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Book Chapter
How Is STEM Education Reform Different From Other Education Reforms?
“How is this education reform different from any other reform?” In the context of this chapter, the answer to this question is what differentiates STEM reform from other reforms, such as the Sputnik era. This chapter has three parts. The first pa...
Book Chapter
Let’s Diagnose Them, Lab 3:<i>Blood Smears</i>
In the student version of this activity, your students are beginning to think that some of their patients’ symptoms may be caused by either a pathogen or a genetic disorder. The students will analyze the red blood cells. This sample chapter also in...
Book Chapter
Teacher Guide for Let’s Diagnose Them, Lab 3: Blood Smears
In the teacher version of this activity, your students are beginning to think that some of their patients’ symptoms may be caused by either a pathogen or a genetic disorder. The students will analyze the red blood cells. This sample chapter also in...
Book Chapter
Introduction To The <i>NGSS</i>
The Next Generation Science Standards (NGSS) consists of a series of standards for grades kindergarten through 12. In rather straightforward terms, the NGSS has only two specific purposes beyond its broad vision for science education, namely (1) to ...
Book Chapter
The best preparation for the NGSS is a thorough understanding of the Framework. This chapter provides a brief overview of portions of the Framework, including Part I, Part II, and Part III. A brief history of the Framework's development is also prov...
Book Chapter
The new standards promote a vision that the instruction and the learning your students experience should change significantly. An early piece of front matter in the Next Generation Science Standards (NGSS) that lists the conceptual shifts called for ...
Book Chapter
Moving From the <i>NGSS</i> to Instruction
This chapter outlines a dynamic, active process for understanding how each component of a standard interacts with the other components by developing an instructional sequence starting with one or possibly two performance expectations. It is a roadmap...
Book Chapter
A Guide for Leading a Study Group on the Total Curriculum
The procedure outlined in this chapter is the next step in understanding the full array of what is in the Next Generation Science Standards (NGSS) and will prepare your team for the more comprehensive step of examining what is in the entire document,...
Book Chapter
The vision of the Framework and the Next Generation Science Standards will be realized only if significant changes in instruction, instructional materials, assessments, curriculum, and professional development are implemented at the state and local l...
Book Chapter
Earning Your White Coats:<i> Medical School Research</i>
In order to graduate medical school, all students must complete the research portion of this project. All medical students are required to investigate, as thoroughly as possible, the causes of, symptoms of, and potential treatments for four health c...
Book Chapter
What's Wrong With Me, Doc? <i>Analyzing Medical Records</i>
This chapter focuses on a residency program at Vanguard Hospital. The students are asked to analyze four patients’ medical records containing their symptoms, lifestyle habits, and family medical histories. With respect to privacy, these records are...
Book Chapter
Let's Diagnose Them, Lab 1: <i>Urinalysis</i>
In medical school, students learn about the excretory system and its urinary track. A urinalysis can determine the state of one’s health by examining physical and chemical properties of urine. In this chapter, four patients have submitted urine sam...
Book Chapter
Let's Diagnose Them, Lab 2:<i> Digestive By-Products and Body Mass Index Analysis</i>
In this chapter, two of the four patients are experiencing digestive issues. A team of doctors will run tests on the digestive by-products of these two patients, while the students will be expected to formulate an even deeper hypothesis about the con...
Book Chapter
Let's Diagnose Them, Lab 4: <i>HIV Test</i>
In this chapter, based on blood samples recently analyzed, one of the four patients has a very low white blood cell (WBC) count. This is alarming since it might indicate the patient is suffering from a viral infection. Since all of the patients reque...
Book Chapter
Let's Diagnose Them, Lab 5:<i> Lung Capacity</i>
In this chapter, all four patients are experiencing difficulty breathing. Students will determine the lung capacity of each patient using a spirometer, which requires the patient to exhale deeply in order to determine if diseases such as asthma, pne...
Book Chapter
Let's Diagnose Them, Lab 6:<i> Hormone Test</i>
The endocrine system produces hormones that help regulate the body’s internal organs. Hormones are chemical messengers sent through the bloodstream and when too little or too much is produced, it is often an indication that something is wrong. In t...
Book Chapter
Emergency! Lab 7:<i> Performing Surgery</i>
In this chapter, doctors are unsuccessful in reviving a patient who is an organ donor. Students are called upon to perform the donation surgery, with the job of identifying and removing various organs from the patient’s body. In the United States, ...
Book Chapter
A diagnosis for each of the four patients has finally been developed. Before releasing them from the hospital, students must complete the medical charts and provide the pharmacist with the information under the sections Diagnosis, Treatments, and Pro...
Book Chapter
In this chapter, students are asked to present their findings for evaluation. They are asked to develop a presentation that encompasses appropriate data tables and graphs to explain the patients’ conditions. For more information on how to implement...
Book Chapter
This overview covers the approach to the book, why this approach, and how this approach can fit into classroom routines. It also provides the best way to use the Teacher Edition and recommends reading the Before the Lesson, During the Lesson, and Aft...
Book Chapter
This chapter explicitly states how the book aligns with both the Next Generation Science Standards (NGSS) and the Common Core State Standards (CCSS), so that science educators can easily express to administrators, parents, students, and fellow collea...
