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The Howard Hughes Medical Institute (HHMI) announced this morning that Columbia Professor of Biological Sciences Darcy Kelley and her faculty colleagues in the Frontiers of Science course have won a half-million dollar award to improve undergraduate science education. The award is a renewal of Professor Kelley's 2002 million dollar Howard Hughes Professorship grant which supported development of this new course in the Core Curriculum of Columbia College.
Frontiers of Science has two aims: to reveal how scientists approach and analyze questions, and to emphasize common threads that cut across scientific disciplines beginning with a student's first University-level course. Frontiers is designed to increase interest in science by "breaking the pyramid," teaching the most interesting, state-of-the-art material first rather than requiring students to jump through a series of ever more specialized preparatory courses before gaining access to current research. Frontiers of Science also seeks to increase the visibility and cachet associated with teaching science to all students by creating a compelling body of material prepared by top researcher/educators.
Support from the HHMI will be used to disseminate globally the educational materials and teaching strategies developed for Frontiers. Working with Columbia University's Digital Knowledge Ventures (DKV), Professor Kelley and the Frontiers of Science Faculty will develop an online resource that will include a host of resources, including lectures (videos and podcasts), problem sets, suggested experiments, teaching instruction and background readings, in addition to the online textbook written by Frontiers Co-Director, Professor David Helfand, Scientific Habits of Mind. The project is providing a living, expanding resource for educational content and a communal space in which college and university science educators can share approaches to education across the sciences. Frontiers of Science Online is modeled after DKV's award-winning Columbia American History Online .
Professor Kelley noted that "the battle for science can't be won by teaching Frontiers of Science at Columbia alone. We can contribute by providing other science educators with tools that they can use, that they can adapt, that they can build on. The collaboration between Columbia University's Frontiers Faculty and Digital Knowledge Ventures can provide the platform that we need for communicating what we have done with educators in the US and abroad. We look forward to developing new approaches and sharing the material we have created."
Founded in 2000, Digital Knowledge Ventures is part of Columbia University Information Services headed by Vice President and University Librarian, James Neal. The DKV staff includes experts in graphic design; programming; technical development; rights, video and picture research; and marketing, and distribution. DKV works with faculty, schools, departments, and administrative units within the Columbia community and organizations outside the University, including PBS, the New-York Historical Society and the British Broadcasting Society.
In addition to Professor Kelley's award, HHMI awarded an additional seven professorship renewals and twenty new awards to researchers across the country. Thomas R. Cech, HHMI president, noted that "the scientists whom we have selected are true pioneers--not only in their research, but in their creative approaches and dedication to teaching. We are hopeful that their educational experiments will energize undergraduate science education throughout the nation."
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Founded in 1754 as King's College, Columbia University in the City of New York is the fifth oldest institution of higher learning in the United States and today is one of the world's leading academic and research institutions. For more information about Columbia University, visit www.columbia.edu .
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