SOUTHEAST DEAN PARTICIPATES IN NATIONAL FORUM

The dean of the College of Science and Technology at Southeast Missouri State University has been invited to participate in a National Science Foundation (NSF) conference on reforming math and science education in the nation's schools.

Jesse Snowden will attend the conference titled, "Beyond National Standards and Goals: Excellence in Mathematics and Science Education K-16," Feb. 9-11 in Washington, D.C.

"The exciting thing about this conference is that, for the first time, people from the outside are being asked to come together to share their ideas," Snowden said. "The National Science Foundation has never done this before. This is an opportunity for us to learn what the National Science Foundation is doing and what other educators are doing" in science and math education.

Snowden said the conference is being held to address a national trend in which student interest in science and math is declining.

"This is a national priority," he said. "There is a national need to ensure that we don't lose numbers of students in these fields. We need to find better ways of attracting students into these fields and do a better job of instructing them.

At Southeast, a science and math advisory committee was established last fall to address the issue here, Snowden said. The Godwin Center for Science and Mathematics Education also is attempting to address the problem through a variety of programs, including the Science and Math Answerline Service.