[019]U.S.-SINO MTSU WORKSHOP FIRST STEP IN FUTURE COLLABORATION

U.S.-SINO MTSU WORKSHOP FIRST STEP IN FUTURE COLLABORATION


MURFREESBORO—Dr. Diane Miller means what she says. When the newly appointed vice provost issued directives to all who participated in the recent U.S.-Sino workshop on mathematics and science education, she told them this was not going to be a “meet-and-greet-and-then-let’s-go home session.” It certainly wasn’t.
American and Chinese scholars traded e-mail addresses as well as phone and fax numbers, and they made a commitment, as members of 12 Research Working Groups, to continue their collaboration for the next several months or years that would produce meaningful and lasting outcomes—outcomes that would ultimately have an impact on classroom teaching and learning.
“We’d been planning this for the last 18 months,” Miller said. “Dr. McPhee proposed the idea to President Wang Li Min of Northwest Normal University, Lanzhou, Peoples Republic of China, in 2006. He asked me to take charge, and I wrote a proposal to the National Science Foundation in the spring of 2007 and submitted it in the fall of that year.”
The weeklong event, June 22-27, was co-hosted by MTSU and NWNU. U.S. Congressman Bart Gordon delivered the opening address, and plenary speakers included scholars from the National Science Foundation, The Carnegie Foundation, NWNU and the P.R. China Embassy in Washington, D.C.
At the beginning of the week, nearly 125 scholars gathered together and presented topic-session papers. From those sessions, participants joined with others of similar interests and formed Research Working Groups, which spent the week discussing math and science curriculum, teacher preparation, assessment, integrating technology into the classroom, professional development and reaching the underserved population.
“On Friday, we asked the RWGs to summarize their discussions and what they hoped to accomplish as a working group in the future, including a timeline if they were that far into the process,” Miller explained, adding that these reports turned out to be one of Miller’s most memorable experiences during the week. “I really didn’t know what to expect—they far exceeded my expectations.”
It wasn’t all work and no play. “We built in social time because I firmly believe the friendships that were developed will sustain the professional relationships that are needed to complete these research projects,” Miller said.
“A lot of people commented that they thought this was a very successful part of the workshop.,” she continued. “You had groups that spoke different languages and came from different cultures. Even their research paradigms are different. The research language is different in the United States from the language of Chinese researchers.”
Several MTSU faculty and students served as translators in both formal and informal gathering whenever they were needed.
Miller said while the research methodology was not that different between the two cultures, the methods of getting the research is different.
“When our scholars started talking about IRB approval (Institutional Review Board), their Chinese counterparts wanted to know what that meant. Our scholars explained the process they went through to get permission to work with students. In China, a researcher can go into a school and say ‘I want to do this on these days,’ and the school accommodates them.”
The curriculum in China is a national curriculum,” Miller noted. “Up until five years ago, the subject material taught in every classroom on any given day was the same. However, the Chinese government became interested in the revised math and science curriculum in the United States, so they permitted schools in five provinces to teach what they call an experimental curriculum.
“It is a significant step for them.” Miller said, adding that in the past three years, the Chinese also have implemented some revised science curricula.
The Chinese educational system is assessment-driven. Miller said students are driven from the point of entry through high school graduation, and it all boils down to one test score on a university entrance test.
“Teachers in China are still revered,” she emphasized. “They are honored and respected. Somewhere along the way I think we’ve lost that in the U.S.”
Educating the underserved population is just as urgent and important in China as in the United States, especially in the areas of math and science. The Gansu Province in northwest China is composed of at least 45 different minority groups. “Their struggle in reaching these people is similar to our struggle,” Miller observed.
The National Science Foundation has expressed an interest—not a commitment—in providing funding for U.S. scholars to go to China for a follow-up workshop, if the research groups maintain their momentum, Miller said. She plans to keep in touch with the RWG facilitators and will post updates on a Web site.
“One group has already set up a discussion group online, and everyone is copying me on their correspondence,” she said. “So, yes, the work has just begun, and the real success of the workshop won’t be determined for several months. It will depend on these RWGs truly working together. … We hope people will implement their research plans, present at professional conferences and publish from that. And we hope to get the group back together again. … There were absolutely no difficult times. Everything went so smoothly and everyone seemed to be so happy … it was a little scary.”

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Pruned version




MURFREESBORO—Dr. Diane Miller means what she says. When the newly appointed vice provost issued directives to all who participated in the recent U.S.-Sino workshop on mathematics and science education, she told them this was not going to be a “meet-and-greet-and-then-let’s-go home session.” It certainly wasn’t.
American and Chinese scholars traded e-mail addresses as well as phone and fax numbers, and they made a commitment, as members of 12 Research Working Groups, to continue their collaboration for the next several months or years that would produce meaningful and lasting outcomes—outcomes that would ultimately have an impact on classroom teaching and learning.
“We’d been planning this for the last 18 months,” Miller said. “Dr. McPhee proposed the idea to President Wang Limin of Northwest Normal University, Lanzhou, Peoples Republic of China, in 2006. He asked me to take charge, and I wrote a proposal to the National Science Foundation in the spring of 2007 and submitted it in the fall of that year.”
The weeklong event, June 22-27, was co-hosted by MTSU and NWNU. U.S. Congressman Bart Gordon delivered the opening address, and plenary speakers included scholars from the National Science Foundation, The Carnegie Foundation, NWNU and the Ministry of Education, P.R. China.
At the beginning of the week, nearly 125 scholars gathered together and presented topic-session papers. From those sessions, participants joined with others of similar interests and formed Research Working Groups, which spent the week discussing math and science curriculum, teacher preparation, assessment, integrating technology into the classroom, professional development and reaching the underserved population.
“On Friday, we asked the RWGs to summarize their discussions and what they hoped to accomplish as a working group in the future, including a timeline if they were that far into the process,” Miller explained, adding that these reports turned out to be one of Miller’s most memorable experiences during the week. “I really didn’t know what to expect—they far exceeded my expectations.”
It wasn’t all work and no play. “We built in social time because I firmly believe the friendships that were developed will sustain the professional relationships that are needed to complete these research projects,” Miller said.
“A lot of people commented that they thought this was a very successful part of the workshop.,” she continued. “You had groups that spoke different languages and came from different cultures. Even their research paradigms are different. The research language is different in the United States from the language of Chinese researchers.”
Several MTSU faculty and students served as translators in both formal and informal gathering whenever they were needed.
The National Science Foundation has expressed an interest—not a commitment—in providing funding for U.S. scholars to go to China for a follow-up workshop, if the research groups maintain their momentum, Miller said. She plans to keep in touch with the RWG facilitators and will post updates on a Web site.
“One group has already set up a discussion group online, and everyone is copying me on their correspondence,” she said. “So, yes, the work has just begun, and the real success of the workshop won’t be determined for several months. It will depend on these RWGs truly working together. … We hope people will implement their research plans, present at professional conferences and publish from that. And we hope to get the group back together again. … There were absolutely no difficult times. Everything went so smoothly and everyone seemed to be so happy … it was a little scary.”

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