A r c h i v e d  I n f o r m a t i o n

Audience Approved by the JDRP/PEP for all secondary schools.

Description The purpose of the Scholars in the Schools (SIS) program is to improve humanities education by involving university and other scholars with a Ph.D. or ABD in a discipline of the humanities in classroom instruction, curriculum development, program enhancement, and staff development. The program places humanities scholars in secondary schools (grades 7-12) for long-term residencies, usually 60-100 days during the 180-day school calendar, for a one-to-three year period. The scholars work with a team of teachers in each school to bring about systemic change; the program is not one of enrichment.

SIS is both fixed and flexible: It has key elements which should be an integral part of every program, yet is flexible so that it responds to local needs and requirements. For example, at each site a team of teachers is identified; these teacher teams recruit and select the scholar, usually from within the same geographic area; the teacher team and scholar comprise the change agent. Together they determine the needs to be met and develop a detailed plan which is implemented during the pilot period. The program is locale-specific as well as transportable. SIS meets specific needs in particular settings. Other features include summer workshops, short programs for credit, local symposia, and statewide and regional institutes.

SIS should be perceived as a process and a partnership, one that brings about improvement in the quality of humanities education by enhancing the professionalization of teachers in the humanities and aiding them in continued development in their discipline. SIS also explores a variety of techniques to facilitate the acquisition of knowledge in the humanities by students with many levels of abilities. SIS also encourages the cooperation of a variety of constituents in a school district's community and the development of networks among its various components.

Requirements The program may be implemented by all secondary schools, public or private. Program materials include a 30-page handbook which describes a variety of activities that can occur in the program as well as a step-by-step guide to setting a SIS program in place. Additional materials from three model sites--urban, suburban, and rural--are also provided in the Project Sites Guidebook.

SIS is easily transported, replicated, and installed in various school sites. This is evidenced by its implementation in dozens of sites of many varieties such as rural (in an area with such a sparse population that two counties join together in a school district), large urban, inner-city, suburban areas, and sites in multiethnic and culturally and demographically diverse settings throughout the country since 1978.

SIS installation and maintenance averages $4,000-$10,000 per year, per school site, to pay scholar stipends, provide honoraria, tickets, transportation, curriculum materials, and such. The cost may be reduced by utilizing emeritus faculty and by universities donating scholar time. Funding for the program has been accomplished through a variety of partnerships among schools, foundations, corporations, and other sources.

Services Awareness materials are available at no cost. The Handbook, Project Sites Guidebook, and Video are available at nominal cost. Program staff are available (cost to be negotiated). Visitors are welcome to program sites, by appointment.

Contact

Ann M. Pescatello, Center for South Asia Studies, University of California-Berkeley, 865 Euclid Avenue, Berkeley, CA 94708. (510) 525-9611, FAX (510) 525-0940. E-Mail: a_pescate@inet.ed.gov

Developmental Funding: Federal CCH, local, and private.
JDRP No. 86-22 (7/9/86)
Recertified (10/31/87)

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