Vampire Power and STEM Interests for Middle Schoolers Out to Save the World (MSOSW)
Abstract: Classroom teachers and students will present project outcomes via video and audio conferencing software and through videos created by the students. Students have calculated their carbon footprints and will report amounts being wasted with stand-by power. STEM dispositions and career interest findings based on a semantic differential survey focusing on STEM areas, an attitude toward science instrument, a science content survey and a vampire power survey will be reported and discussed after students have be released at remote sites. Project personnel will focus on first treatment-year findings from instruments that have been used to measure student attitudes toward science and science careers. A comparison of student dispositions with those of preservice teachers who are soon to be the instructors of these kinds of students, will be presented.