In order to serve the Merced County Office of Education, we Get S.E.T. Service Learning Team of UC Merced work to develop supplementary science curriculum for Merced County schools. The curriculum we create spans from basic math and physics to various aspects of technology, such as robotics and rocketry. The products we provide are highly valued by our client, and are a powerful tool for garnering scientific interest in Merced County youth.
Our team has distinguished itself in recent semesters through its dedication to hard work, focus on community outreach, and attentiveness to the needs of the client. In addition to fulfilling our primary task of developing curricula, our team has been very active in its implementation, resulting in numerous classroom visits and participation in academic events. Our multi-disciplinary team is composed of students who share a sincere appreciation for science and its applications. It is our desire to share this appreciation with the younger generation, and thus inspire them to pursue careers in science and engineering fields.
As technology and scientific knowledge progresses, society’s need for professional researchers and qualified technologists increases. The research and development market is ripe for a new generation of scientists, engineers, programmers, information architects and technicians to take the reins and ensure that the United States remains at the forefront of the technological revolution. We of Get S.E.T. realize that, despite the growing demand, science and science-related fields aimed towards research and development remain among the least popular choices of college students. Furthermore, we believe that the primary reason for the low number of students pursuing hard science in college is rooted in the primary and secondary educational levels, wherein the tools and opportunities needed to inspire life-long interest in science is lacking in many areas.
Due to persistent educational budget cuts and an ever-increasing list of state standards that they must ensure their students learn, California teachers are faced with the challenge of having to teach an increasing amount of material with rapidly dwindling resources. As a result, simply pursuing the state standards has become the foremost goal of many science teachers.
For the past several years, Get S.E.T. has been researching ways to supplement the efforts of Merced County teachers to allow them to present science in a fun and exciting way that will inspire life-long interest in students, while at the same time adhering to California’s state standards. Our design process and methods are being continually revised and refined as the circumstances and needs of our client change, but our guiding purpose remains the same: We are dedicated to designing labs and projects that districts can afford, teachers can teach, and to which students will be attracted.
