Danielle Anderson will work with local teachers on lessons and activities aimed at getting young students more excited about science. She is the second student to participate in the Science Ambassadors program created by the Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council of Canada (NSERC). A national program aimed at improving the teaching and learning of science and mathematics from kindergarten to grade 12 is specifically designed to support science education in Aboriginal communities.

The new program was officially launched in 2007 with funding support from the University of Saskatchewan College of Engineering, Cameco Corporation, and NSERC. The program coordinator is computer science professor Julita Vassileva, who holds the NSERC/Cameco Prairie Chair for Women in Science and Engineering.

“The goal of the Science Ambassadors program is to provide science teachers in Aboriginal communities with practical, hands-on support, both in the classroom and with extra-curricular science activities,” Vassileva said. “What makes this program unique is the duration of the support our students provide. Unlike most other programs, our Science Ambassadors spend extended periods of time in the community, either for one or two days every week, or for two entire months.”

Science Ambassadors are grad students with degrees in science or engineering, and their primary role is to help the teacher in the classroom. Most of their work is aimed at children in grades five to twelve, years that are critical in determining whether students develop an interest in science and a desire to pursue science education in later years.

Anderson prepared for her placement in The Pas by first visiting the community last December with Vassileva and her graduate supervisor, U of S physics professor Chary Rangacharyulu. She began by working with teachers and students in the middle years and high schools. After that, she will bring some of the older children with her to help with activities in the elementary schools.

- NSERC-Prairies