University of Washington and partners' program to teach middle school students about neuroscience and science careers

Abstract

The Making Connections, Making Choices program is a multidisciplinary, neuroscience-focused project aimed at middle-school students and teachers primarily throughout Washington State and also across the country. The three components--the Summer Institute (for teacher training), the Brain Power Van (to visit schools and provide neuroscience education), and the speakers' bureau (to train clinicians and researchers to provide effective class-room and public talks and to schedule engagements)--work together to foster enriching, interactive science education experiences for students and teachers. The program has been funded by the National Center for Research Resources at the National Institutes of Health since 1991. Each year the aspect of it described in this article reaches 30-35 schools, with a total of more than 1,000 students and 80 teachers, plus another 30-40 teachers each summer. The program seeks to (1) enhance middle-school students' science knowledge, (2) help science teachers improve their science knowledge and teaching, (3) increase understanding and appreciation of biomedical research, (4) increase understanding of why animals are used in research, and (5) promote students' interest in science careers, especially the interest of students from groups underrepresented in science. Periodic evaluations showed that students exposed to the program scored higher on tests of neuroscience knowledge and had more interest in health science careers than did control groups of non-exposed students. The authors argue an important aspect of the program is that it has a broad focus and is multidisciplinary.