"A Head Start on Science" Goes International!

It began with an unexpected e-mail invitation to visit China, and in November 2007, Project Director Bill Ritz and his wife, Joyce, became guests of the China National Institute for Educational Research to share information about "A Head Start on Science" with Chinese educators, and to learn about the education of young children in that distant land. Our hostess in China, Associate Professor Wang Su, arranged a very comprehensive visit which included participation in a science education conference in Chengdu, visits to Kindergartens in Beijing, Chengdu, Shanghai, and Suzhou, and an array of tours to acquaint us with the very interesting people, places, and culture of China.

In March and April of 2008, a reciprocal journey by Professor Wang Su gave her opportunities to become better acquainted with science education in the US, as she participated in a broad variety of observations and meetings in southern California. These included visits to CSULB science education classes, to pre-K classes in Bellflower, Norwalk-La Mirada, and Long Beach as well as opportunities to meet with leaders of MESA, the Science Olympiad, and other US science education projects and centers. A major goal of these visits was that of establishing collaboration between "A Head Start on Science" and CNIER's Center for Science and Technology Education in Beijing, directed by Associate Professor Wang Su.

We are pleased to announce that a collaborative agreement between the two partners was signed in Long Beach on April 8, 2008. Agreements reached include:

• Translation into Chinese, and publication of the "A Head Start on Science" Teachers Guide in China;
• Establishment of an "A Head Start on Science" Dissemination and Training Center in Beijing, under the leadership of Professor Wang Su;
• Participation in "A Head Start on Science" Leadership Training by a group of about 10 Chinese educators on the campus of CSULB during Summer 2008;
• Sharing of implementation data by the Beijing Center with the CSULB project staff; and
• An initial Sino-American "A Head Start on Science" conference, to share research and other implementation data, tentatively scheduled to convene in Beijing in 2009, with a possible second international conference in Long Beach a year or so later.

Those of us at the National Center for Science in Early Childhood and the "A Head Start on Science" Project are excited about these opportunities to bring our people, schools, and cultures closer together, and hope that this is just the beginning of long-standing collaboration between our two great nations on behalf of "sense of wonder" science for young children.

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"A Head Start on Science" Leadership Workshop for Chinese Educators

From June 30 – July 5, 2008, a group of ten educators from the Peoples Republic of China convened in the MLSC Building on campus to participate in a 6-day workshop designed both to acquaint them with CSULB's "A Head Start on Science" program and to prepare them to assume leadership roles in the dissemination of this curriculum for pre-K children. At their request, visits to two early childhood programs were incorporated into the workshop schedule. While visiting the Brooklyn Early Education Center in East Los Angeles and the Escalon Head Start Center in Altadena later that same day, participants were able to observe "A Head Start on Science" demonstration lessons presented by Sue Bixler, one of our workshop instructors. Since a visit to Long Beach would not be complete without a "beach party," our visitors carpooled to Bolsa Chica Beach late Thursday afternoon to enjoy a typical southern California bonfire at the beach, replete with hot dogs, corn on the cob, and Ray Casillan's special "banana boat" treats. Throughout the workshop activities, language barriers were efficiently eliminated by our skilled workshop translator, Pamela Kwok. The workshop concluded on Saturday afternoon with a typical "A Head Start on Science" graduation luncheon featuring pizza and other goodies. Post-workshop evaluative comments were overwhelmingly positive and enthusiastic.

Under the leadership of Associate Professor Wang Su, Director of the Science and Technology Education Center in Beijing, the Chinese delegation plans to demonstrate "sense of wonder" science to teachers and parents in China, with an aim to establishing one or more Dissemination and Training Centers there. Meanwhile, the "A Head Start on Science" Teachers Guide, currently published by NSTA Press (affiliated with the National science Teaches Association) is being translated in China, with publication there currently scheduled to take place in March 2009.

The "A Head Start on Science" delegation included Kindergarten teachers, administrators and college instructors from Beijing, Nanjing, Changzhou, Hangzhou, Shenyang, and Lianyungang. From all indications, the participants will be returning to their native land enthusiastic about the "sense of wonder" approach to science for young children and eager to share their summer 2008 experiences with their colleagues. Current plans call for "A Head Start on Science" Centers to be established in Beijing, Nanking, Shanghai, as well as in the provinces of Liaoning and Shandong. Candid photographs taken during the workshop appear well to convey the essence of the workshop: hands-on science for young children is great for both adults and children alike!