overview and history of the center
The Center for Science Education at the University of South Carolina Columbia, was
established in November 1984 by action of the Commission on Higher Education for
the stated purpose of working to improve the quality of science education. The
center is charged with developing and implementing specific programs to assist
in improving undergraduate and graduate programs. The center is also charged with
assisting individual teachers, schools, schooldistricts, and consortia of districts
through the development of materials that provide effective K-12 science teaching,
in-service workshops and curriculum development.
The center is administratively housed in the College of Arts and Sciences. Center
personnel work cooperatively with faculty in the College of Education in K-12
teacher preparation and enhancement programs. In these programs, center
personnel are primarily involved with course and program development
emphasizing content knowledge, whereas College of Education faculty primarily emphasize pedagogy.
Center personnel also cooperate with other faculty in the College of Arts &
Sciences and faculty in the College of Liberal Arts. |
overall mission
- Promote activities that improve science and mathematics teaching and promote positive outcomes in student learning at K - 16 levels.
- Matriculate in-service, certified teachers through the Interdisciplinary Master of Arts (IMA) program.
- Provide specialized courses and professional development programs for both in-service and pre-service science teachers.
- Conduct funded research on effectiveness of inquiry-based teaching methods.
- Perform outreach activities that promote student's interests in science and math.
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long range goals
- Increase enrollment in the Interdisciplinary Master of Arts degree program.
- Increase the Center's number of teaching faculty and staff.
- Enhance enrollment and marketability of SMED (Science & Mathematics for Educators) course offerings, to include distance learning and web-based innovations.
- Involve more disciplinary science and mathematics faculty in the center's activities with faculty in the College of Education.
- increase grant/contract/scholarship funding that promotes the Center's mission.
- Fund a rotating Science Teacher-in-Residence program.
- Enhance relationships with the SC Department of Education and the SC Commission on Higher Education.
- Expand our professional development and outreach programs.
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undergraduate missions
- To assist the College of Arts & Sciences and its individual academic departments in developing effective academic programs for prospective middle- and high-school teachers of science and mathematics
- To assist personnel in the College of Liberal Arts in the development of effective courses in science and mathematics for all students, including prospective middle-school, elementary, and early childhood teachers
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graduate missions
- To develop and implement graduate-level, content-oriented courses in science and mathematics designed specifically for teachers
- To assist the academic departments within the College of Arts & Sciences in the development and implementation of master's degree programs for prospective and practicing teachers of science and mathematics
- To assist academic departments within the College of Arts & Sciences in developing content-oriented research tracks within existing doctoral programs.
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