FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE – April 16, 2025 – A research team at BSCS Science Learning is set to make waves at the U.S. National Science Foundation’s 75th Anniversary “NSF STEM Day” celebration. Dr. Sherry Hsi and her team received supplemental funding for conducting public science education and outreach inspired by their NSF-funded Making Waves with Radio project.
NSF STEM Day, held on May 10, 2025, will bring together museums, planetariums, libraries, community organizations, parks, and universities across the country to share important innovations in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM). BSCS educators and its museum partners will engage with science enthusiasts of all ages at the Columbia Memorial Space Center in Downey, California.
“Our NSF Advancing Informal STEM Learning project has been developing materials to raise greater awareness and understanding about the science of radio signals and radio-enabled technologies that are essential to innovations in modern communication and our everyday lives. We are excited to be a part of this national celebration,” said Hsi, BSCS Principal Scientist. “Over the past 75 years, the NSF has made critical investments in innovative research and development to improve how people learn science and engineering. With NSF’s support, this event will allow us to amplify our science education impact to the greater Los Angeles area.”
The Making Waves with Radio project provides a suite of museum activities, apps, youth camp curricula, and mobile professional learning resources for educators who work with youth, families, and public audiences. During NSF STEM Day, families will have the chance to fully immerse themselves with hands-on science activities, demonstrations, crafts, and games that together explore the science of radio signals and radio-enabled technologies, from drones and Wi-Fi detectors to a visual timeline of key radio technology inventions.
“In space and on Earth, we are all explorers of the electromagnetic spectrum. Radio helps us see things we can’t see with normal telescopes and they also help us keep in contact with our vital missions discovering new things about our solar system and beyond.” said Ben Dickow, Executive Director of the Columbia Memorial Space Center.
Those who wish to continue engaging with the project materials can access them free online at radioeverywhere.org following the NSF STEM Day festivities.
“The National Science Foundation is integral to BSCS’s storied history,” said Dr. Daniel Edelson, BSCS Executive Director. “Our organization began in 1958 as a line item in NSF’s budget. Over the last 65 years, we have not only supported science education of teachers and students in classrooms, but expanded tremendously across settings and we now operate as an independent non-profit organization. Still, we continue to rely on NSF funding to advance our research-driven innovation. NSF’s 75th Anniversary is a celebration we’re honored to join.”
For more information about the Making Waves with Radio project or NSF STEM Day event, contact Sherry Hsi at [email protected].
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I’ve opened a lot of doors because I was curious about what was on the other side of them. My own career has been an experiment.
– Dr. Juan Pablo Carvallo
Dear friends,
Each year on Charles Darwin’s birthday, BSCS Science Learning celebrates his significant contributions to science. This year, we are marking the occasion by featuring another scientist you should know: Dr. Juan Pablo “JP” Carvallo. JP’s research on energy and electricity is currently making an impact everywhere from policy decisions to high school physics classrooms—and he’s become a valued friend and advisor to our curriculum development team at BSCS.
Originally from Chile, JP began his career helping a mining company determine how to make better use of their power. Motivated by a lifelong “curiosity to open doors and see what’s on the other side,” he moved to the University of California, Berkeley, to pursue an advanced degree. That three-year trip turned into a 15-year adventure. And today, he’s a Research Scientist in the Energy Markets and Policy Department at Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory.
In this role, he identifies big problems and produces insights to support decision makers with policy changes. JP hopes to “spur change” where it’s needed. That’s exactly what drew him to study the Texas power crisis in February 2021. One week after the widespread power outages, his team began collecting data. Who was affected by the outages? Was there a reason why the outages largely affected minority populations? JP’s team expedited a research report that he hoped would reach and support local decision-makers. Little did he know that the report would reach much further.
Around this time, BSCS Science Educators Zoë Buck Bracey and Diego Rojas-Perilla were leading a team in the development of a high school physics unit focused on the Texas power crisis. They found JP’s report and sought his help to answer questions students raised in pilot testing.
In collaboration with JP, the BSCS team produced a unit in which students learn about, prioritize, and test solutions to meet their communities’ energy needs. The unit has received rave reviews from high school students and teachers across the country.
