Chelen Johnson
This virtual team collects all independent research presented in 2012, and done by NITARP or Spitzer alumni with students outside of a formal NITARP team. Two different teams presented posters in 2012.
Science in the classroom can get so abstract, and after 20 years of teaching, I want to find out how people are using all of this math I'm talking about in class. I've always had an obsession with astronomy and physics, so NITARP is perfect for me.
For me, [this project] was a real partnership between scientists and educators. All questions and suggestion were taken seriously and with respect.
I saw kids rise to a challenge and meet it – they learned a lot from the process, each other, and the experience – in ways they could not get in a regular classroom setting at home.
