The aim of the Center is to improve the quality of formal college and precollege science and mathematics learning, instruction, materials, and curricula, as well as to promote informal and public science education. The Center is addressing these issues by: (1) drawing on the faculty resources of all of the appropriate Schools and Colleges within the University to develop and improve curricula and materials, and to explore the uses of new technologies in helping students to learn science and mathematics; (2) serving as a resource to elementary and secondary schools by designing and offering enrichment, development, and training programs for current and prospective precollege science and mathematics teachers; and (3) developing joint ventures with local, state, national, and international science, mathematics, and technology-related groups including universities and other nonprofit institutions, as well as private corporations. 
 

The Center serves as an umbrella for the precollege and informal science and mathematics education programs already in place within the Boston University community, as well as for future research and development projects in these fields. Schools that are working with the center include: the College of Arts and Sciences, in which faculty members are engaged in science and mathematics curriculum development projects; the School of Education, which is recognized for its current science teacher training programs; the College of Communication, which awards a master's degree in science and communications for science and technical writers; the College of Engineering, which conducts research and development in such areas as computer graphics; the Graduate School of Arts and Sciences which, in collaboration with the School of Education, awards a Master of Arts in Teaching for mathematics and science teachers; and other schools within the University (e.g., Metropolitan College and the College of General Studies) whose faculty are interested in developing technology-mediated instruction and curriculum materials. 

Current sources of national education finding support large-scale curriculum reform and materials development programs. However, studies suggest that many teachers do not know how to effectively use the materials that are already available. Therefore, other programs are focusing on the professional growth of current precollege science and mathematics teachers, as well as the development of prospective new precollege science and mathematics teachers. 

The Center had developed cooperative educational research and development projects with other local, state, and national resource centers and corporations. Examples of such organizations in the Boston area involved in science, mathematics, and technology educations are: the Boston Museum of Science, the Education Development Center (EDC), the Technical Education Research Center (TERC), and the Concord Consortium. 

For further information about the Center, please contact Kenneth Brecher, Director, or Gerald Abegg, Associate Director, at 605 Commonwealth Avenue, Boston, MA 02215; telephone: 617/353-7100.