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By Sherry F. Pruitt

JONESBORO -- Investigation is the key word at the Creating Student (and Teacher) Investigators Summer Institute underway on the ARKANSAS STATE UNIVERSITY campus.

Scientific investigation, that is.

A $1 million National Science Foundation grant over three years is funding the workshop, in which 28 junior and senior high teachers and 110 seventh- through 12th-graders from Arkansas and Missouri are participating.

"This summer institute provides an opportunity for students and teachers to learn new science skills and concepts while having fun exploring a series of mysterious events," said Dr. Karen Yanowitz, grant coordinator and associate professor of psychology.

Teachers attended the first week of the 2-week program, and they learned about the nature of science and what makes science the unique discipline it is, said Dr. Staria Vanderpool, assistant professor of botany.

"The other focus of the project is to train teachers to use inquiry in the lab," she explained. "The objective is to help them develop the ability to use a lab-intensive curriculum."

Aaron O'Brien, a chemistry teacher, basketball coach and athletic director for the Brinkley School District, said the institute is an "excellent" program.

"It's a good stepping stone for using creative scientific investigation in my classroom," he said. "It's giving me new ideas on how to teach chemistry and to use a higher level of Bloom's Taxonomy."

Lee Ann Dickson, who taught at Piggott High School for three years, starts in the fall teaching fourth-graders at Woodrow Wilson Elementary in Paragould. She said she was hoping to pick up some good tips at the workshop.

"I'm learning the importance of collaboration and group work, as well as content as it applies to activities that are largely inquiry based learning," she said.

This is the second week for the teachers to attend, but it's the first week for the students to participate in the multi-discipline program.

Many mysterious scenarios will take place throughout the week, and it will be the job of the students with the help of the teachers and ASU scientists "to investigate a rash of events disturbing the quiet make-believe community of Proximity Parish," according to a press release.

The investigators will use global positioning and geographic information systems as a part of "Geocaching," to find items, such as Proximity Parish's mascot, a piñata parrot, which was stolen and was being held for ransom on Tuesday, said Ann Ross, associate professor with the teacher education program.

"The grant requires the teachers and the students to be trained in technology," Yanowitz said. "The emphasis is on the science."

"Mysteries are going to be happening all week," Ross added.

Other investigations for the week include a burglary, a glass analysis, an environmental spill, a DNA analysis and a traffic accident, Ross said.

Though the program is in its first of three years, more than 500 students applied for the 110 slots. Student participants were chosen based on essays and teacher recommendations, and teachers were chosen based on essays, as well, Yanowitz said.

Charli Davis, who will be a ninth-grader at Midland Junior High School in Pleasant Plains for the fall term, said she wanted to participate in the program at ASU-Jonesboro for a couple of reasons.

"It's going to teach me more about science, and I'm interested in science as a career," Davis said. "And it looks good on college applications."

The students and two-thirds of the teachers are staying on campus in Kays Hall dormitory. Activities have been planned for them in the evenings, including lectures from the state forensic anthropologist and a representative from the state Crime Lab.

The teachers who attend this year also will participate next year, along with additional teachers, Yanowitz added. Teachers will participate in related activities throughout the year as part of the program, and they receive graduate hours or professional development credit and a stipend for participation in the institute.

"We've got a great group of teachers. They're really involved. They've taken our suggestions and run with them," Yanowitz said. "They really feel the ownership of the program."

Teachers in attendance from The Sun's coverage area and their school districts include Jamie Lynn Liles, Brookland; Teresa Fuller, Cross County; Meredith Schwieghart, Wynne; Norma Ann Cooper, Osceola; Michelle Crain, Trumann; and Benny Tunstall and Charlotte Upshaw, both Twin Rivers.

A fourth scientist participating in the multi-discipline institute is Dr. Tanya McKay, assistant professor of entomology.

sherry@jonesborosun.com