Mentors are astronomers or graduate students who are willing to spend a few hours a month helping RBSE teachers during the following year implement the program in their local classroom. We expect that mentors will not step far from their role as research scientists in this capacity. Typical duties might include providing help in downloading data sets, insight into additional research topics from the preselected data sets, interpretation of findings, and assistance in publishing results. Students in Georgia Using the RBSE solar telescope. CT The summer of 2000 marks the final workshop of the original RBSE grant.
Efforts are underway to secure continuing funding for the project.
We anticipate RBSE changing in some ways as well, consistent with feedback from our external evaluator. Participants will choose between solar astronomy or nighttime astronomy, rather than having to learn about all three RBSE research areas as they do now. If all goes well, the refined RBSE program will premiere in the summer of 2001.