ABOUT ICE

Overview

The Institute for Chemical Education was established in 1983 to provide a
center for scientists  and science educators to develop and disseminate
their ideas for more effective approaches to the teaching of chemistry, and
science in general.  All of ICE's programs emphasize hands-on science,
taught interactively as a means of helping students develop powers of
observation and problem-solving.  ICE aims to stimulate the scientific
curiosity of all students, not just those traditionally well-served by our
educational system.

At Field Centers across the country, ICE designs and conducts workshops
that help elementary middle and high school teachers overcome some of the
common obstacles they face in their efforts to deliver first-rate science
education.  ICE develops programs for students that can be carried out in a
variety of settings with limited resources.  In addition, ICE creates
educational materials that help teachers introduce hands-on, interactive
activities in their classrooms and laboratories.

ICE's programs are structured to involve many individuals and a
cross-section of the scientific and educational communities in the effort
to revitalize the teaching of science.  Only by broadening involvement in
this way can the enormous problems we face in science education be
addressed effectively.

WORKSHOPS FOR TEACHERS

Chemistry Activities:  Participants learn to conduct in-service programs to
help K-8 teachers use more hands-on science activities.

Chemistry Fundamentals:  Workshops for teachers of grades 6-9 physical
science and 10-12 chemistry who have limited training in their subject
areas.

Chemistry Instrumentation:  Experienced high school and two-year college
instructors update their knowledge of the practice of modern chemistry.

Super Science Connections:  K-3 teachers integrate language skills, art,
mathematics, social studies, etc. into a hands-on science curriculum.

PROGRAMS FOR STUDENTS

Chemistry CAMPS:  Students in grades 5-8 explore the wonders of chemistry
through hands-on laboratory experience.

SPICE (Students Presented Interactive Chemistry Experiences):  University
students and high school students of former workshop participants
experience the joy of presenting chemistry to school groups and the general
public.

EDUCATIONAL MATERIALS

Activities Guidebooks:  ICE is producing a series of teacher's guides to
science activities for classroom use in grades K-12.

Laboratory Assessment:  Award-winning high school teachers and university
consultants helped ICE develop improved procedures to measure knowledge and
skills gained from laboratory activities.

Current Topics:  A series of monographs, developed by an ICE fellow,
provides teachers with background information on a variety of everyday
topics in chemistry.

Low-Cost Instruments:  ICE has produced instructions for building
inexpensive instruments that can be used to introduce modern chemical
techniques to students.

Outreach:  Publications detailing how to organize and operate Chemistry
Camp and SPICE outreach programs.

Solid-State Model Kit:  The Model Kit can be used to build nearly 60
different crystalline solid structures in a layer-by-layer manner.

BROADENING INVOLVEMENT

Newsletter:  ICE seeks to maintain the involvement of past workshop
participants and others through a quarterly newsletter.

Field Centers:  ICE, headquartered at the University of Wisconsin-Madison,
offers work-shops and student programs and conducts research and
development activities at seven other universities across the country.

Affiliates:  University and college affiliates organize and present
workshops for local teachers based on the ICE model.

Fellowships:  ICE provides opportunities for educators and scientists to
devote up to a year developing their ideas for programs and materials to
improve science education.

Outreach:  Workshop participants present in-service programs for other
teachers and administrators.  ICE loans commercial equipment to
participants in the Instrumentation workshop to use for outreach.  Each
participant reaches an average of 40 other teachers.

Minority Programs:  ICE offers certain workshop sessions to help teachers
better address the needs of groups of students not proportionately
represented in the sciences.


John W. Moore
Professor of Chemistry
University of Wisconsin-Madison
Phone: 608-262-5154
FAX: 608-262-0381
Email: JWMoore@macc.wisc.edu