SEM Link: Improving the Quality of Math and Science Fairs One Project at a Time

Our Experimental Design Program teaches students how to design and conduct experiments for math and science fair projects utilizing research, laboratory and scientific literacy skills gained through individual and group learning opportunities as well as mentoring. This program improves the quantity and quality of math and science fair projects for students by providing schools with undergraduate students, graduate students and professional mentors with science, engineering and math (SEM) backgrounds to provide support for math and science fairs. It was a program that I started in the 2005-06 Program year, after spending time working in K-12 schools and getting tired of seeing reports on poster boards at science fairs. I wanted to teach students how to conduct a project on their academic level thinking like a research scientist; how I am going to answer a question in an area of my interest. So I created the Experimental Design Program Handbook for students which is currently on our website and started working with the inaugural students in this program.

The Experimental Design Individual Mentoring Program was born in October 2005, with 6 students at Sylvan Hills Middle School in the Atlanta Public School System. At the time of the school science fair, I had 5 science fair projects. I was so proud of all the hard work these students had put into developing their projects.They met diligently with their mentors weekly and put in the work between the meetings. They expressed frustration when their experiment didn't go right the first time and they had to do it over. But their hard work paid off because 3 of these students won the school fair and became eligible to compete in the district fair. Those students diligently worked to improve their projects from feedback from the science fair judges and ideas they had thought about while engaging in the trail and error of research. Once again, their hard work paid off and two of the projects won awards at the district fair. One of the two students that won awards at the district fair, was eligible to compete at the state fair. I was so proud of that inaugural class of the mentoring program, I'm not sure if that they chose to be scientist but they definitely got a chance to be exposed to what scientist do.

We are now accepting applications for its 2009-10 Experimental Design Individual Mentoring Program. This program provides a small monetary award to purchase supplies to conduct an experiment and a mentor for successful completion of a math or science fair project. SEM Link will support the student to his or her highest level of competition. Students who are eligible to apply for this program must be in grades 3-10, have a project title or subject area, a sponsoring math or science teacher and parental consent. The online application for this program, which consists of the student application and a teacher recommendation, must be completed by Friday, September 25, 2009.

The Individual Mentoring Program is one of the three programs in SEM Link’s Experimental Design Program. The other two other components of the Experimental Design Program provide support to public, private and charter schools. The Experimental Design Group Mentoring Program allows K-12 educators to request support for their classes to receive math and science fair project mentors. The Math and Science Fair Judging Program allows individual schools and school districts request judges for math and science fair projects. Both programs require schools to make their request online to SEM Link at least four weeks prior to their event. For more information about the Experimental Design Program and to find the online applications for each program visit http://www.semsuccess.org/SO_Expdesign.html.

The Experimental Design Program can not be a success without the support of the community. Anyone with a SEM background that is interested in serving as a project mentor or judge should sign up to volunteer now by visiting http://www.semsuccess.org/volunteer.html. Anyone who believes in what we are doing int his program should "Donate Your Lunch Money, to we can help more students by visiting our Individual Donor page at http://www.semsuccess.org/donation.html.