Book Chapter
This chapter provides a list of supplies required for implementing all activities within this book. It is highly recommended that science educators purchase these supplies in advance to ensure that all materials are available for use....
Book Chapter
Teacher Guide for Earning Your White Coats: Medical School Research
In order to graduate medical school, all students must complete the research portion of this project. All medical students are required to investigate, as thoroughly as possible, the causes of, symptoms of, and potential treatments for four health c...
Book Chapter
Teacher Guide for What's Wrong With Me, Doc? Analyzing Medical Records
This chapter focuses on a residency program at Vanguard Hospital. The students analyze four patients’ medical records containing their symptoms, lifestyle habits, and family medical histories. Once the team has developed a hypothesis for each patie...
Book Chapter
Teacher Guide for Let's Diagnose Them, Lab 1: Urinalysis
In medical school, students learn about the excretory system and its urinary track. In this chapter, four patients have submitted urine samples. A urinalysis can determine the state of one’s health by examining physical and chemical properties of ...
Book Chapter
Teacher Guide for Let's Diagnose Them, Lab 2: Digestive By-Products and Body Mass Index Analysis
In this chapter, two of the four patients experience digestive issues. A team of doctors will run tests on the digestive by-products of these two patients, while the students will be expected to formulate an even deeper hypothesis about the condition...
Book Chapter
Teacher Guide for Let's Diagnose Them, Lab 4: HIV Test
In this chapter, based on blood samples recently analyzed, one of the four patients has a very low white blood cell (WBC) count. This is alarming since it might indicate the patient is suffering from a viral infection. Since all of the patients reque...
Book Chapter
Teacher Guide for Let's Diagnose Them, Lab 5: Lung Capacity
In this chapter, all four patients experience difficulty breathing. Students will determine the lung capacity of each patient using a spirometer, which requires the patient to exhale deeply in order to determine if diseases such as asthma, pneumonia,...
Book Chapter
Teacher Guide for Let's Diagnose Them, Lab 6: Hormone Test
The endocrine system produces hormones that help regulate the body’s internal organs. Hormones are chemical messengers sent through the bloodstream and when too little or too much is produced, it is often an indication that something is wrong. In t...
Book Chapter
Teacher Guide for Emergency! Lab 7: Performing Surgery
In this chapter, doctors are unsuccessful in reviving a patient who is an organ donor. The students are called upon to perform the donation surgery, with the job of identifying and removing various organs from the patient’s body. In the United Stat...
Book Chapter
Teacher Guide for The Ominous Phone Call and Evaluating the Docs
A diagnosis for each of the four patients has finally been developed. Before releasing them from the hospital, students must complete the medical charts and provide the pharmacist with the information under the sections “Diagnosis,” “Treatments...
Book Chapter
What Are the Challenges for STEM Education?
This chapter discusses contemporary challenges of STEM education. The chapter describes several challenges and presents a model introduced in earlier publications—the 4Ps of purpose, policy, programs, and practice—as a way to understand the vario...
Book Chapter
What Can We Learn From the Original Sputnik Moment?
This chapter reviews the Sputnik era—a significant turning point for the STEM disciplines—and reforms of the STEM disciplines. The chapter includes the historical discussion of the national mission and insights specific to educational reform beca...
Book Chapter
Is STEM Education a Response to This Generation's Sputnik Moment?
This chapter sets the stage for the remaining chapters by describing several unique features for the STEM reform. The chapter addresses the themes of globalization and current STEM-related issues, 21st century workforce skills, and the continuing pip...
Book Chapter
STEM Education Seems to Be the Answer—What Was the Question?
Here, the question seems to have been, “What do we need to develop a knowledge economy?” The answer is to focus on the STEM subjects—science, technology, engineering, and mathematics. This chapter directs attention to 35 reports and publicatio...
Book Chapter
If STEM Is an Opportunity, What Is the Federal Government's Role?
This chapter presents five policy recommendations for the Federal Government, and is a response to a federal mandate to review STEM initiatives across federal agencies and coordinate, if not consolidate, various programs. The chapter provides an oppo...
Book Chapter
How Can a State, District, or School Develop a Coherent Strategy for STEM Education?
This chapter presents a framework and concrete way to begin thinking about STEM programs and practices. The chapter identifies a general question about the purposes of STEM education and proposes answers to the question setting the stage for leaders ...
Book Chapter
What is Your Perspective of STEM Education?
This chapter presents different perspectives of STEM education. The goal is to clarify and not confuse the issue of STEM. These perspectives are based on many discussions, articles, reports, and projects where there is reference to STEM. The author h...
Book Chapter
STEM Education: Where Are You Now, and Where Do You Want to Go?
This chapter addresses a critical point—when taking a programmatic curricular view, does STEM imply an integrated perspective? This chapter begins with a view of separate STEM disciplines and progresses to a variety of ways that the STEM discipline...
Book Chapter
What Is Your Action Plan for STEM Education?
This chapter will help you develop an action plan by considering critical factors such as the unit of change, resources, components, and support for STEM education. The plan should address the way you initiate, implement, bring to scale, and sustain ...