2012 YELC STEM Service Learning Conferences Scheduled for Fall 2012

MEEC's 2012 Youth Environmental Leadership STEM Service Learning Conferences have been scheduled for the California High Desert:  8 September 2012 at Granite Hills High School in the Victor Valley region; and 22 September 2012 at Discovery School in the Antelope Valley region.  Joel Greene from "Curiosity Quest" will be the keynote speaker for both events. 

The registration deadline for teams to participate is 15 August 2012; applications and further information are available at http://www.meeconline.com/students/yelc/ .

Limited transportation funds are available; teams may receive up to $250 grants to implement their service learning projects.  For more information, contact Christie Robinson of MEEC at (760) 245-1661 ext. 6717 or christier@mdaqmd.ca.gov .

Northrop Presents "STEMFlix"

The Northrop Grumman Foundation and Science Bob are presenting new "STEM Flix" features on having fun with STEM.  Public Service Announcements will air throughout the summer and fall of 2012, and theatres will present the "flix" - the most "local" being offered in Torrance and San Diego, California.  For more information, visit http://www.northropgrumman.com/stemflix/ .

Summer Robotics Workshop Update - Few Seats Remain

The free Summer Robotics Workshop to be held at Joe Walker Middle School in Quartz Hill only has a couple of seats left available.  The workshop, sponsored by Eagle Robotics, Robolopes, Team Phi, GarageBots, NASA, and the AERO Institute, is open for students aged 9-13 years, and will be held 25-30 June 2012, from 8:00am to 4:00pm.  The featured robotics game will be STEM Wars.  For information or to register, e-mail roboticsworkshops@gmail.com.

How Can American Science Education Be Improved?

Slate Magazine is crowd-sourcing during June 2012 the question of how American science education can be improved, and the numbers of how to get more scientists and engineers.  Noting the decline in the percentage of American science jobs from 5.3%  in 2000 to 4.9% in 2010, the first decline since 1950, the editors will spend the month promoting science education.  http://hive.slate.com/hive/american-science-education/article/america-needs-more-scientists-and-engineers

Intermediate Space Challenge Held in Mojave

On Thursday, 31 May 2012, elementary and middle school students from around the greater Antelope Valley, including those from Amargosa Creek and Joe Walker, gathered at the Mojave Air and Spaceport to participate in the annual Intermediate Space Challenge founded by Marie Walker of Fiberset.  Students had their rocket designs launched, with trajectories measured by volunteers from Edwards Air Force Base.  Winners received a trophy, and all of the students enjoyed a hot dog lunch prepared and served by volunteers on the warm, nearly windless day.

STEM High Schools Ranking

US News and World Report has released its rankings of 2012 Best STEM High Schools.  High Tech High tops the list, which is not based on US Department of Education data, but rather on numbers of 12th grade Advanced Placement test passing data in math and science.  Eight California schools appear in the top 25.  http://www.usnews.com/education/high-schools/articles/2012/05/30/us-news-ranks-best-high-schools-for-stem

US ED "Condition of Education" Report Shows Increased STEM Enrollment

The "Condition of Education" report released by the US Department of Education reveals that more high school students are enrolling in STEM courses.  Despite the increased participation, student performance on standardized NAEP national math and reading assessments has remained fairly constant, with only 1% of high school seniors reaching the highest achievement level in science in 2009.  In addition, numbers of students seeking on-line education opportunities have approximately quintupled in the last decade.  http://www.startribune.com/nation/153408985.html  To view the report, visit http://nces.ed.gov/programs/coe/

Schools Face Need for Greater Technology Infrastructure

As reported in PC World magazine, "The Broadband Imperative" from the Education Group finds that schools will need broadband speeds of 100 Mbps per 1,000 students by the 2014-2015 school year in order to keep pace with growing education technology usage.  That should increase to 1 Gbps by 2017-2018.  The infrastructure growth is necessitated by greater use of digital textbooks and web resources supplementing traditional instructional methods.  The report also calls for greater access for students outside of school.  http://www.pcworld.com/businesscenter/article/255922/education_group_schools_need_100_mbps_per_1000_broadband_users.html

High Desert Business and Education Leaders Participate in STEMPosium

Friday, 11 May 2012, saw approximately forty business and education leaders gather at the Hellenic Center in Lancaster, CA for a STEMPosium event co-sponsored by Antelope Valley College, Cerro Coso College, and the Antelope Valley Union High School District.  The group heard remarks from the sponsors as well as from industry leaders, reviewed STEM education efforts in the greater Antelope Valley region, and received input from participants on how best to proceed in the upcoming months.

Annual MEEC Awards Fete Students and Teachers

The annual Mojave Environmental Education Consortium Awards Banquet was held on 10 May 2012 at the Spring Valley Lake Country Club in Victorville.  Among those honored were: Teacher of the Year, Yvonne Campos of SOAR High School in Lancaster; recipients of the Key Issues Institute teacher scholarships; Students of the Year,  Anton DuBoise, Paracelete High School, Lancaster, Tyler Harl, Palmdale High School, Palmdale, Jennifer Rubio, Amargosa Creek Middle School, Lancaster, Tyas Shorter, Littlerock High School, Littlerock, James Staten, George Magnet School, Adelanto, and Regan Szydloski, Excelsior Charter School, Victorville; and winners of the MEEC Environmental Science/Engineering Scholarships,  Jacob Madsen, Granite Hills High School, Apple Valley, Francisco Magana, Pete Knight High School, Palmdale, Alex Mejia, Apple Valley High School, Apple Valley, Abraham Vara, Pete Knight High School, Palmdale, and Paige Vogenthailer, Paraclete High School, Lancaster.  Students from Palmdale High School's FAST Academy also presented their "Little Green Planet" video game concept which will compete at the SkillsUSA Nationals in Kansas City.  Congratulations to all those honored.

For a peek at Yvonne's biography, visit http://www.meeconline.com/yvonne-campos/ .

Bohn-Meyer Math Science Odyssey Event Held at Antelope Valley College

NASA and Antelope Valley College co-hosted the Bohn-Meyer Math Science Odyssey/Science Olympiad invitational event on 12 May 2012.  Named in memory of Marta Bohn-Meyer, the event featured approximately 270 middle school students in 17 teams from local schools competing in a variety of challenges such as Crime Busters, Egg-O-Naut Building, Bridge Testing, Mystery Architecture, and Reach for the Stars.

Study Shows Hands-On Science Application Yields Gains in 8th Graders' Performance

According to The Washington Post, the recently-released Nation's Report Card, based upon the 2011 National Assessment of Educational Progress, shows a slight gain for US 8th graders in science attainment.  Private school students out-performed those in public schools; students who regularly reported participating in hands-on science projects in class also scored higher than those who did so less frequently.  Boys also performed better than girls, continuing a trend from 2009 results.  Students of color made slightly greater gains than did white students.  Secretary of Education Arne Duncan hailed the results, while at the same time acknowledging that the US still has far to go.  http://www.washingtonpost.com/national/education/national-science-test-shows-only-slight-improvement/2012/05/09/gIQAh8TyDU_story.html

For a more optimistic op-ed piece on the results, visit http://www.usatoday.com/news/opinion/forum/story/2012-06-03/science-math-education-us-schools/55363868/1.