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Discovery Opens Science Competition to Teachers

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Discovery Education and 3M this month opened up entries for its 2008 Young Scientist Challenge, a science competition for students, and recently followed it up by adding on a Teacher Challenge, which will pit educators against one another for prizes, a trip to Washington, DC, and the title of Discovery Educator Network Science Teacher of the Year.

Last year's competition for students awarded $100,000 in prizes for "young scientists" based on papers they'd written on science fair projects they had produced during the year, including a top prize of $20,000. This year, the first-place prize will be a $50,000 savings bond. Other prizes include cash, plaques, medals, trips, and opportunities to appear on television.

For the first Science Teacher Challenge of the competition (AKA "Young Scientist Challenge: Teacher Edition"), teachers will vie for one of five slots in an all-expenses-paid trip to Washington, DC for the finals. The finals will include individual and team challenges in front of a live audience. The winner will be named "Science Teacher of the Year" and will also receive an as-yet-undisclosed prize.

Teacher wishing to participate in the competition must be members of the Discovery Educator Network, a community of some 30,000 educators from around the world. The entry period for both the Young Scientist Challenge and the Teacher Challenge ends June 15. Further rules and information can be found here.

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About the author: David Nagel is the executive editor for 1105 Media's online education technology publications, including THE Journal and Campus Technology. He can be reached at [email protected].

Proposals for articles and tips for news stories, as well as questions and comments about this publication, should be submitted to David Nagel, executive editor, at [email protected].

About the Author

David Nagel is the former editorial director of 1105 Media's Education Group and editor-in-chief of THE Journal, STEAM Universe, and Spaces4Learning. A 30-year publishing veteran, Nagel has led or contributed to dozens of technology, art, marketing, media, and business publications.

He can be reached at [email protected]. You can also connect with him on LinkedIn at https://www.linkedin.com/in/davidrnagel/ .


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