Bridges with engineering to teach authentic inquiry-based mathematics and science courses to middle and high school students

The paper presents the development and implementation of National Science Foundation funded GK-12 Fellows Project STEP, which is designed to educate, nurture, and facilitate engineering, and science and technology education for university students (ten graduates and three undergraduate) into becoming educators and bringing their experiences and knowledge into six secondary schools in Cincinnati. Seven University of Cincinnati (UC) faculty members, fifteen secondary school teachers, and a dedicated graphics/Web developer have worked in teams with the graduate and undergraduate fellows to design, develop, and implement hands-on activities and technology-driven inquiry-based projects, which relate to the students' community issues, as vehicles to authentically teach STEM skills. The Fellows are trained to create and implement these activities by taking a new education course, and field practicuum. The paper presents how the project has evolved over the first year, the activities developed and implemented, and the findings from the whole experience.