New Physics course prepares graduate students for science outreach

During the Dean’s visit, Don Moyer Boys and Girls Club members learned to take apart and reassemble a functioning computer and also got to fry an egg on its processor to see how much heat the electronics components generate. After the lesson, the Dean spoke to the kids about the importance of education and shared his personal story of how, even though his parents never went to school, he was able to go to college and become an engineering professor.

 

This “Computer Guts” lesson was developed by two graduate students in electrical and computer engineering, Nathan Jack and David Estrada, as part of a new “service learning” course, Physics 598SE ("Introduction to Science Education"), that provides training in K–12 educational outreach to science and engineering graduate students. An integral part of the course is teaching the lessons developed during the class to teens in hands-on sessions at the Don Moyer Boys and Girls Club.

 

The lessons at Don Moyer focus on different topics each week. So far, the teens have made key chains of their own DNA, built capacitors to study static electricity, and made bioreactors to learn about biofuels.

 

“This is a great opportunity for graduate students to learn effective ways of participating in the local community and leading outreach that stimulates kids’ interest and confidence in science and engineering,” said Bob Clegg, professor of physics and director of the Center for Biophysics and Computational Biology at the University of Illinois, who is one of the program's organizers.

 

The course is a part of the iRISE Project at the University of Illinois, which is a collaborative effort of faculty and graduate student organizers in the Departments of Physics, Electrical and Computer Engineering, Chemistry, Biophysics, and Curriculum and Instruction.

 

The iRISE partnership aims to stimulate middle- and high-school students’ interest in pursuing technical careers by involving Illinois science and engineering graduate students in an innovative program that gives them the hands-on experience in K–12 teaching and lesson development needed to build and maintain successful University/K–12 educational partnerships. The course is directed by the K–12 outreach coordinator, Sharlene Denos, of The Center for the Physics of Living Cells at the University of Illinois.

 

The iRISE teens recently toured NCSA and some of the College of Engineering’s specialized laboratories, such as an electrical engineering fabrication lab and the Aerodynamics Research Lab’s wind tunnels.

 

At the end of the program in May, participants and their parents will participate in a Science Carnival that showcases demonstrations highlighting the topics covered throughout the semester. The children will also receive awards for their completion of the program.