The most important features of PGSS:"Being in a community where everyone is passionate about what they're learning and about what they're teaching. All the professors, lab instructors, and TAs seemed so in love with their subjects, and so excited to share the knowledge. It has been so wonderful being in community where everyone treats learning as a gift rather than a requirement."
"I was even inspired to pursue a career in Computer Science, a field intimidatingly dominated by men. All in all, I can say that these past five weeks changed my life at the time, changed the course of my future, and changed the way I view my past... This priceless experience was, in fact, priceless. Thanks to organizations like the Philadelphia School District, the Pennsylvania Governor's School for the Sciences was free for all students. This allowed everyone, from all financial backgrounds, from all parts of the state, to have an equal opportunity to participate in the program. To me, this made a huge difference. Who would have known that I would be close friends with the rigid Republican from 'Pennsyl-tucky' and the die-hard vegan and liberal from the Philadelphia area? Who would have known that all of my friends came from immensely different backgrounds, both culturally and financially?"
"PGSS encourages collaboration (the instructors even told us to write who we collaborated with on our homework sets), so I was able to work with almost every one of my 55 peers. Some of the most interesting conversations that I had during the program were in the basement of our dorm building, while I was working on physics or biology homework with my friends. The common thread that linked all 56 individuals in the program was a love for science. There was no social or financial hierarchy."
What are the most important features of PGSS? - "The most important feature was that the homework was purposefully challenging so you were forced to ask for help or collaborate with other students. Each of us are leaders and we all think of ourselves as being smart. We are used to being the smartest one in the room. By breaking down this idea of ourselves, we are able to learn to listen to one another. We are all leaders but this program has taught me that it is okay to follow too."
- "The people here where very important: TA's and students."
- "The most important features of PGSS was the lack of grades which contributed to collaboration, the interesting PSETS and subjects that were not conventionally taught in school, the last week where we could work solely on the team project which was nice and allowed focus, and the supportive student body. I also liked the amount of unstructured time as well as the scheduled social events every night."
- "The learning environment of PGSS was for sure the most important. Unlike school, PGSS fosters true and honest collaborative learning where everyone benefits off of each other. PGSS also allows for extreme academic challenges without the crippling stress of grades or examinations that allows for a deeper level of learning and understanding the content."
|
|