MCAS Development Opportunity

The Department of Elementary and Secondary Education is seeking applications for two MCAS Science Test Development Specialist positions.

It is important that the selected individuals have very strong content knowledge, are able to learn quickly, have an understanding of science learning, have strong editing and feedback skills, and can effectively facilitate meetings.

The job duties include: providing content expertise for the development, review, and refinement of MCAS science test materials in Earth and space science, biology, chemistry and physics; reviewing test items with attention to detail for content accuracy, grade-level appropriateness, grammar, spelling, and readability; evaluating of open-response MCAS scoring materials; facilitating meetings with educators who serve on the science assessment development committees; and assisting with providing professional development to the field regarding assessment. We are specifically looking for strong content knowledge in physics and chemistry or biology and chemistry.

More information about the position can be found at: https://jobs.hrd.state.ma.us/recruit/public/3111/job/job_view.do?posting

NEEEA Conference 2011: October 21-23, 2011!

NEEEA Conference 2011

Come Learn with Us! Experience the 45th Annual NEEEA Conference: "Navigating New England Environmental Education: Charting a Course to an Environmentally Literate Future"
October 21-23, 2011 at Prindle Pond Conference Center in Charlton, MA.

The Massachusetts Environmental Education Society (MEES) and the 2011 NEEEA Conference Committee are pleased to announce the opening of registration for this years conference! Join us for a dynamic weekend full of enriching and inspiring workshops, adventurous field trips and excellent entertainment. Enjoy networking, learning, and revitalizing yourself and your teaching skills and return home with resources and materials to do the same for your classroom or organization.

CONNECT! NETWORK! GAIN A NEW PERSPECTIVE!

This weekend features Keynote speakers Julian Agyeman and Coleen O'Connell, world music entertainment by Gaia Roots and Closing Ceremony with Troy Phillips of the Nipmuc Tribe.

The Conference site is a Natures Classroom facility located on 500 wooded acres on the shore of Prindle Pond in Charlton, Massachusetts. It offers a variety of rooming options, a wind turbine, woodland trails, pond views, campfires, and fields for stargazing.

For complete conference offerings and registration please visit the 2011 NEEEA Conference microsite at http://neeea.org/conference/index.html

Don't forget to stay in touch and up to date on all kinds of conference and environmental education news on facebook pages!
MEES: http://www.facebook.com/massmees
NEEEA: http://www.facebook.com/pages/New-England-Environmental-Education-AllianceNEEEA/151056058291416

Annual MassTEC Conference: October 14, 2011!

The Annual MassTEC Conference will be held:
Friday, October 14, 2011 at Fitchburg State University.

Come Join!

The theme of the conference is sTEmWe Make the Connection.

One item we receive feedback on after every conference is the need for teacher led workshops. Many teachers are looking for ideas and activities to take back to their classrooms. So this year we are looking for additional teachers who will be willing to offer workshops on what they do in the classroom.

If you do offer a workshop you will be eligible for Professional Development Points (PDPs) [and a free lunch!]

Follow this link to a workshop application. Please fill it out and send it in.

http://www.masstec.org/conference.html

and...

We really want Science and Math teachers, elementary teachers as well as Administrators and School Counselors to come and share their understanding of STEM and see how Technology/Engineering Education can improve your students' understanding of key concepts and real life applications.

[Technology/Engineering Education and] Technology Education has progressed from Industrial Arts, which was focused on tool and machine skills and craftsmanship, to that of teaching all students engineering habits of mind.
This includes teaching students the knowledge, skills, and dispositions necessary to understand and apply engineering concepts, including the engineering design process, systems, and the impact of technology on society.

~ William F. Bertrand Contact Bill at; wbertrand@state.pa.us |
www.education.state.pa.us

Physics, Chemistry & Math Teacher Opportunities!

The Department of Physics and the School of Education at Boston University are continuing their offering of graduate courses for physics teachers. Chemistry and mathematics teachers are welcome as well.

The courses are part of the sequence Improving the Teaching of Physics (Project ITOP) offered in Boston and Worcester.

The courses can be used for Professional Licensure.

The following courses will begin shortly.

September 16 -- October 28: NS 540 Section A1 Concepts in Physics I: Force and Motion (2 credits.)
Meets at Boston University on Fridays from 4:30 to 7:30.

September 15 -- October 27: NS 540 Section B1 Concepts in Physics I: Force and Motion (2 credits).
Meets at Clark University on Thursdays from 4:30 to 7:30.

September 14 -- October 26: NS 545 Section A1 Concepts in Physics VI: Electromagnetism and Physical Optics (2 credits).
Meets at Boston University on Wednesdays from 4:30 to 7:30.

For additional information, visit the website
http://physics.bu.edu/teachers
or contact:
Andrew Duffy (617-353-9089), aduffy@bu.edu or
Peter Garik (617-353-4735),garik@bu.edu

Get your Middle/High School students interested in these MIT/BC programs!

Help your students join in the excitment of learning!
note: these programs are either low cost or FREE!

Programs at MIT and BC to tell your students about:

Delve
Looking for a way to get college credit in high school? Interested in showing colleges just what you are made of? Want to explore a topic in-depth?
Registration is open for Delve, ESP's AP preparatory course, and we would love to have you join us for an exciting 29 weeks of learning!
Sign up today at http://esp.mit.edu/learn/Delve/index.html.

What can students expect from Delve?
Delve will offer classes for the Calculus, Physics, Studio Art, Government and Politics: United States and more AP exams during the school year, from mid-September until May. Every Sunday, students will spend 10:00AM to 3:00PM at MIT dedicated to one of these classes (with an hour long lunch break in between). Our classes can be taken as stand-alone classes, not just in conjunction with AP courses at high schools. You will have the opportunity to take the AP in May with your school or with our partner, Cambridge Rindge and Latin School.

If you have any questions, please feel free to email Delve at delve@mit.edu.

Splash
Do you want to take a class about...

- Design and Analysis of Roller Coasters
- Paradoxes of Democracy
- Fun with Fractals
- Aircraft Jet Engines
- How to Make a Pixar Movie
- The French Revolution
- Stage Fighting

...or any of 400 other awesome topics? Then you should come to Splash!
Splash offers a series of short classes and workshops like the ones listed above, and you can take up to 20 hours of classes.
Splash takes place on November 19th and 20th at MIT, and costs $30 for the entire program.
Student lottery registration will open in late October; after the lottery is run, a first-come, first-served round of registration will open to fill any remaining empty spots.

You can find out more at http://esp.mit.edu/learn/Splash/index.html, or email Splash at splash@mit.edu.

And...
There is more than one way for your students to be involved in Splash!

BC Splash

This November, Boston College will also be opening its doors for its own Splash program. With a concentration on liberal arts, course topics will range from music to math, political science to computer science.
BC Splash is a no-fee program designed to instill a sense of excitement in students about academia and have fun doing it! For more information, visit our website, https://bcsplash.learningu.org/. Registration will begin in early October.note: these programs are either low cost or FREE!
Help your students join in the excitment of learning!