Building excitement, experience and expertise in computational science among middle and high school students

Abstract

Three of the most important skills for advancing modern mathematics and science are quantitative reasoning, computational thinking, and multi-scale modeling. The SUCCEED Apprenticeship program gives students the opportunity of exploring all three of these areas. The SUCCEED Apprenticeship program uses innovative approaches to get students excited about computational science. The overall goal of this program is to provide middle and high school students with authentic experiences in the techniques and tools of information technology with a particular focus on computational science. The program combines appropriate structure (classroom-style training and project-based work experience) with meaningful work content, giving students a wide variety of technical and communication skills. The program provides middle and high students from ethnically and economically diverse backgrounds with training and authentic experiences in using computational science. © 2009 Springer Berlin Heidelberg.