STEM Ed Announcement: MIT/MABT Workshop: Science of the Eye

[Morton Sternheim <mort@k12s.phast.umass.edu>]

This is a program at UMass Amherst.
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MABT & MITs Science of the Eye Program present Science of the Eye:
Bringing Vision into the Classroom

Science of the Eye: Bringing Vision into the Classroom, a series of
regional workshops for Massachusetts high school biology teachers. Nearly
every student has a personal connection to vision science, whether they
wear glasses or contacts, or have a family member with cataracts or
macular degeneration. The workshops will capitalize on this connection to
students lives and help teachers broaden students outlook on potential
careers in vision science-related fields.

Topic I: Eye Development and Anatomy
This workshop will introduce lab activities to explore eye development and
anatomy in model organisms. Activities that are included in the workshop
will address mutations that lead to eye developmental defects and the
effects of ethanol exposure to vision in Fetal Alcohol Syndrome. In
addition, a cow eye dissection will be incorporated into a discussion of
the anatomy of the eye and eye diseases or problems that affect different
components of the eye. The workshop is designed to incorporate material
    from the Massachusetts high school science curriculum frameworks and
demonstrate to teachers how to excite, engage and deepen students'
understanding of this material using hands-on laboratory science
experiments.

Time and Place
Thursday, October 8, 2009, at UMass-Amherst's new Integrated Sciences
Building, Room 364. Sign-in from 4 to 4:30 p.m. Workshop 4:30 to 6:30 p.m.

Instructor
Ishara Mills-Henry, Ph.D., an accomplished biochemist who has led
workshops for high school science teachers on the evolution of the
vertebrate eye and the structures of proteins involved in vision. Dr.
Mills-Henry has a special interest in finding ways to engage students,
particularly underserved students, in science education before they decide
that science is not for them, as far too many middle school and high
school students continue to do.

Cost and Credits

The workshops are free of charge and will offer two hours of professional
development credit, or two PDPs, as one of a multipart series of workshops
offered through the spring of 2010. Coffee and a light snack will be
provided to all participants. Parking passes are available for a modest
fee. 

DO NOT PARK IN THE LOTS; YOU WILL LIKELY BE TOWED.

To register or for more information, contact Outreach Coordinator Lisa
Guisbond at guisbond@mit.edu. Phone: 617-258-7899.

Directions to UMass/Amherst:

* From the North: from I-91 South, take Exit 25 in Deerfield. At the end
of the ramp, turn left and follow road to the intersection. Turn right
onto Routes 5 & 10 South. Go 1 mile, then turn left onto Route 116 South.
Follow 8 miles to UMass exit.

* From the East: From Route 2 West, take exit 16 (Belchertown/Amherst).
Follow Route 202 for about 15 miles to blinking light at Route 9 and 116
Amherst exit (Pelham). Turn right and follow for 7 miles to Amherst
center. Follow signs to UMass. From I-90 (Mass
Pike), take exit 4 (West Springfield). Follow I-91 North to Exit 19. From
the exit ramp, turn right onto Route 9. Travel approximately 4.5 miles to
Route 116 North (turn left at traffic lights). UMass exit is 1 mile.

* From the South: From I-91 North, take Exit 19 in Northampton. From the
exit ramp, turn right onto Route 9. Travel approximately 4.5 miles to
Route 116 North (turn left at traffic lights). UMass exit is 1 mile.

* From the West: From Route 2 East, follow to Greenfield/I-91 exit. Take
I-91 South to exit 25 in Deerfield. At the end of the ramp turn left and
follow the road to the intersection. Turn right onto Routes 5 & 10 South.
Go 1 mile, then turn left onto Route 116 South. Follow for 8 miles to the
UMass exit. From I-90 (Mass Pike), take exit 4 (West Springfield). Follow
I-91 North to Exit 19. From the exit ramp, turn right onto Route 9. Travel
approximately 4.5 miles to Route 116 North (turn left at traffic lights).
UMass exit is 1 mile.

The Integrated Sciences Building is on North Pleasant Street, just north of
the campus pond. 

For a detailed campus map, go to 
  http://www.umass.edu/visitorsctr/downloads/campusmap.pdf.