BRAIN AND BEHAVIOR INSTITUTE
(1997 Announcement)
Program Outline: This Institute, sponsored by Bryn
Mawr College under a grant from the Howard Hughes Medical Institute, will
provide selected teachers with an intensive exposure to recent advances in
understanding the brain, with particular reference to those which provide new
insights into behavior and its development, and an opportunity to participate
in discussion and evaluation of the implications of these advances for science
curricula and science education generally.
The Institute Director is Dr. Paul Grobstein, Professor in the Department of
Biology at Bryn Mawr College. Dr. Grobstein teaches a popular undergraduate
course on Neurobiology and Behavior, organized a successful Alumnae College
course entitled Insights from the Brain: Who Am I? How Did I Get to Be This
Way? Where Am I Going?, and has directed five prior summer institutes like the
current one. An active research scientist, Dr. Grobstein is also interested
in ways of making science a more appealing and significant part of the
educational process at all levels, and has helped to organize a World Wide Web site (http://serendipstudio.org) as a resource for people interested in brain and behavior, and in science education generally..
The Institute will consist of lectures and demonstrations, together with
discussion periods aimed at exploring ways in which recent advances in brain
research might be incorporated into science curricula, and the implications of
these advances for educational theory and practice. The intent of the latter
is to encourage increased interaction among those concerned with teaching at
all levels of the educational system. In addition to Dr. Grobstein, other
College faculty, post-doctoral fellows, graduate students, as well as
colleagues from previous institutes, will participate in these discussions.
The additional Institute faculty will also bring to demonstrations their own
special expertise is areas such as computer modelling, child development, animal
behavior, and drug addiction. Special attention will be paid to demonstrations
which might be of use in pre-college classrooms and laboratories, as well as ways to make use of computers and computer communication networks such as the internet and the World Wide Web..
Institute Requirements and Follow-up: Fellows will be expected to play
an active role in the Institute, helping to develop effective ways to translate
recent advances in brain research into significant components of the science
curriculum. In addition to active participation in discussion during the two week summer session, Fellows will be expected to prepare a written proposal describing plans to make use of Institute experiences in their own classrooms, to experiment with these during the following academic year, to participate in several follow up meetings during the year, and to prepare a report of their year's activities which can be posted on a WWW site so as to be available to other interested teachers.
Institute Schedules and Location: This Institute will take place at
Bryn Mawr College from 7 July through 18 July. Sessions will be held from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. on Mondays through Fridays. Lunch will be provided.
Eligibility: High school and middle school teachers of science,
including department heads and science supervisors, are eligible. Preference
will be given to teams of teachers from high schools and middle schools which
serve overlapping student populations (please indicate such connections on the
applications forms) . Enrollment will be limited to eighteen.
Incentives: All participants will receive a $500 stipend. An
additional $300 per participant to purchase educational supplies and materials
will be available to those submitting cogent curriculum proposals and agreeing
to provide a written report on their experiences.
Principal's Commitment: Institute participation requires signature of
principal.
For more information, please contact Paul Grobstein, Department of Biology,
Bryn Mawr College, Bryn Mawr, Pa. 19010. 610 526-5098
pgrobste@brynmawr.edu.
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