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One dimension of NASSMC's work is to undertake projects and partnerships
that test and disseminate processes and materials that
are designed to advance the work of its member coalitions.
Such projects, conducted with funding from national
agencies and private foundations, are:
NASSMC/Annenberg Media Public Awareness and
Engagement Project |
Annenberg Media in partnership
with NASSMC and its member coalitions, will work to assist the state organizations in the implementation of their Public Awareness Action Plans designed to promote public engagement in the improvement of mathematics and science education.
What is Annenberg Media?
Annenberg Media is a unit of The Annenberg Foundation. Annenberg Media's mission is to advance excellent teaching in all disciplines throughout American K-12 schools. Former names of Annenberg Media are: Annenberg/CPB, The Annenberg/CPB Project, and The Annenberg/CPB Math and Science Project.
Annenberg Media pursues this mission by funding and broadly distributing multimedia resources for teachers to help them improve their own teaching practice and understanding of their subject. Annenberg Media makes use of telecommunications technologies—the Internet, including broadband video streaming, and satellite television broadcast—as well as hard copy media to disseminate these multimedia resources, ensuring that they reach as many teachers as possible. |
The assistance of Annenberg Media is to be built around facilitating teacher access to the Annenberg Media programming through the Annenberg Media Channel. Working with the state coalitions, Annenberg Media can increase the participation of schools and, consequently, extend the reach of its programming. In some cases this may include access to the Channel through coalition websites or a related broadcast venue. Annenberg Media offers to jointly announce its collaboration with a state coalition thereby promoting public awareness of the coalition and its activities, and of the professional development programming for math and science teachers offered through the Annenberg Channel. As an initial step, Annenberg Media might issue a joint press release with the coalition and NASSMC or participate in a press conference announcing their collaboration. The coalition would, in turn, promote the use of the Annenberg Channel in schools across the state and work to assist schools in acquiring the capability to receive the programming from the satellite feed or the online stream.
Where feasible, a team, composed of coalition leaders, NASSMC staff, invited colleagues from sister state coalitions might meet with Annenberg Media representatives to explore enhancing public awareness of critical issues in mathematics and science instruction and to develop strategies. Of course public recognition of the organization through its activities is a concurrent objective. Successful strategies employed by other states might be examined also and tailored to meet specific current needs and projections. The team might assist also by suggesting and connecting support resources.
Interested coalitions will be asked to submit a brief proposal to NASSMC outlining the primary goals and objectives of a public awareness campaign and expressing willingness to commit coalition time and resources to the project. NASSMC will share these proposals with Annenberg Media to determine how both organizations might support the plan. NASSMC will commit staff time and limited travel funds for meetings. Annenberg Media brings to the table its excellent programming and its commitment to enhance the quality of science and mathematics teaching.
For more information please contact us at: info@nassmc.org
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Systems Thinking |
| "Organizations are perfectly designed
and operated to produce the results they get."
The NASSMC Seminar in Systems Thinking was developed
in cooperation with NASA to assist state and local partnerships
in designing comprehensive, coordinated improvement plans
for mathematics, science and technology education. Past
participants have included representatives from state
government, from both K-12 and higher education and from
the business community. Initially available only to
NASSMC member coalitions, the seminar is now open to
math and science partnerships, professional organizations
and other interested groups.
This interactive seminar utilizes the national resources
of NASSMC and those of NASA, the National Science Teachers
Association and Annenberg Media to examine design strategies for addressing
comprehensive change in math, science and technology
education. Critical Path planning methods are introduced.
Seminars may be scheduled at any location and cover
8 to 10 contact hours over a period of 1 to 2 days
and are tailored to local needs.
To any complex system, substantive change may be indistinguishable
from catastrophic damage. Such changes are quickly "repaired" in
the course of normal operation. All systems, whether
they are biological, mechanical, electronic or social
will develop patterns of response. They construct defense
mechanisms, they maintain equilibrium and they resist
change. How then can we effectively alter our education
systems? What works and what doesn't work? What are
the elements and primary sub-systems of an education
system? How do these various system elements interact
with each other? What happens when we change one of
these elements?
NASSMC's seminar in systems thinking addresses these
questions and offers a way of seeing, a common language
for analysis, and effective methods for building community
among diverse groups. Systems thinking recognizes that
the environment of all systems is other systems, that
human systems function in dynamic environments and
that real and lasting change requires a comprehensive
and carefully structured approach.
The total cost to participating groups is $2000. Organizations
are encouraged to seek corporate sponsorship to subsidize
this fee. The program is conducted by NASSMC. Please
direct inquiries to:
Jim McMurtray
E-mail: jmcmurtray@nassmc.org
Phone: 703-516-5973
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Light, Sound and Instructional Communication:
A Seminar for Educators |
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Standard teacher preparation focuses primarily on
educational psychology and preparation in the content
areas. Only rarely however, does it also expose communication. If teaching may be regarded as an art, then as in
any other artistic endeavor, there is a science to be mastered.
Whatever we may know or speculate about human learning, it is always
assumed that teachers understand the fundamentals of human communication
and that they will intuitively know how to manage the learning environment. This
may not always be the case. The ability to effectively manipulate light
and sound is critical to successful teaching.
The program, initially developed at a NASA field center
through collaboration between Earth remote sensing
and education specialists, examines
how effective management of light and sound may improve
instructional communication. The program addresses
such questions as:
- What does "adequate classroom lighting" mean?
- How can classroom teachers address auditory noise
problems?
- What are the elements of highly effective
visual communication?
- How do we select the sensory channel for sending
an instructional message?
- How do we know if that message is being received?
This one-day seminar is appropriate for educators and administrators
at all levels. Handout materials include a source list, a CD with visuals
and notes from the introductory presentation, and
a checklist for evaluating instructional environments.
The ideas are presented in a collegial atmosphere.
Participants engage in active discussion of the ideas
presented and are encouraged to examine additional
sources and to form their own conclusions. A fee
of $2000 covers the cost of travel, expenses, materials
and staff time.
For more information please contact us at: info@nassmc.org
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Speakers Bureau |
| NASSMC has provided
speakers for its member coalitions on a wide variety
of topics related to mathematics and science education,
education systemic reform, building community, general
systems theory, engineering change, systems design, content
standards, science and mathematics curricula and instructional
strategies. NASSMC's Speakers Bureau draws from present
and former staff members, state coalition directors and
allied Washington area professional organizations. In
many cases speakers are provided to NASSMC affiliates
at no charge. However, fees and/or expenses are charged
by some speakers.
NASSMC will also assist member coalitions and other
groups in securing nationally recognized
experts or well-known personalities from the government,
education, business and communication fields.
For more information please contact us at: info@nassmc.org
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Sustaining States' Standards-Based Reform
Initiatives |
| Sustaining States'
Standards-Based Reform is a broad array of activities
that serve NASSMC's goal of providing tailored technical
assistance, services, and resources to its member
coalitions. Sustaining States' includes providing
flow-through funds from NASSMC grants, supporting
member coalitions' participation in national meetings,
facilitating coalitions' application for systemic
change grants (e.g., grants from the Aerospace States
Association), providing consulting at in-state meetings,
developing and disseminating sample video and print
materials, and maintaining and expanding the resources
of this website. Sustaining work currently is supported
by grants from the ExxonMobil Foundation, The Medtronic
Foundation, and SciMathMN (the NASSMC affiliate in
Minnesota).
For more information please contact us at: info@nassmc.org
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