Two West Virginia University colleges are hosting 150 middle school students at the National Research Center for Coal and Energy today (May 3) to demonstrate the value, applications and fun of mathematics and science.
The Eberly College of Arts and the College of Human Resources and Education are sponsoring”Math and Science R2 Fun 2002,”featuring a variety of activities to give students from five state middle schools an understanding of how math and science impact this world.
Students from Long Drain School, in Hundred; Monongah Middle School, in Monongah; Braxton County Middle School, in Sutton; Tygarts Valley Middle/High School, in Mill Creek; and West Preston Middle School, in Masontown will be building bridges with popsicle sticks, attending math and chemistry magic shows and observing a demonstration of research in an engineering laboratory.
“If West Virginia is to take advantage of growth areas of the 21st century global economy, such as biotechnology, we will need a workforce highly skilled in advanced mathematics and the physical sciences,”said Fred King, associate dean for research and graduate studies and an associate professor of chemistry in the Eberly College.”We believe bringing students to a university campus and showing them some of the applications of these disciplines in a relaxed, enjoyable environment will encourage some to pursue advanced study in these areas in high school and beyond.”
The event is part of what is known on the WVU campus and in middle schools throughout the state as the TIGERS (Teams of Interdisciplinary Graduate Fellows Engaged to Reinvigorate Students) Project.
The three-year project involves interdisciplinary teams of graduate students in engineering, mathematics and science sharing current, cutting-edge research with middle school teachers and students throughout West Virginia. The project began in 2000, and is funded by a $1.4 million grant from the National Science Foundation (NSF).
“The NSF wants to make sure that graduate students in the sciences, mathematics, engineering and technology become better teachers and better resources for their communities,”said Eric Pyle, an assistant professor of science education at WVU and coordinator of the project.
In addition to making graduate students better teachers and helping middle school teachers become more familiar with the latest scientific research, the project aims to encourage studentsespecially in the early years of adolescenceto pursue advanced educations and careers in science and technology, whichespecially in areas such as physics, mathematics and statisticsare now dominated by foreign graduate students.
“Extensive research has shown that students (in the United States) lose interest in mathematics and science in the middle grades and develop less favorable attitudes toward these subjects, especially among girls and African Americans,”Pyle added.
Middle school students who interact with the TIGERS are able to learn about the types of experiences and requirements necessary for selecting a scientific or technical career, he noted.
“This is an exciting project, and one in which WVU , as the states only comprehensive research institution, is uniquely positioned to provide tremendous benefits to the state,”King said.
“The truth is, when you understand the applications of math and science, they are fun,”said Mike Long, one of the TIGERS and a masters degree candidate in mathematics who plans to earn a doctorate in math education at WVU .”I have a blast working with these kids and their teachers throughout the state.”