UMass Boston

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Center of Science & Mathematics in Context (COSMIC)

The Center of Science and Mathematics in Context (COSMIC) is a joint venture of the College of Education and Human Development and the College of Science and Mathematics at UMass Boston. The mission of COSMIC is to advance high quality teaching and learning in science and math for all students at K-12, undergraduate, and graduate levels.

View the UMass Boston RISC Quarterly - featuring COSMIC's work in STEM education

Mission & Goals

  • We provide support for science and math teachers, through teacher training and professional development during their teaching career paths as novice teachers, experienced teachers, and teacher leaders.
  • We fevelop and evaluate standards-aligned, inquiry-based curriculum and assessment materials for K-12 and university science and math courses.
  • We provide professional development for K-12 and university science and math teachers to help them strengthen their pedagogical knowledge, content knowledge, and pedagogical content knowledge.
  • Strengthen the pipeline toward science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) careers, including teaching, from K-12 through the graduate level.
  • We conduct research studies on the effectiveness of our interventions on high quality teaching of science and math and its impact on student achievement.
  • We create partnerships with school districts, industry, government, and non-governmental organizations.