Video distribution to schools gives K-12 students a lesson in engineering careers

Henry Baumgartner
ASME NEWS

ASME's distribution of videos to schools continues to reach ever-widening numbers of schoolchildren who are learning about the value of engineering as a career.

The goal of the videos — many of which were produced by ASME's Board on Public Information in collaboration with ASME's Board on Pre-College Education and distributed with support from the ASME Foundation — is to get students in grades K-12 interested in engineering as a possible career, and to see the relationship among math, science, engineering and technology.

The videos are accompanied by lesson plans, posters, handouts and other presentation materials. At present, limited numbers are being distributed free to school districts. But materials are also available for purchase through ASME Information Central at (973) 882-1167 or (800) 843-2763.

ASME members are encouraged to purchase copies of these videos to show to students at their local schools, or to use them to illustrate talks they may give in the classroom and then donate them to the school for future use.

For elementary schools, there is a 12-minute video called "Engineering is for Everyone," which comes with a teaching kit.

This 12-minute elementary school video shows youngsters that math and science are fun and interesting.

That video is designed to show young students that math and science are fun and interesting. Viewers follow a young girl and her friends through a series of activities — on a playground, talking to engineers at work — that depict life from a youngster's perspective.

Since 1992, when distribution of "Engineering is for Everyone" began, 4,602 schools have received copies and more than 10 million students have watched it.

"Mothers of Invention" is aimed at middle school students and was issued in a revised version several years ago. Those revisions were made with input from the Girl Scouts of America.

The 16-minute video, which comes with a teacher's guide, focuses on significant technical inventions by women and people of color throughout American history, up to the present day.

This video is aimed at middle school students and was made with input from the Girl Scouts of America.

The new version was distributed to 3,000 schools in 1999 and 2000, and has been viewed by more than 1.2 million students. Another 1,000 schools are getting that video this year.

For high school students, there is "Career Encounters: Mechanical Engineering." That 12-minute video uses interviews with mechanical engineers, who talk about what they do to introduce the variety of careers available within the field. It comes with a teacher's guide, "Tools of Discovery," which contains information about machines and motion in the physical sciences.

Since 1992, when distribution of "Career Encounters" began, more than 7 million high school students in over 4,000 schools have seen the video.

Members may obtain copies of the videos by contacting their ASME regional office. Each office maintains a lending library of videos. Or they may be purchased through Information Central by calling (800) 843-2763 or, from outside the United States, (973) 882-1167, or e-mail infocentral@asme.org.

Teachers who are interested in making use of any of these videos in their classes can contact Melissa Naidus of Video Outreach directly, at (212) 683-7301 or via e-mail at videoout@aol.com.

This teacher's guide accompanies a high school video that uses interviews with mechanical engineers who tell what they do.

ASME also offers several other videos to members for use in their local schools. One of them is "CareerPath: Mechanical Engineering," aimed at high school and college students. The viewer is taken through the workday of 18 mechanical engineers, who explain what they consider to be the most important aspects of their education and working life and how they made the transition from school to work.

The Integrated Design Engineering Activity Series (IDEAS), a collection of math, science and technology projects for middle schools, is also packaged with a set of three videos on structures, waterwheels and tops.

The Career Path video and the IDEAS project collection may be obtained through ASME's Information Central.

Several new ASME videos, all aimed at middle school students, are currently in production, and should be ready at the end of this year or early in 2002.

One video will focus on the 20th century's 10 greatest achievements in mechanical engineering, as determined by a poll of ASME members, which gave rise to a series that appeared in Mechanical Engineering magazine last year.

Another will highlight the contributions of mechanical engineers to music, theater and sculpture. Both videos will accompany Web sites with materials specifically for engineers and teachers to use in the classroom.

To obtain more information, visit www.asme.org/educate/k12 or call Theresa Oluwanifise at (212) 591-8131, e-mail oluwanifiset@asme.org.

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