Retirees Enhancing Science Education Through Experiments
and Demonstrations
Key Features:
In 1991, RE-SEED (Retirees Enhancing Science Education through Experiments and Demonstrations) trained a total of six retired engineers and scientists to become Science Resource Agents (SRAs) for middle school physical science teachers in the New England region. Today, RE-SEED has trained a total of 250 volunteer retirees as SRAs, 150 of whom are in active service. And the project is busy replicating its program at new sites across the country and abroad (Atlanta; Denver; Portland; Oregon; and Stockholm).
The training program for SRAs is notable. Retirees are required to take 12 days of it or about 66 class hours before being matched with a teacher-partner and students in actual schools. Training is often conducted by the 35 retirees who have received special training to be leaders. The focus is less on the pre-existing content knowledge of the retirees and more on pedagogical questions and research on what we know about how children learn.
The founders of RE-SEED, Drs.Alan Cromer and Christos Zahopoulos of Northeastern University, are also founders of Project SEED, designed to teach middle school physical science teachers inquiry-centered, activity-based approaches.
Becoming Involved:
Overview:
Project RE-SEED has two goals:
http://www.stem.neu.edu/programs/re-seed/
Key Features:
In 1991, RE-SEED (Retirees Enhancing Science Education through Experiments and Demonstrations) trained a total of six retired engineers and scientists to become Science Resource Agents (SRAs) for middle school physical science teachers in the New England region. Today, RE-SEED has trained a total of 250 volunteer retirees as SRAs, 150 of whom are in active service. And the project is busy replicating its program at new sites across the country and abroad (Atlanta; Denver; Portland; Oregon; and Stockholm).
The training program for SRAs is notable. Retirees are required to take 12 days of it or about 66 class hours before being matched with a teacher-partner and students in actual schools. Training is often conducted by the 35 retirees who have received special training to be leaders. The focus is less on the pre-existing content knowledge of the retirees and more on pedagogical questions and research on what we know about how children learn.
The founders of RE-SEED, Drs.Alan Cromer and Christos Zahopoulos of Northeastern University, are also founders of Project SEED, designed to teach middle school physical science teachers inquiry-centered, activity-based approaches.
Becoming Involved:
- RE-SEED offers retired scientists an opportunity to become Science Resource Agents, using their technical knowledge and experience to support teachers and work with children. For some, it offers the opportunity to leverage their efforts by training other scientists to do the same.
- Scientists connected to organizations or institutions outside of New
England have the opportunity to help RE-SEED scale up to include new sites.
- Scientists in disciplines other than the physical sciences (e.g. in
the life sciences, earth sciences, and astronomy) could use the RE-SEED
model for involving qualified retirees in science education partnerships.
- For educators involved in systemic reform of science education, RE-SEED provides a model for using a valuable and often untapped resource (qualified retirees) to support teachers as they learn new ways to teach science that require scientific habits of mind and ways of thinking, as well as deeper understanding of science content.
Overview:
Project RE-SEED has two goals:
- To provide regular science content support in the physical sciences to middle school teachers who often experience gaps between their preparation as teachers and the science knowledge they need in the classroom
- To draw on the large reservoir of retired science and technology professionals who have valuable knowledge, experience, and time
http://www.stem.neu.edu/programs/re-seed/
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