A novel and integral part of the ESEP/Atlanta program
is the training and use of "science partners,"
science-literate undergraduates at six of the ESEP
colleges and universities (the Morehouse School of
Medicine has no undergraduates) who are paired for a
semester with a with classroom teacher. The program
varies slightly at each undergraduate institution, but
the program at Emory University is fairly typical.
Recruitment and Training. At Emory, science
partners enroll in a one-semester course of two credit
hours toward an undergraduate major in any of five
departments: biology, physics, chemistry, psychology, and
anthropology. At the beginning of the semester, enrollees
receive 12 hours of instruction on the nature of the
inquiry-based approach to science learning,
constructivist theory, age appropriate teaching methods,
and are introduced to a series of kit-based science
modules.
Partnering with Teachers. ESEP staff match the
science partners with teachers with whom they work three
to four hours per week in the classroom. The partners
discuss schedules and the materials teachers are using
and jointly plan the science partners' classroom visits.
In the classroom, the partners work as science
para-professionals with the teachers, helping to lead
classes in hands-on activities from the assigned kit or
in other exercises developed by ESEP staff or by the
teacher. Each term approximately 200 students are
recruited from the six undergraduate campuses to sign up
for a semester-long partnership. To date, over 500
teachers have had science partners.
Teachers have reacted positively to the partnering
experience. When asked, they mention that their science
partners are able to help them with matters of science
content and are, in the words of one teacher, not
intimidating or imposing, as more mature scientists are
thought to be. The science partners also provide a model
of how to say, "I don't know ... how can we find
out," in response to a childs question, a phrase
that teachers, who are used to being in a position of
authority, often have difficulty using.
Journals and Reflections Sessions. Emory-based
science partners are required to keep journals on their
observations in the classroom. One evening a week, they
come together in groups of 8-10 for one-hour
"reflection sessions" in which they share and
discuss their observations. Also attending each session
is a faculty/scientist-mentor and often a teacher. Twice
a semester a cultural anthropologist named Dr. Kathryn Kozaitis probes,
facilitates, and debriefs the science partners on
differences in children's learning styles and differences
in the cultural aspects of their backgrounds that can
affect classroom interactions.
Impact on College Undergraduates. The impact of
this course on the science partners is anecdotal, but it
seems to be strong, with numerous students considering
interruptions in their science education to volunteer for Teach
for America or other programs where they can teach
without the normally required credentials. Two students
to date have changed their majors from pre-med to
education.
