Professional Development Workshop for Teachers

MRSEC postdoc, Dr.
Kermin Martínez-Hernández; Visiting Scholar, Sandy Sine; and former MRSEC RET
participant, Troy Dassler organized a workshop “Integrating cutting-edge
nanotechnology into the inquiry-based learning experience.” This was part of
the professional development workshop prepared for Middle Year’s Science
Teachers and organized by CESA 6 Science Center: Meeting Demand for 21st
Century Learning and UW-Madison Wisconsin Leads in Math and Science Initiative
in Heidel House, Green Lake, WI.

CESA 6 Science
Center Goal: To support content expertise and high quality pedagogical
practices in middle year’s science classrooms, grades 5-9. The CESA 6 Science
Center has been designed through a partnership between CESA 6 and the
University of Wisconsin-Madison Wisconsin Leads in Math and Science initiative.

This center is a component of CESA 6’s
partnership with the Wisconsin Leads Project and is intended to be implemented
as a 2-year sustained professional development opportunity to support teacher
capacity to promote deep understanding of essential science concepts.   This professional development is designed to
be an ongoing process to improve science instruction at the middle year’s
classroom level by:

• Increase the content knowledge of science
  educators
• Expand the ability of science educators to
  implement an inquiry-based instructional model
• Increase the capacity of science educators to
  engage in reflective practice as a vehicle to improve instruction (through
  the deployment of instructional coaching)
• Increase the capacity of science educators to
  differentiate science instruction to meet the needs of diverse learners
• Increase the capacity of science educators to
  integrate cutting-edge technology into the inquiry-based learning
  experience
• Develop an on-line resource portal to support
  teachers and students in inquiry–based science