JP shared a review of his own: “The BSCS team was like a super-motivated and diverse set of superheroes working to improve K-12 education into something that I would have welcomed as a kid.” The feeling is mutual. JP’s contributions enabled us to make this unit compelling and relevant to students. We are inspired by his research, and we believe in his vision to spur change. After all, his work is already changing the way thousands of high school students think about energy in their communities.
On this Darwin Day, I am thankful for JP and all the other scientists and educators who are helping us prepare young people for the world they will inherit.
Sincerely,
Daniel C. Edelson
BSCS Executive Director
Research drives our innovation. And we have some new insights to share! Check out our digital 2023 Annual Report!
Dear friends,
Bri aced high school biology and chemistry and had every intention of acing physics. Mitchell survived biology and chemistry and planned to stay under the radar in physics. They enjoyed different hobbies and envisioned different careers. But they entered their junior year with one big thing in common: they were turning 16 and couldn’t wait to get their driver’s licenses.
Alexis Vargas, their physics teacher in Anaheim, California, couldn’t wait to give them both the crash course they really needed. That would be the “Collisions and Momentum” unit in our new OpenSciEd Physics Program.
“Many of you are about to become licensed drivers! So what can we do to make driving safer for you and everyone else? Let’s figure it out together,” Vargas informed the class.
Vargas loved this unit. It was bursting with interesting physics concepts and relevant to all of his students. He knew it would motivate Mitchell to stop staring at his phone and start asking questions. He knew it would motivate Bri to stop asking questions about tests and start investigating like a scientist. And he was right. For the next several weeks, his students became consumed by the concerning rise in vehicle collisions and fatalities. They analyzed real-world statistics, modeled collisions through an engineering task, and evaluated solutions for reducing injuries.
Then in the middle of a lesson, Mitchell pulled out his phone and started scrolling. “I’m just looking up my family’s car to see if it has a crumple zone!” he assured Vargas.
Mitchell and his classmates figured out exactly how dangerous it was to drive–especially some of their dream classic cars. They developed a deep understanding of mechanics, and an even deeper desire to become safe and responsible drivers. Bri especially enjoyed giving her mom a science-based lecture to stop sending those “quick texts” from the road.
BSCS Science Learning created the OpenSciEd Physics Program for students like Bri and Mitchell. We are on a constant pursuit to engage students in science they’ll be motivated to use throughout their lives and careers.
Teachers like Vargas, who help us write, test, and implement high quality science materials, are critical partners in this pursuit.
So are friends like you. Your ongoing support helps us change the landscape of K-12 science education. Will you make a contribution to BSCS’s Innovation Fund today?
Sincerely,
Daniel C. Edelson
BSCS Executive Director
A Tribute by former BSCS Executive Director Joseph McInerney
Manert Kennedy served as the Associate Director of BSCS for 17 years. Former Executive Director, Joe McInerney, reflects on his friendship and collaboration with Manert over the years.
My first conversation with Manert Kennedy occurred in the spring of 1977, over pastrami sandwiches at Katz’s Deli, in Manhattan. Manert was in the city on BSCS business, and I had just completed my master’s program in genetic counseling at SUNY Stony Brook, on Long Island. Bentley Glass, the architect of the genetic counseling program and the first chairman of the BSCS board of directors, had suggested to Manert that he meet me to discuss BSCS’s then-nascent efforts in genetics education. This meeting was the beginning of a long and productive professional relationship and a friendship that extended well beyond our formal work together.
When Manert returned to Louisville from New York, he discussed our meeting with Bill Mayer, then BSCS’s director, and Faith Hickman, a BSCS staff associate, first-rate writer, and accomplished project director and curriculum developer. Manert and Faith invited me to join a two-week summer writing conference on the CU campus that summer to develop guidelines for education in human and medical genetics. My two-week stint turned into 22 years on the BSCS staff, 14 as director.
Though almost 20 years separated us in terms of age, Manert and I became fast friends, and we grew to know one another through extensive travel together on behalf of BSCS. It was during those trips, for example, that Manert told me about his life-defining experience as a 19-year-old Marine in the legendary Battle of the Chosin Reservoir, in Korea.
Those trips also provided opportunities for Manert to share with me his views about BSCS and science education, views that informed my own thinking during my work with the organization and beyond. I always have considered Manert to be among the people – staff members or otherwise – most committed to BSCS’s educational philosophy, and especially to the centrality of inquiry as an instructional method.
