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Subject: NIH TO FUND DEVELOPMENT OF K-12 NEUROSCIENCE EDUCATION PROGRAMS

U.S. Department of Health and Human Services 
NATIONAL INSTITUTES OF HEALTH NIH News 
National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA) <http://www.nida.nih.gov/>
Embargoed for Release: Tuesday, September 27, 2011, 3 p.m. EDT

CONTACT: NIDA Press Office, 301-443-6245, <e-mail:[log in to unmask]>
 

NIH TO FUND DEVELOPMENT OF K-12 NEUROSCIENCE EDUCATION PROGRAMS 
Selected grantees will use neuroscience to engage young people in science 

Eight investigators across the United States will receive funding over the
next five years to develop innovative neuroscience education programs for
K-12 students and their teachers. Activities described within some proposals
include using touch tablet technology to teach neurobiology, and the
creation of a 1,400-square-foot interactive learning center. These grants
are funded by the NIH Blueprint for Neuroscience Research Science Education
Award (http://grants.nih.gov/grants/guide/rfa-files/RFA-DA-11-013.html) and
the Science Education Partnership Award Program (http://www.ncrrsepa.org/)
of the National Center for Research Resources (NCRR). The National Institute
on Drug Abuse (NIDA), part of the National Institutes of Health and
administrator of the grants, made the announcement.

These educational programs aim to increase science literacy and
understanding as well as an interest in science among K-12 students and
their teachers. This is particularly important, since the most recent trends
published by the U.S. Department of Education
(http://nces.ed.gov/pubs2009/2009001.pdf) indicate that U.S. eighth graders
score lower than students from nine other countries in science knowledge and
skills.  The project seeks to close this gap as well as fulfill the NIH
mission to ensure that adequate numbers of students are entering science
education tracks and eventually pursuing careers in biomedical science.  

"Creative strategies are needed to ensure that the United States maintains
its competiveness in the scientific field," said NIDA Director Nora D.
Volkow, M.D. "Since neuroscience cuts across many different disciplines and
can help in understanding all kinds of behavior, it is the ideal vehicle for
capturing people's interest and engaging them in science-at any age."
  
Awardees are as follows:

Steve Snyder, Ph.D., The Franklin Institute, Philadelphia
Project: Neuroscience in Your World: A Partnership for Neuroscience
Education Across the K-12 Spectrum
This collaborative effort between The Franklin Institute and the Center for
Neuroscience and Society at the University of Pennsylvania will develop
neuroscience programs at The Franklin Institute, a high school course, and a
digital toolkit of neuroscience educational materials to engage K-12
students and teachers in learning about the importance of neuroscience in
their world.

Louisa Stark, Ph.D., University of Utah, Salt Lake City
Project: The Neuroscience of Our Senses
Dr. Stark's group plans to develop novel approaches for teaching students
about the neurobiology of the five senses, using devices such as the iPad,
the Motorola Xoom and interactive whiteboards.

Leslie Miller, Ph.D., William Marsh Rice University, Houston
Project: Virtual Clinical Trials: Advances in Neuroscience
This project aims to develop a game-based website that will educate middle
school students about the scientific process of discovery, testing, and
adoption of new treatments that emerge from neuroscience research as well as
engage students in interactive role play across a variety of neuroscience
careers.

Dina Markowitz, Ph.D., University of Rochester, N.Y.
Project: Neuroscience Activities for Hands-on Learning
The goal of this project is to develop, field test, disseminate and evaluate
the use of innovative hands-on neuroscience activities that high school
biology teachers can easily integrate into existing curriculums. 

Susanna Cunningham, Ph.D., University of Washington, Seattle
Project: How Do I Learn: Neurosciences Advances Inform Learning
This project will engage middle school science teachers, students and
parents/community groups in an innovative program of neuroscience education
focused on answering the questions, "How do I learn?" and "How do I teach
students about how they learn?"

Nancy Moreno, Ph.D., Baylor College of Medicine, Houston
Project: The Learning Brain - Interactive Inquiry for Teachers and Students
Dr. Moreno's group will develop, evaluate and disseminate new science and
health teaching resources for elementary school audiences nationwide,
focused on emerging areas in neuroscience, with connections to
reading/language arts.

Eric Chudler, Ph.D., University of Washington, Seattle
Project: Sowing the Seeds of Neuroscience
This project will give middle school students an opportunity to study how
chemicals in plants and herbs, such as Gingko biloba or the caffeine in tea
leaves, affect health and behavior. These investigations aim to improve
student understanding about neuroscience and encourage them to pursue
careers in biomedical sciences.

Michael Kavanaugh, Ph.D., University of Montana, Missoula
Project: The Big Sky Brain Project
The University of Montana will collaborate with the Exploratorium in San
Francisco to create a neuroscience learning center called the Brainzone,
which will feature four exhibits, a computer lab, and a working laboratory.
This exhibit will also be used in a mobile program that brings hands-on
science education projects to isolated, underserved, rural and tribal
schools.

"These innovative NIH-funded awards enable teams of researchers and
educators to engage students in the creativity and excitement of
cutting-edge research in human health and disease," said NCRR Director
Barbara M. Alving, M.D.
The NIH Blueprint for Neuroscience Research is a cooperative effort among
the 16 NIH Institutes, Centers and Offices that support neuroscience
research. By pooling resources and expertise, the Blueprint identifies
cross-cutting areas of research, and confronts challenges too large for any
single Institute or Center.

For more information about the NIH Blueprint for Neuroscience Research, go
to <http://neuroscienceblueprint.nih.gov/>. 

The National Institute on Drug Abuse is a component of the National
Institutes of Health, U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. NIDA
supports most of the world's research on the health aspects of drug abuse
and addiction. The Institute carries out a large variety of programs to
inform policy and improve practice. Fact sheets on the health effects of
drugs of abuse and information on NIDA research and other activities can be
found on the NIDA home page at <www.drugabuse.gov>. To order publications in
English or Spanish, call NIDA's new DrugPubs research dissemination center
at 1-877-NIDA-NIH or 240-645-0228 (TDD) or fax or email requests to
240-645-0227 or [log in to unmask] Online ordering is available at
<http://drugpubs.drugabuse.gov>. NIDA's new media guide can be found at
<http://drugabuse.gov/mediaguide/>. 

About the National Institutes of Health (NIH): NIH, the nation's medical
research agency, includes 27 Institutes and Centers and is a component of
the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. NIH is the primary federal
agency conducting and supporting basic, clinical, and translational medical
research, and is investigating the causes, treatments, and cures for both
common and rare diseases. For more information about NIH and its programs,
visit <www.nih.gov>.
  
##

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