Inquiry First.

Adrian Haber (left) of Boston Latin School and Rahi Punjabi of Advanced Math and Science Academy Charter School in Marlborough were selected to represent Massachusetts at an international science fair competition in Chicago last week. Haber, of Boston and Punjabi, of Northborough, competed against students from across the country in the U.S. National BioGENEius Challenge at the BIO International Convention in Chicago on April 20th. As BioGENEius delegates, Haber and Punjabi also attended the 2013 BIO International Convention in Chicago (April 22-25). “By highlighting the amazing research of these students, at such a young age, the BioGENEius Challenge promotes scientific excellence and curiosity. With more than 430 students competing in the Challenge each year, we hope to encourage these students – as... Read More

Last week, thousands gathered to hear about the wonders of science and engineering from hundreds of Massachusetts organizations.  Tables filled with activities lit up children's faces and intrigued their parents.  For four hours, these activities took over the Cambridge Public Library and the surrounding lawn and field house.

In addition to all of the hands-on activities, students of all ages also enjoyed a robot zoo featuring water robots, rolling robots, sniffing robots and every other kind of robot in between.  Stage performances featuring fanciful chemistry demonstrations, science comedy, and much more entertained visitors throughout the event.

~Shannon Morey

Many feel that when people refer to STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics) they are really just talking about science and math. Technology and engineering often get put aside in K-12 classrooms to focus on the fundamentals of science and mathematics.  However, things are starting to change.  As the need for students with engineering and technology skills increases the need to teach students these skills before they reach college has become apparent.

EdWeek mentions a number of initiatives to bring the T and E in STEM that are gaining momentum in classrooms across the country.  Tens of thousands of classrooms are now using the Engineering is Elementary curriculum materials developed by Boston's own Museum of Science.  The new common standards also have a greater focus on engineering skills and an engineering based Advanced Placement (AP) course may be... Read More

MSSEF received notification of an opportunity through the UMass STEM Ed Institute that we thought we’d share with "Inquiry First" readers.  Mohawk Trail High School has been a long-time participant in the Massachusetts State Science Fair program. The UMass STEM Ed Institute Tuesday Seminar Series presents: Wayne Kermenski Science Teacher, Mohawk Trail Regional School District Project Based Learning, the Fifth Academic Class A few years back, Mohawk Trail Regional Middle School created a course entitled, Project Based Learning or PBL.  It became one of five academic classes for middle school students.  The goals for this course included inquiry-based projects that enforced skills students learned in their other courses.  In addition, the course was responsible for implementing social curriculum, math and reading literacy remediation, and authentic learning opportunities.  The benefits from this course included an increase in student attendance, a well-rounded education for our students, and a letter of acknowledgement from the Governor for our achievement in our MCAS math scores.  Come find out about this... Read More