



By the Numbers

537 Teachers & Their Students

97 Mentors53 Centers

9-11 Experiments

5.6 Staff Members4 PIs

DOE-NSF



Center Profiles

Participants

• Physicists as mentors & colleagues

• Teachers as researchers & facilitators in classrooms

• Teachers as professionals

• Students as researchers



Physicists as Mentors & Colleagues

Commit for the long term.

Host teachers & students; visit classrooms.

Year I

• Participate in orientation.

• Recruit 2 lead teachers.

• Supervise 7-week research appointments.

• Co-plan 3-week research-based institute.



Year II

• Co-recruit 8 associate teachers.

• Co-conduct 3-week institute.

Following Years

• Co-host 1-week follow-on program.

• Involve NSF-funded HS students in summer research.

Physicists as Mentors & Colleagues



Mentors Are:

• Volunteers

• Affiliated with particle particle experiments in the U.S. & overseas

• Experimentalists AND Theorists

• Entire SMU mentor team is theorists.

• Theorists - an integral part of many QuarkNet centers.



Teachers as Researchers

• Construct & test detector components.

• Analyze data & conduct simulation studies.

• Create data sets for their students.

• Create scientific investigations for their students.

• Build classroom detectors.



• Assume Leadership Roles with Teaching Colleagues

• Participate in the Fellows Program:

e-Lab, leadership, LHC, teaching & learning

• Develop/Test instructional materials.

• Develop/Lead PD activities.

• Share/work with colleagues in their schools, districts, centers’ regions, nationally, internationally.

Teachers as Professionals



Learn fundamental physics by:• Analyzing real data delivered online. • Collaborating with students worldwide.• Participating in inquiry-oriented

investigations.• Experimenting using classroom cosmic ray

detectors.• Visiting research groups & experiments.

Students as Researchers



Program Activities

Activities for Participants

Teachers Students

• Boot Camp at Fermilab - Access to e-Labs

• Research appointments - Research appointments

• Follow-on activities - Masterclass

• Fellows Program

• Workshops

• Online presence: Web/Web 2.0 (including access to I2U2 e-Labs)



Program Activities

National Project Management

• Managing funds

• Preparing reports for funding agencies

• Collecting data as requested by the outside evaluator

• Providing assistance for planning & implementing effective center activities

• Creating resources & tools, maintaining the Web presence, & supporting teachers using resources

• Supporting QuarkNet fellows

• Organizing workshops & special events

• Participating in dissemination & broader impact activities



Examples of Dissemination Activities

Cosmic Ray Studies—National & International:

Auger, IceCube, + 32 non-QuarkNet institutions

IPPOG: QuarkNet program, cosmic ray studies,

discovery science and more

Masterclasses: CMS international program, astrophysics masterclass

Influence on Other Programs: CHEPREO, CMS,COSM, CROP, I2U2, IB, ICAM, ILC,

LIGO, MARIACHI, NDeRC, OSG, PARTICLE, SUL,

WALTA

Broader Impacts



Center Program

Staff provides guidance, support, resources for:

Year I - 2 mentors & 2 teachers

Mentors

• Orientation

Lead Teachers

• 1-week orientation workshop (Boot Camp)

• 7-week research appointment

• Academic year follow-on



Center Program

Staff provides guidance, support, resources for:

Year II - 2 mentors, 2 lead teachers & 8 associate teachers

• 3-week research-based institute

Following years - 2 mentors & 10 teachers

• 1-week follow-on program

• NSF student research program - 1 teacher & 4 students

• Additional opportunities for teachers

• 1-week Particle Physics Boot Camp

• Special Events



Program Evolution

QuarkNet is a dynamic program, responding to formative evaluation data & adjusting to address:

• Participants’ needs & interests.

• Center strengths.

. . . within available funds.



Program Evolution

Examples of “New” Program Activities

2001 Cosmic ray detectors2001 Run II Discovery2004 Student summer research2005 Cosmic Ray e-Lab2006 Boot Camp model of professional development2006 Masterclass2008 Fellows2008 Instructional design (UbD)2010 CMS e-Lab



A Strong Program Benefits Teachers & Students.

Members of a research community

• Working on a team

• Sharing ideas

• Doing science

• Solving problems

Program Benefits



A Strong Program Benefits Teachers & Students.

Members of a learning community

• Supporting one another and sharing ideas

• Using scientific research in the classroom

• Using instructional resources that support student explorations of science

• Using particle physics examples in basic physics

Program Benefits



Questions?

For more information about QuarkNet:

Website: quarknet.fnal.gov

Kris Whelan [email protected]

Documents

Helping Develop America’s Technological Workforce K. Whelan Oregon QuarkNet Meeting, June 2012 QuarkNet 101 Kris Whelan University of Washington