Kids get math, science basics from U. 'lincs'

Recent studies by the National Education Goals Panel have indicated that American school children are lagging considerably behind their foreign counterparts in math and science. Directors of PENNlincs, a two-year-old mentoring program which focuses on assisting young people in these areas of study, have said that the increased enrollment in and enthusiasm for the program are positive signs for the nation's future. PENNlincs, the brainchild of Graduate School of Education graduates Jean Roberts and Pamela Freyd, is designed to stimulate children to get excited about math, science and engineering. Once a week, University students devote an hour of their time to go to local elementary schools and work as mentors with groups of four or five young people. They are given the freedom to design their own curriculum, formulate hands-on experiments and plan overnight trips to places like the Philadelphia Zoo and the Franklin Institute. Generally, the same group of three to seven students go to the same school each week. The program's directors said they hope that the elementary school students will learn and retain more in this atmosphere which is less rigid and stressful than the normal classroom setting. "The focus of the program is on introducing kids to science," Roberts said. "We want them to understand that normal people work in the field, people who share, people who like to inquire . . . The children learn to seriously do science in a fun way." When PENNlincs began in 1989, there were only six mentors serving two area schools. Today, the number of participating schools has increased to over 13 and the number of mentors has soared to over 100. Mentors have said they are optimistic about the results of their efforts. They said that they are trying to show their pupils the things which most impressed them when they were younger. "I remember watching the same kinds of experiments when I was a kid," said College junior Michael Stauffer, while preparing an experiment dealing with the senses of taste and smell. "And, they made a real impact on me." The feedback from teachers at the participating grammar schools has also been positive. "I think it's a wonderful opportunity for the students to do hands-on things with people who really know what they're doing," said Janet Krevenass, a science teacher at the Albert Greenfield Public School on 22nd and Chestnut streets. "And, after a draining day of teaching, I've found it very energizing to watch as well." But, most importantly, the children say they get a lot out of the program. "I thought it was excellent," said Naomi Miller, a fifth-grade student at the Greenfield School. "I had a lot of fun and the people who came really taught us a lot." But the learning process is not just a one-way street. Mentors say they feel they benefit from the program as well. "Teaching helps you to understand things better," said College junior David Maleh. "The kids have fun, you have fun . . . it's just nice to see them walk away with a smile on their faces." An additional research component adds extra depth to the PENNlincs program. The mentor-student interactions are recorded and analyzed in an attempt to understand the processes involved in learning and mentoring. The results of this research will be placed in a database which will be made available to the local school board. Similarly, school board data will be shared with PENNlincs so that the program's directors can track students' progress as they enter high school. In this way, directors said they can see if mentoring does, in fact, have a significant effect on the children's enthusiasm for and learning of math and science. Roberts said that she hopes PENNlincs will serve as a model for other universities to follow and bring an improvement in national math and science abilities. "It's so great to tap the cream of the crop," Roberts said. "And, if other top schools did the same, imagine the results."

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