Early on, I was amazed at the number of people Manert knew nationally and internationally, and I came to realize that those extensive contacts were a function of BSCS’s processes and mission. Manert’s dedication to BSCS and its educational philosophy was evident in the projects he pursued and in their execution. A notable example is the BSCS film “The Tragedy of the Commons,” based on the classic Garrett Hardin essay published in Science in December 1968. Though some on the staff thought it impossible to convert the essay into a workable educational film, Manert persisted and produced a highly successful instructional product with built-in interludes that engaged the audience in discussions of the compelling issues that Dr. Hardin raised.
That Dr. Hardin himself agreed to appear in the film was testimony to BSCS’s stature and credibility and to Manert’s commitment to ensuring the scientific integrity of BSCS programs. That commitment, of course, pervaded the organization and was central to the involvement of first-rate scientists in the development of our programs.
As a former teacher, Manert also recognized the importance of including experienced teachers in the planning and development of our programs to help ensure classroom validity. I learned that lesson early in the development of our programs in human genetics when our genetics experts – some of the best in the world – would propose content, only to be told by the teachers in the group that their suggestions were unworkable for the students in question. That BSCS accorded the scientists and the teachers equal respect was a position that Manert supported without fail.
Manert and his wife, Grace, had eight children, four or five of them teenagers when he and I first started working together. My two kids were little then, just toddlers. One Monday morning, after what clearly had been a challenging weekend at the Kennedy household, an exhausted Manert sat down in my office and said, “Joe, I know your kids are very young now. But when they get to be teenagers, if the technology is available, have them frozen, and thaw them out when they’re 20.”
There are numerous funny stories about our work on BSCS programs and associated activities, but my favorite concerns Manert and the development of our single-topic inquiry films, perhaps the best thing we’ve ever done in terms of inquiry. These very brief, silent film loops show biological phenomena and ask students to draw conclusions from them. Among the most famous is “prey detection in rattlesnakes.” Here, a rattler is in a glass cage with two lightbulbs, covered in cloth to protect the snake’s mouth. The snake is inactive when the lights are off. When the lights come on, the snake strikes both. Some daring herpetologist (maybe Walter Auffenberg, who was on the BSCS staff briefly) then blindfolds the snake, which still strikes one light or both when they’re illuminated. Next, the herpetologist removes the blindfold and obstructs the heat-sensing pits on this viper with cotton. The snake does not react when the lights come on. Manert showed this film to a Kansas high school class during field testing and asked, “What can you conclude?” One kid responded, “Never, ever go in the woods with a lightbulb in your pocket!”
Manert did not accompany us when BSCS moved from Louisville to Colorado Springs in 1982. Nonetheless, he and I remained friends and collaborated occasionally. In 1993, the 25th anniversary of Dr. Hardin’s paper, Manert and Dr. Hardin joined us for a celebration at the Wingspread Conference Center (a Frank Lloyd Wright building), in Racine, Wisconsin, an event supported by the Johnson Foundation. The deliberations there resulted in a revised edition of the original film, with a focus on the Grand Banks fisheries as an example of a commons in need of regulation.
Manert and I spoke regularly by phone until his death, and we often reminisced about our time together at BSCS. We always remarked on how fortunate we were to have spent so much of our professional lives at such an extraordinary organization and to have worked with so many superlative scientists and educators. BSCS will honor Manert by continuing his commitment to scientific integrity and educational innovation in its programs.
Photo Credit: Valley Courier
A growing community of educators and experts agree that BSCS Biology: Understanding for Life is transforming how students learn and apply science in their lives. Program adopters can now maximize the impact of the curriculum by registering for professional learning (PL). BSCS has designed several professional learning pathways to prepare teachers for a confident and effective experience teaching BSCS Biology.
You’re invited to take a deep dive into all the professional learning opportunities we now offer! We hope you can join us for one of the following webinars:
- Thursday, April 4, 2024, 10:00-10:30 a.m. (MT)
- Thursday, April 4, 2024, 5:00-5:30 p.m. (MT)
We encourage you to register even if you cannot attend—as we’ll be sharing the recorded webinar with everyone who has signed up within the next week.
Who should attend?
- District/school leaders and teachers who have adopted BSCS Biology.
- District/school leaders and teachers who are piloting or considering adoption of BSCS Biology.
Why should you attend?
- Learn about all of the PL pathways that are now available to support successful implementation of BSCS Biology.
