1. NLT: a STEM course for upper secondary
Berenice Michels, Harrie Eijkelhof, Nelleke den Braber
RME conference
September , Boulder

2. Content What is NLT? Why is it developed? How is it developed?
What products are developed?
What research is ongoing?
What effects does NLT have?

3. What is Nature, Life and Technology (NLT)?
Elective interdisciplinary STEM course for upper secondary
For students who take chemistry and mathematics as well as physics and/or biology
Since 2007 in high schools (two ability levels: havo and vwo)
Modular: choice of 6 – 8 (havo) or 8 – 11 (vwo) modules from over 70 modules

4. Essential characteristics of NLT:
Interdisciplinary
Focus on interaction between Science and Technology (S&T)
Focus on the role of math in S&T
Focus on S&T studies and professions

5. Why is it developed?
To enhance the number of S&T students in Higher Education by giving science oriented 16+ students an authentic image of S&T, corresponding with current activities of active professional scientists
To enhance cross-disciplinary collaboration between high school science teachers
To enhance cross-disciplinary experiences for high school science students

6. How is it developed and how is quality secured?
Development of materials:
Cooperation between high school science teachers and scientific experts
Each module consists of student material and teacher material (including assessment tools)
Cyclic development process, resulting in certification of materials, meeting quality requirements

7. Expert check (content &didactics)
Development process
development
Pilot in school
testversion
Expert check (content &didactics)
Final version
Evaluation report
Quality certificate

8. How is it developed and how is quality secured?
Implementation on schools:
Teacher teams, consisting of three or more teacher from different disciplines
Enhancing ownership, by stimulating teachers to engage in developing or testing materials

9. What are the products of the development?
73 context based modules (25 havo, 48 vwo)
45% of all upper secondary schools offering NLT, 16% of all upper secondary science students take NLT
10 Regional Support Centres (RSC):
cooperation between universities, polytechnic colleges and high schools
developing and maintaining materials
supporting NLT-teachers, providing PD programs

10. Examples of modules Using GIS for safety Epidemics in agriculture
Making and tasting bread
Surviving in the International Space Station
Blue energy: energy from salt and sweet water
Forensic science
Driving and drinking
Measuring the Milky Way
Medicin production and consumption
Dynamic modelling
Molecules of life *
Food or fuel? *
Dynamic earth *
Care for your heart
Molecular gastronomy *
Lab on a chip
Data collection and interpretation
Biosensors
* available in English

11. Modules Take a look at one or more of the translated modules
Do you think these modules could be used in your country / lessons? Adaptations?
Do you recognize the role of mathematics in this module? How could it be intensified?
Take a look at the overview of the other modules
Which would be of most interest for you to be translated into English? Why

12. Develop your own module 
Yellowstone, Geiser Basin
Boulder Creek Playground

13. Starting a new module Context: central question or sub themes
Concepts and subjects involved
Activities
Expert input
Check the certification criteria

14. What research activities are currently ongoing?
Quantitative analyses of characteristics of NLT students
Qualitative analyses of experiences of schools, teachers and students with NLT
research into interdisciplinarity aspects of NLT
analysis of the effect of NLT on the way students select an undergraduate program

15. What are the effects of NLT?
NLT teacher teams on nearly all NLT-schools
NLT-students experience more coherence among science disciplines
students recognize that NLT introduces them to S&T studies and professions, and that NLT impacts their choice of undergraduate program
RSC's extend activities of RSC to other science subjects

16. ... shows me the coherence among science disciplines (%)

17. The methods in … are comparable to those in other science disciplines (1 = total disagree, 4 = total agree)

18. Student reactions
[In NLT I discovered] that math is about more than high school lessons
[I advise students to take NLT] because it is about the connection between different sciences and technology, so it is more like the real world
[NLT is] approaching [a problem] from different perspectives, multiple subjects together

19. How did NLT help you in selecting your undergraduate program
How did NLT help you in selecting your undergraduate program? (N = 182, in %)

20. Which activities took place during your NLT course
Which activities took place during your NLT course? Activities related to orientation on study programs and professions (N = 182, in %)

21. Student reactions
NLT showed me my favorite way of learning, which didn't influence the choice of my major, but did influence the choice of my university.
It makes the choice of an undergraduate program more difficult: you get in touch with a broad scope of S&T programs, so you might end up with 3 programs you'd like to choose.
[…] so, NLT is the most important course I took. I am going to study Physics, astronomy & mathematics, which I wouldn't have done without NLT: Physics in high school is (…) not challenging enough. NLT gave me a scent of real physics

22. More information: