This project is a novel alliance among the state school system, Jackson State University (JSU), Jackson Public Schools and other public schools in Mississippi. The project also partners with the Ironwood Observatory and Education Center in Hawaii, the James Cook Universtiy Center for Astronomy in Australia and the NASA Stennis Space Center in Mississippi. The focus of the partnership is on high school physics, chemistry and earth science. The project anticipates enabling 45 preservice teachers to obtain teaching licenses in high school science. Courses will be designed and taught by the College of Education and Human Development and the College of Science, Engineering and Technology. The project will provide 200 inservice teachers with 160 hours of professional development. The goal is to enable teachers to implement National Science Education Standards and the Mississippi Science Curriculum Frameworks for high school (9-12) education. The long term goal is to improve student achievement in science and to significantly reduce achievement gaps in the science performance within the diverse student population.

The inservice component consists of two compressed 3 credit hours graduate courses. Each course will be taught in 10 days (20 days total), two weeks in summer and 10 Saturdays during the academic year. The emphasis will be on conceptual development for each major topic and will include coursework, inquiry-based laboratory work, demonstrations, hands-on activities, and problem solving with special emphasis on using technology as tools of instruction. Project team members will complete at least three follow-up visits to the classrooms of the participants.