Sweet Science

"I didn't know that making ice cream was science," observed one of the participants in Penn GSE's SPARK! program. "Science tastes really good."

In response to the alarming decline in students, particularly African Americans, who pursue careers in engineering and other sciences, several local organizations joined in launching SPARK! Igniting Interest and Achievement in STEM Through Engineering Design in January 2007. With Penn GSE Assistant Professor Susan Yoon taking the lead, the program consists of a series of out-of-school activities focused on solving real-world problems in science and engineering.

Partners in the collaboration include GSE, Penn's School of Engineering and Applied Sciences, and the Philadelphia Zoo.

Geared toward under-represented urban students and funded by the National Science Foundation, SPARK! aims to get kids excited about science — and to lay the groundwork for higher-level courses in high school and beyond for students in grades 4-8.

The young ice-cream makers at the Folk Arts Cultural Treasures Charter School, for instance, weren't just making a cool refreshment for a hot summer's day. They were covering key elements in the Pennsylvania Science Standards. Their exercise in making ice cream taught them about one of the basic properties of matter — the freezing point of liquids and the concept of freezing-point depression.

In an engineering challenge, students at Bethune Elementary designed and created a shoe — helping them to understand each of the steps in the engineering design process.

In addition to the after-school and Saturday sessions, SPARK! holds science camps every summer. Last summer, the Philadelphia Zoo once again played host to SPARK! campers as they designed their own mini-zoos, complete with towers, bridges, and cantilevers. The Zoo's former education director Lynn Parrucci credits SPARK! with "totally improving the way we do educational programming." And while one set of campers was imagining new zoos, another was over at Penn's School of Engineering and Applied Science exploring ponds and their inhabitants.

And SPARK! is keenly concerned with research on the program's impact and effectiveness. The team has been looking at how cognitive and social processes are incorporated in the program's design; assessing program impact on students' understanding of engineering design; accounting for variables that contribute to the success of the program's in- and out-of-school activities; investigating how best to work with teachers in professional development capacities, and evaluating the impact of mentoring on student interest and participation in science and engineering.

As SPARK! draws to a close, the project team is are looking both back and ahead. "We're still analyzing the data we have collected," Yoon says, "and we are developing plans to continue and expand the project."

SPARK! may be coming to a close, but its projects are continuing. Next year, one of the participating schools will start a science club to continue SPARK! activities. "One of our goals was sustainability," explains Yoon, "so we're delighted that some teachers want to keep SPARK! alive. We're also looking at starting a similar club here at Penn."

SPARK! website

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