NORTHERN CALIFORNIA PARTNERS IN NEUROSCIENCE EDUCATION WIN AWARD TO 37TH SOCIETY FOR NEUROSCIENCE MEETING IN SAN DIEGO
For immediate release.
NR-25-07 (10/31/07) For more information, please call DeeDee Clendenning at (202) 962-4000 or dclendenning@sfn.org
NORTHERN CALIFORNIA PARTNERS IN NEUROSCIENCE EDUCATION
WIN AWARD TO 37TH SOCIETY FOR NEUROSCIENCE MEETING IN SAN DIEGO
Deborah Apple, a teacher at Raoul Wallenberg High School and Naveen Nagarajan, PhD, of University of California at San Francisco (UCSF), have received a Neuroscientist-Teacher partner Travel Award to attend the Society for Neuroscience (SfN) annual meeting in San Diego, Calif., November 3-7.
This partnership program in neuroscience of one neuroscientist and one teacher, sponsored by SfN, recognizes 13 pairs for their commitment and innovative approach to bringing neuroscience into the classroom.
"I am planning to expand the partnership between UCSF bio-medical researchers and Wallenberg's Bio-Medical Academy," says Apple, who is her school's Biomedical Academy Coordinator and an 11th and 12th grade math and science teacher. "This exciting area of study is especially interesting to students as they learn about ways to improve health and plan for careers in medicine."
This past school year, Apple incorporated neuroscience in the curriculum for her 11th grade students through a program based in basic and experimental neuroscience. She met Nagarajan at a neuroscience outreach program at UCSF and Nagarajan supported Apple in bringing neuroscience to the classroom. They completed two sessions, which covered nerve cell biophysics and neurodevelopmental disorders.
Attending the meeting will help Apple to learn about the different fields and technologies in neuroscience. With Nagarajan's help, Apple's future education plans include teaching about the impact of experience and childhood learning on brain function and the effects of drugs, smoking, and alcohol on brain activity.
"It was a wonderful experience to talk to young minds about basic neuroscience," says Nagarajan. "Students were highly motivated to grasp and ask questions about every aspect of neuroscience I delivered to the class. I am sure that delivering neuroscience to students not only provides a fundamental framework to shape their future for neuroscience but is also beneficial to invite young minds to take up a science career."
In addition to receiving unlimited access to the meeting's thousands of sessions and forums, the awardees have been invited to attend a number of special events. Apple, Nagarajan, and the other educators will be honored at a meeting of SfN's Public Education and Communication Committee.
The goal of the award is to further partnerships between research and educational communities. "The travel award program is an example of the Society's commitment to explaining basic scientific processes -- how research leads to discovery and how discovery leads to treatments, cures, and healthy choices at all stages in life," says Society for Neuroscience Public Education Director Colleen McNerney. "This program provides encouragement and visibility to the Society's members to embrace and contribute to this work, demonstrating the value of scientists and teachers working in partnership."
Roughly 30,000 scientists from around the world will attend SfN's annual meeting to present and discuss the latest advances in neuroscience research. The meeting will feature more than 16,400 presentations covering topics ranging from stem cell research to basic human behavior.
The Society for Neuroscience, with more than 38,000 members, is the largest organization of researchers and clinicians studying the brain and nervous system.
