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NSF Grants University of Utah's Genetic Science Learning Center $3 million [Professional Services Close - Up](Professional Services Close - Up Via Acquire Media NewsEdge) The University of Utah Health Sciences' Genetic Science Learning Center (GSLC) reported that it will receive $3 million over the next four years to develop a six-week evolution unit for high school biology students that includes video games, apps, and interactive learning modules. The university reported that the Discovery Research K-12 (DRK- 12) program of the National Science Foundation (NSF) funded the award. "This project will redefine how evolution is taught in high schools," says Louisa A. Stark, Ph.D., principal investigator for the grant and director of the GSLC. "Textbooks can teach students what evolution is, but they fail to teach how evolution works and why it is relevant to their lives," says Stark. According to a media release, the project builds on a previous two-year NSF grant that funded GSLC development of prototype lessons on natural selection, using interactive approaches. Classroom pilot testing in Utah, Oklahoma, Oregon, Idaho, Mississippi and Missouri showed that students made significant learning gains about natural selection, genetics, heritability, and data analysis. In addition to materials for students, the award will fund the development of support materials and training programs for teachers. Assessment tools for measuring student learning will be developed in collaboration with the Washington, D.C.-based Project 2061, a long-term science-literacy initiative of the American Academy for the Advancement of Science. Project 2061 has experience in developing assessment items designed to precisely measure students' understanding of science concepts. When it's complete, the new evolution unit will be freely available on the GSLC's website. Here, it will have the potential to reach millions of students; in 2013, the site received 20 million visitors, representing virtually every country around the globe. The University of Utah Health Sciences' GSLC is a center whose mission is "making science and health easy for everyone to understand." More information: www.nsf.gov/funding/pgm_summ.jsp?pims_id=500047&org=EHR www.aaas.org/program/project2061/about gslcutah.org/ learn.genetics.utah.edu/ healthcare.utah.edu ((Comments on this story may be sent to [email protected])) (c) 2014 ProQuest Information and Learning Company; All Rights Reserved. |