School of Physical Sciences
University of California at Irvine, Irvine CA 92697-4680
UPCOMING EVENTS:
The 10th annual Future of Science Conference will held on Saturday October 24, 1998 at the Beckman
Center of the National Academies of Sciences and Engineering on the UC Irvine campus. The general
theme will be "Science in Medicine". The keynote address speaker is being confirmed. For further information
please contact Ann Miller at (949) 824-6390 or by email at amiller@uci.edu.
Are you aware of the three big science curriculum guidelines on the internet? Project 2061, NSTA, and the NRC's National Science Education Standards??? You might wish to get involved!
Are you aware of that the Eisenhower Professional Development Program was reinstated for fiscal 1997 with funding of $310 million dollars? Since it is a forward-funded program, funds will be available starting summer of 1997, for use during the 1997-98 academic year. For more information on the Eisenhower program visit the NSTA homepage under legislative updates.
| September 23, 1998 | Monthly Meeting Orange County Department of Education |
| October 24, 1998 | Future of Science Conference UC Irvine, Beckman Center |
| November 18, 1998 | Monthly Meeting Orange County Department of Education ? |
| December 16, 1998 | Monthly Meeting Orange County Department of Education ? |
| January 20, 1999 | Monthly Meeting Orange County Department of Education ? |
| February 17, 1999 | Alumni Meeting Orange County Department of Education ? |
| March 17, 1999 | Monthly Meeting Orange County Department of Education ? |
| April 21, 1999 | Monthly Meeting Orange County Department of Education ? |
| May 19, 1999 | Monthly Meeting Orange County Department of Education ? |
The 9th annual Future of Science Conference was held on Saturday October 18, 1997 at the Beckman
Center of the National Academies of Sciences and Engineering on the UC Irvine campus. The general theme was "Issues in Global Science
& Individual Responsibilites and Classroom Applications". The keynote address was given by
Richard Somerville from the Scripps Institution of Oceanography, UC San Diego on the subject
of the relationship between the ocean, the greenhouse effect, and the changing climate. Workshops included
a look at the El Niło phenomenom along the local coasts, oceanographic websites, an in depth
discussion on the weather and how it works, carbonate rocks and the environment, and the use of local ecolgy
issues to teach science and bioethics. In addition, the UC Irvine Science Advisory Board presented
our very own Dr. Frank Potter with the 1997 Exemplary Educator award.
UCI Summer Science Institute
The 17th annual Summer Science Institute was held August 4 - August 22, 1997. The Institute
offered a variety of professional growth programs for all K-12 teachers of science. Some of the
courses offered were: the STS units -- Water Technology, Medical Technology, and Biotechnology;
the popular Forensics course; Astronomy; and the CSP courses -- Ecology and Leadership.
Outstanding High School Science Students
The program is designed to give high school students an overview of areas of research and teaching emphasized by the School of Biological Sciences and the School of Physical Sciences at Irvine. Offered in physics, chemistry, and biology, the program is based on three concepts for each area, tours of research labs, visits to local industrial facilities, seminars by research faculty, and demonstrations. A limited number (30 per discipline) students from local high schools attend UCI for four full days. They are selected by their teachers, and are asked to attend all four days of the program. For more information please contact our office: Ann Miller, (714) 824-6390.
In recognition of the educators of the technologists, scientists, and informed citizens of the future, the UCI Awards for Excellence in High School Science Teaching has been presented annually since 1983 to three high school science teachers. The teachers are selected by their former students who currently attend UC Irvine. They are honored at a dinner by the UCI Science Education Advisory Board, and their former students attend and are given the opportunity to recognize the teachers' contributions. The teachers and their science departments are recognized with a check fromm the UCI Science Education Advisory Board.
This year's Honorees are:
| Discipline | Honoree | School |
|---|---|---|
| Biology | Elaine Schnitter | Irvine High School |
| Chemistry | Jeffrey K. Wada | Irvine High School |
| Physics | Marcia Sprang | Esperanza High School |
Opportunities to use practices developed during the summer experiences. Participants made measurements to see if there is a relationship between biotic and abiotic parameters at different altitudes. Flora and fauna of the regions were examined in relationship to the geology, as well as the altitude. There were also opportunities for star, moon, planet and comet gazing and using astronomical software.
California K-12 Science Content and Performance Standards: Critique and Review Conference (April 10, 1997)The purpose of the conference is to inform the public of the progress of the standards and provide an opportunity to give input/reaction to the draft standards. Comments and suggested revisions generated by this conference will be combined with comments from similar conferences that are being held in each region of the state. The reviews will be used to produce a final document by August, 1997 and will be submitted to the State Standards Commission. For further information, please contact our office: Ann Miller, (714) 824-6390.