About

=Goal= The goal of the West Virginia University Summer Institute is to improve undergraduate science and math education at post-secondary institutions in and around West Virginia. This will be achieved by training faculty in effective, evidence-based, teaching strategies. This institute is modeled after the National Academies Summer Institute and is meant to extend the influence of that successful professional development workshop.

=Specific Outcomes= By the end of the week, you will have:
 * practiced a variety of teaching strategies through workshops, presentations and group work
 * worked as a team to create teaching materials that implement these strategies
 * begun to shift your focus from content and teaching to outcomes and learning

=Themes of the Summer Institute= Scientific teaching provides a framework for changing our classrooms to make them more learner-focused and our curricula in ways that more richly represent the nature and process of science. Scientific teaching is based on the educational theory, constructivism, which recognizes the need to the previous knowledge and understanding of the learner for any meaningful learning to take place. This concept encompasses three core themes: active learning, assessment and diversity. Over the course of the week, you will implement strategies that address each of these themes into your teachable unit.