With the recent implementation of the Arkansas K-4 Science Standards, students in Arkansas will be better prepared for life outside the classroom, including pursuing science, technology, engineering and math, or STEM, degrees in college and entering a workforce where highly skilled workers are in greater demand.

In order to make sure that elementary school teachers are prepared to effectively implement these new standards, the University of Arkansas College of Engineering created the U of A Science and Engineering Partnership, or UASEP, to provide training for kindergarten through fourth grade teachers.

"Even teachers who thoroughly knew their content material last year now need quality professional development in science to help them rapidly retool to meet these new standards," explained Bryan Hill, the primary investigator and assistant dean in the College of Engineering.

With a three-year grant of $1.7 million from the Arkansas Department of Education, the UASEP team is working with 135-150 teachers from schools in northwest, east, west and southeast Arkansas.  The majority of the schools are in areas of high poverty.

The program will focus on helping teachers understand the new standards and develop new, inquiry-based approaches to teaching in the STEM areas. Because the new standards emphasize the cross-cutting nature of science and engineering, UASEP will also help teachers increase their content knowledge and add more literary and writing skills into their science classroom. 

This team includes U of A faculty from the College of Engineering, Honors College, and UAteach, an elementary math and science curricular specialist at Rogers Public Schools, math and science specialists at Northwest Arkansas Educational Service Cooperative, and an evaluator from the U of A College of Education and Health Professions.