Lewis Center Tests Methods
Seeks scientific proof that innovative teaching programs are workingBy EMILY BERG / Staff Writer - Daily Press
APPLE VALLEY — Students and teachers at the Lewis Center for Educational Research are not just fulfilling the roles of pupils and instructors; they're also researchers.
The Academy for Academic Excellence, the charter school operated by the Lewis Center, is one of two charter schools in the nation designated as a research school with the National Association of Laboratory Schools.
The association is primarily made up of universities, and even the other charter school is part of the University of Florida, said Rick Piercy, the CEO and president of the Apple Valley center.
"There's no one that we know of doing what we do," Piercy said.
The association is trying to determine if research programs — such as the Lewis Center's international Goldstone Apple Valley Radio Telescope project — really work.
Many times innovative teaching programs are never scientifically proven to educate or motivate students better than the traditional methods. The center uses the charter school's teachers, students and parents to test the various programs and theories, Piercy said.
The center presented its first published paper to the American Educational Researchers Association at its annual conference in Chicago in April.
"It's very prestigious to be asked (to present)," Piercy said.
The association is the largest organization of educational researchers in the country.
Rebecca Deutscher, the senior educational researcher for the center, presented the findings from a two-year study of students involved in the radio telescope project.
The project allows students from schools around the world to operate a 34-meter telescope at the Goldstone Deep Space Communications Complex near Fort Irwin from computers in their classrooms. They gather information on various planets, which is later used by NASA scientists in real science.
The research Deutscher presented examined whether students like science better and how capable they felt to participate in science after operating the giant telescope.
"(The results) show that in some areas, kids did have an increased interest in science," she said.
Along with studying their own programs, the research department could delve into researching curriculum created by private companies, Piercy said.
They are also writing a proposal to study teacher burn-out and how to keep teachers motivated for the Department of Defense schools, Piercy said.
Used with permission by Daily Press, Freedom Communication, 2003