- Get a sneak peek into a PL workshop to discover the knowledge and confidence you can expect to gain.
- Hear what teachers and leaders have to say about their own PL experiences.
Dear friends,
Happy Darwin Day!
In recent years, BSCS has chosen to celebrate the anniversary of Charles Darwin’s birth by sharing stories of inspiring scientists from around the world. This year, we are shining the spotlight on a scientist who is close to home: Dr. Rodolfo Dirzo, a dedicated member of the BSCS board of directors and the Bing professor in environmental science at Stanford University.
Born in Mexico, Rodolfo conducts research on species interactions in Latin America and other tropical ecosystems. He teaches ecology, natural history, conservation biology, and bio-cultural diversity, subjects that he realizes are best learned outside the classroom. In fact he’s well known for a summer program in which he takes undergraduate students to Oaxaca, Mexico.
In Oaxaca, students discover significant threats to life and humanity.
Rodolfo explains, “We are facing a crisis–the dramatic loss of biological richness and the declining appreciation of the diversity of cultures. In this course, we examine how beautifully biological and cultural diversity interact and co-evolve together to create bio-cultural diversity. It is critical to recognize that both elements are essential and linked if we aspire to have a more sustainable world.”
Oaxaca is home to at least nine ethnic and cultural groups, and Rodolfo has designed his program to enable students to learn about traditional ecological knowledge and land conservation firsthand by engaging directly with Oaxacan people.
Their exploration begins in an open-air market, lined with an exceptionally wide range of medicinal plants, fruits, vegetables, herbs, and spices. Most of these crops originated in Mexico and were provided by local farmers and gatherers. Students collect data on the supply and demand and see how much more diverse these markets are than those in other parts of the world.
They realize they are seeing Oaxaca’s bio-cultural diversity. And it’s only the first of many meaningful experiences they’ll share with the Indigenous people of Oaxaca that summer. Check out this article for more insight into these experiences!
Rodolfo has a deep appreciation for the regions of the world where Indigenous peoples and biological richness coincide and coevolve. His motivation to study and protect life and humanity inspires a new group of students each year. And it inspires us at BSCS. We are also grateful for his contributions to BSCS as a member of our board and an advisor on curriculum development.
Sincerely,
Daniel C. Edelson
BSCS Executive Director
BSCS Science Learning and partners have been awarded a $4M research grant by the US Department of Education (DOE) to investigate the potential far-reaching impact of a promising new middle school science program.
There is widespread enthusiasm among the thousands of teachers and students across the country who are using this OpenSciEd Middle School Science program today. Teachers have reported seeing their students ask questions they care about, strengthen their ability to solve problems, and become more curious about the world around them.
But how does this enthusiasm translate to program effectiveness and impact? And what will it take for the program to make a difference where it’s needed most?
That’s what BSCS, Southern University and A&M College, and American Institutes for Research (AIR) plan to explore over the next five years with financial support from the DOE’s Education Innovation and Research (EIR) program.
“The OpenSciEd middle school science materials were extensively field-tested and have received rave reviews from teachers, students, and EdReports since the program’s public release in 2022. However, no one has had the opportunity to collect evidence for the efficacy of the program. We are especially interested in its efficacy when used by high-need students and in low-resourced schools,” said Dr. Chris Wilson, BSCS Director of Research & Innovation and EIR Project Director. “BSCS led the development of the OpenSciEd Middle School Science program. It has received top ratings in external reviews designed to identify high quality programs that will improve outcomes for high-needs students. We’re looking forward to leveraging the expertise of our partners to explore the potential impact of this program–which to date has been used in 4,000 classrooms, reaching approximately 400,000 students per year.”
This project kicks off in January 2024. To start, BSCS and Southern University will co-develop, pilot, monitor, and refine a professional learning program to support the implementation of the OpenSciEd instructional materials for grades 6-8.
The partners will conduct their work across high-needs schools in Louisiana–including East Baton Rouge Parish Schools, the primary study site and the second largest school district in the state. This district serves over 40,000 students, most of whom are non-white, eligible for free/reduced price lunch, and/or economically disadvantaged.
Southern University brings a critical perspective to this work as a public, historically black land-grant university located in Baton Rouge, Louisiana.
