NCSA creates Institute for Chemistry Literacy and Computational Science
The National Science Foundation has awarded a $5 million grant to a five-year project designed to improve chemistry education in rural schools throughout Illinois. Partnering on the project are NCSA, the College of Medicine and the Department of Chemistry at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, A-C Central Community Unit School District 262 in Chandlerville, and the Regional Office of Education in Lincoln, Illinois.
These partners will develop a statewide Institute for Chemistry Literacy and Computational Science. The intensive, multi-year summer institute will train 120 rural high school chemistry teachers from throughout the state, building on an established chemistry curriculum with state-of-the-art science and cutting-edge technology.
The goals for the institute are to strengthen the understanding teachers have (and can then convey to their students) of chemistry in the context of the most up-to-date research and practice; to increase teachers’ comfort with and use of computational and visualization tools in the classroom; and to train teacher-leaders who can support their colleagues and advocate for excellence in science education.
In addition to the training received during the two-week summer workshops, teachers will participate in extensive online communication during the school year.