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Duke Dawson, Science Consultant
with Debbie Bastian; Worcester, Massachusetts
 "I
remember chemistry classes where we’d get nine-page protocols of
what the experiments were, and I’d do every step and the liquid
would turn blue and… I’d have no idea what I just did. I was
doing “hands-on” science because I was touching things, but
it just made no connection to me. It dawned on me in grad school that
the inquiry approach really boils down to letting students have choices — letting
them choose the materials or choose how to use the materials, that makes
all the difference.”
School at a Glance:
Goddard School of Science and Technology
Worcester, MA
Grades: K-6
Enrollment: 561
Ethnicity:
48% Hispanic
37% White
11% Asian
4% African American
Percentage of students receiving free or reduced-price lunch:
85% versus a state average of 29%
Duke Dawson earned his B.A. and Ph.D. in biology, and was en route to
becoming a research scientist specializing in psychobiology — a
field he playfully describes as “cutting up rats’ heads and
removing their brains” — when he decided it wasn’t for
him. Instead, Duke took a job at the New England Science Center
in Worcester, Massachusetts, a small museum with a small staff, which
meant his job
description was pretty open ended. “Some days I’d be doing
live snake shows, some days I’d be building exhibits, but as the
years went on,” explains Duke, “my job evolved into being
the person who developed programs for teachers.” He now serves as
a science consultant to the Worcester school district, and teaches
classes at Anna Marie College and Clark University.
For the video, Duke
worked with Debbie Bastian’s fifth graders at
the Goddard School of Science and Technology. Now in her tenth
year in the classroom and second year as a fifth-grade teacher, Debbie
is preparing
to return to school for her masters in education, with a focus in
reading.
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