[ti:Scientists, Engineers Help Elementary School Teachers] [ar:Christopher Cruise] [al:Education Report] [by:www.51voa.com] [00:00.00]This is the VOA Special English Education Report. [00:04.46]A program in the United States brings scientists [00:09.52]and engineers into elementary schools [00:12.49]to teach teachers more about how to teach science. [00:17.38]DAVE WEISS: "Welcome to science class. [00:18.65]So good to see you guys today." [00:20.05]Dave Weiss is a retired engineer. [00:22.64]One day each week he volunteers [00:26.46]at Georgian Forest Elementary School [00:29.81]in Silver Spring, Maryland, near Washington. [00:33.55]DAVE WEISS: "But the experiment we're going to do, [00:35.24]we want to keep all of our variables constant." [00:37.67]He works with teacher Fred Tenyke [00:39.94]on science projects for ten-year-olds. [00:43.33]DAVE WEISS: "Fred is so enthusiastic [00:44.89]and he's so much fun with the kids. [00:46.47]I can see that he really loves what he's doing. [00:48.84]I get as much pleasure from helping the teachers [00:50.97]as I do helping the students." [00:52.62]Student Jada Lockwood says [00:56.21]she enjoys Mr. Weiss' visits to her classroom. [01:00.29]She likes the drawings he uses to explain scientific ideas. [01:05.53]JADA LOCKWOOD: "Mr. Weiss, like, he would go in the back and draw, [01:10.30]like, these pictures and, like, he helps us a lot." [01:13.86]The American Association for the Advancement of Science [01:18.01]sponsors the Senior Scientists and Engineers program. [01:23.74]Dave Weiss has been a volunteer in that program for many years. [01:29.18]The scientists and engineers help teachers [01:33.54]in elementary schools improve their skills. [01:37.54]Mr. Weiss says he and the other volunteers [01:42.04]help teachers by providing hands-on expertise. [01:46.74]DAVE WEISS: "In this experiment, [01:47.71]I think it might be confusing to the kids [01:49.31]that we're dealing with two masses." [01:50.86]He notes that science is an area [01:53.88]in which many elementary school teachers have limited experience. [01:58.27]DAVE WEISS: "In elementary school, for the most part, [02:00.22]your regular classroom teacher is responsible for teaching science, [02:03.71]along with reading and math, [02:05.90]and if they don't have a strong science background, just by nature, [02:09.80]they're going to tend to underrepresent science in the curriculum." [02:12.90]Fred Tenyke agrees. [02:14.52]He just started teaching science classes a few months ago. [02:19.15]FRED TENYKE: "A lot of time I'll spit out information I learned in the book, [02:21.96]or things that are part of the curriculum. [02:24.41]Dave helps me learn how to supplement that information [02:27.82]so that it's more relevant to them, [02:29.72]so that it will be more relevant to their work experience later on in life." [02:32.62]American fifteen-year-olds scored about average in science [02:37.59]among countries that took part in testing [02:40.10]by the OECD in two thousand nine. [02:44.81]The OECD is the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development. [02:52.88]Dave Weiss says he is concerned about such results, [02:57.23]but hopeful for the future for American students learning science. [03:02.97]DAVE WEISS: "In elementary school I try to just give them a solid foundation. [03:08.74]I hope they'll develop a curiosity about what's going on around them." [03:13.32]Fred Tenkye thinks volunteers like Dave Weiss are helping students do that. [03:19.00]FRED TENYKE: "And if you can develop a passion for science, [03:21.74]then eventually the grades and the test scores, then that will follow." [03:27.07]And that's the VOA Special English Education Report. [03:31.42]You can read and listen to this story and watch a video version at 51voa.com. [03:41.50]You can also find us on Facebook, Twitter, [03:45.74]YouTube and iTunes at VOA Learning English. [03:51.27]We offer English teaching lessons three times a day, [03:54.96]Monday through Friday, on our Facebook page. [03:58.76]I'm Christopher Cruise.