“We are fortunate to have Southern University as a partner and will be leaning on their extensive experience working with high-needs schools in Louisiana. They are ideal collaborators to help adapt and implement the OpenSciEd professional learning program for this population of teachers,” said Dr. Susan Gomez Zwiep, BSCS Senior Science Educator and EIR Professional Learning Lead.
Throughout the project, AIR will conduct an independent and rigorous evaluation of the OpenSciEd instructional materials and professional learning program on state assessments, equitable learning, and noncognitive outcomes such as students’ perceptions of the program as relevant and coherent. The ongoing study will allow BSCS and Southern University to continuously monitor and refine project materials and resources and ultimately improve the implementation of the program.
“The Carnegie Corporation of New York invited BSCS in 2017 to bring together researchers and educators from across the county to envision a new open source, middle school science program. We developed a plan for a program that would be engaging, relevant, and inclusive–particularly for students from high-needs communities. That became the OpenSciEd program,” said Dr. Daniel Edelson, BSCS Executive Director. “While the OpenSciEd program has excelled in outside evaluations designed to identify high quality instructional materials for the Next Generation Science Standards, the study by AIR will be the first opportunity to collect evidence of its impact on students in real-world classrooms using rigorous research methods.”
By 2029, there will be clear evidence on the effectiveness of the OpenSciEd Middle School Science program. And for the first time, there will be specific insights on how to support implementation of the program to improve science achievement for high-needs students.
This work will be led by BSCS Science Learning’s Dr. Chris Wilson, Dr. Susan Gomez Zwiep, and Dr. Zoë Buck Bracey.
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The contents of this press release were developed under a grant from the US Department of Education, Education Innovation and Research (EIR) Program. However, those contents do not necessarily represent the policy of the US Department of Education, and you should not assume endorsement by the federal government.
When I walk into our biology classrooms, they are not the same classrooms that they were two years ago…
–Alejandro Lopez, Assistant Principal, Compton High School
Dear friends,
If you had walked into Precious Nwazota’s high school science classroom three years ago, you would have seen her students working quietly and independently on their assignments. There was no talking whatsoever. Students focused best in silence.
At least that’s what Precious and many of her fellow teachers in Compton Unified School District were led to believe. Then she was introduced to BSCS Biology: Understanding for Life. And then she met Cindy Gay, who supports her and others in implementing our new high school biology program through a series of BSCS professional learning institutes.
Today, Precious’s classroom is quite loud. Her students are motivated to solve a big societal problem together. They are engaged in group work. They are sharing their questions and ideas with the rest of the class. And they are making plans to improve the world for themselves, their families, and their communities–using the science they’ve figured out along the way.
Precious is all in on this shift to a student-centered classroom. Especially when students like Lani confidently step into the spotlight.
Lani is the only student in class who speaks Spanish exclusively. She is also one of several students who didn’t receive science education in middle school. So Precious isn’t exactly surprised to see the look of defeat on her face at the start of Unit 1. Lani likely expects to sit through each lesson, struggling to understand on multiple levels.
But BSCS Biology promises to create space for all students–especially students from underrepresented communities. That’s why the program focuses on equity and inclusion. That’s why the program integrates supports for emerging multilingual learners and below-grade-level readers. And that’s why students like Lani are not left behind.
Lani partners with a bilingual student and uses language translation tools. She quickly becomes engaged in figuring out the science needed to solve the big societal problem. And she begins to trust the knowledge and experiences she can bring to group discussions.
Only a few lessons into Unit 1, Lani is standing at the front of the class, sharing her ideas in Spanish. She’s confident. She’s participating. And she is learning science and some English.
Students like Lani are the reason Precious has become one of the biggest advocates for BSCS Biology. Yes, the program is challenging. But it is dramatically changing her classroom, and she isn’t looking back.
With the help of friends like you, we can impact science classrooms all over the country. Will you make a donation to bring the best in science education where it’s needed most today?
Sincerely,
Daniel C. Edelson
BSCS Executive Director
BSCS Science Learning and Kendall Hunt Publishing Company recently released BSCS Biology: Understanding for Life to meet the changing needs of science classrooms across the country. Rave reviews from teachers, students, and EdReports assure us that we’re on the right track. And now, we want to offer our supporters an inside look at our vision for the future of science education.
Join us for an exclusive webinar presented by Daniel Edelson, BSCS Executive Director.
Monday, October 30, 2023
1-2 p.m. (MT)