2009 Premier Curriculum Award for K-12 Engineering
Congratulations to Susan Powers and Jan DeWaters of Clarkson University, for their original middle school curricular unit entitled,
Energy Systems and Solutions.
In this unit, students explore energy production and consumption issues from everyday life,
learning about our nation's energy situation and basic energy and physics concepts. Through engaging
activities and the engineering problem solving approach, students apply what they've learned to a
real-life project that reduces fossil fuel use. The curriculum is based on work supported by the
National Science Foundation under grant nos. DUE-0428127 and DGE-0338216, from the NSF GK-12
and Distinguished Teaching Scholars programs.
Click here to link to winner of the 2009 Premier Curriculum Award for K-12 Engineering
Click here for press release (PDF)
Click here for the award announcement in the NSTA Reports magazine (PDF)
Click here for the award announcement in ASEE's Prism magazine (PDF)
Click here to see photos from the award ceremony
Terry Carter for his seventh-grade Laser Light Properties: Protecting the Mummified Troll! unit. Terry is a technology and math middle school teacher who created this curriculum through the Vanderbilt University Research Experiences for Teachers Program in Nashville, TN.
Travis M. Doll for his eighth-grade Sound Booth Construction activity. Travis is a graduate student in the Electrical and Computer Engineering Department who created this activity as part of Drexel University's NSF GK-12 Program, in Philadelphia, PA.
If you have K-12 engineering lessons, activities or curricular units that are not yet online, you can publish them in the TeachEngineering digital library. All TeachEngineering curricula are automatically cataloged on the Engineering Pathway. TeachEngineering curricula must be complete documents providing full instructions for teaching activities, lessons or curricular units, and a more extensive review process is required. Learn more about publishing on TeachEngineering.org.
Return to this page for 2012 award requirements and deadlines.
Premier Curriculum Award for K-12 Engineering
- Do you believe that engineering design helps harness the imagination and creativity of youngsters?
- Have you developed curriculum to teach engineering to K-12 students?
- Have you found a way that makes your pre-college students "get" science or math concepts by learning through hands-on, real-world engineering?
Announcing the Premier Curriculum Award for K-12 Engineering - a biennial international award recognizing creation of outstanding K-12 engineering curriculum.
Submit your original and creative high-quality, classroom-tested engineering lessons and activities. Winning curriculum must be made available,
free of charge, to all teachers and students through the
TeachEngineering and the Engineering Pathway digital libraries.
- K-12 curriculum must be original, accurate, hands-on, classroom-tested and pervasively incorporate engineering.
- Curriculum must be submitted by a K-12 educator. (Award goes to the educator, not any organization to which s/he may be employed.)
- Submitted activities may require the purchase of materials and/or equipment; however, the winning curriculum itself must be made available free of charge.
- For the first two awards, curriculum created by people at the institutions associated with the founding of TeachEngineering and Engineering Pathway are not eligible.
- Curriculum may not be submitted more than twice.
- Submissions must be in English, in digital format (MS Word or Adobe PDF), and submitted by email.
- A submission may be a unit, lesson(s) or activity(ies), but not any other type of learning resource (such as a java script), unless it is part of a unit, lesson or activity that meets the minimum curricular component requirement for the TeachEngineering digital library. See activities, lessons or units.
- Activity: This is what the students "do" that helps them achieve the lesson and activity learning objectives. An activity document includes a materials list and procedures (among many other curricular components). An activity may be stand-alone or part of a lesson.
- Lesson: A lesson provides learning instruction and includes background, introduction and assessment information for teachers (among many other curricular components). A lesson's one or more associated activities are provided in separate linked activity documents.
- Unit: A unit is a longer-term, theme-based learning experience composed of multiple lessons and/or activities.
- Submissions must include the minimum required curricular components for activities, lessons or units.
- While it is not required for your initial submission, to save time later (if you become a finalist), you may submit your curricuum using the TeachEngineering blank template(s).
- If your submitted curriculum is available online, click here to catalog it on the Engineering Pathway.
- As this award is restricted to curricular activities, lessons or units, K-12 courseware developers may want to submit to the Premier Courseware Award.
Prepare a cover letter that includes the following information:
- Provide your name, address, email, phone, teaching subjects(s) and grade level(s), school affiliation(s).
- List the activity(ies), lesson(s) or unit you are submitting.
- Provide a brief summary of how engineering is part of your curriculum.
- Describe your classroom testing using this curriculum; include a summary of your results, including when and where testing was done, and with how many students. If available, provide evidence that demonstrates student learning outcomes benefits (data and/or anecdotal) and a description of the submitted curriculum's adoption for classroom use beyond its testing location.
- Include a statement affirming that the curriculum you submit is original and created by you.
- Include a statement indicating your willingness to publish your curriculum in the TeachEngineering and Engineering Pathway digital libraries for free if you are named a finalist.
- Conclude with your electronic signature and date.
- Submissions will be evaluated against meeting all submission requirements, and addressing the review criteria included in the following rubrics: K-12 Content Review Rubric (pdf) and Engineering Content Review Rubric (pdf).
- The award is presented by TeachEngineering and Engineering Pathway.
- The winner receives a plaque or trophy; a $1,000 cash award; recognition at ASEE, NSTA or ITEA conferences; recognition on the TeachEngineering and Engineering Pathway digital library websites; and $1,500 towards registration, travel and accommodations to attend one annual U.S. STEM education conference (ASEE, NSTA, ITEA) within a year of receiving the award.
Submission Process
1. Prepare your original curriculum, taking into consideration the eligibility,
submission requirements and review criteria described above.
2. Complete a cover letter that includes the information listed above.
3. By October 15, 2008, email the letter and curriculum (in MS Word or Adobe PDF format) to the award submission coordinator.
4. By November 17, 2008, four finalists are selected and notified.
5. By January 16, 2009, finalists must convert their curricula into the appropriate TeachEngineering template(s).
6. By February 28, 2009, a winner is selected and notified.
Please direct any questions to the award coordinator.
