Positively aging (TM): Choices and changes creating interdisciplinary middle school teaching materials using examples from geriatrics and gerontology

Positively Aging(TM) is an educational partnership developed between the Ag ing Research and Education Center (AREC) at the University of Texas Health Science Center at San Antonio (UTHSCSA) and the Northside Independent Schoo l District (NISD) in San Antonio, Texas. For the past six years, the scient ists of the AREC have collaborated with middle school educators from NISD t o produce instructional materials that work toward achieving the National I nstitutes of Health (NIH) goals to (a) improve the quality of math anal sci ence education in public schools, and (b) promote an understanding of behav iors that increase the risk of disease. Positively Aging(TM) has three long -term goals: (1) to provide effective teaching materials for math and scien ce curricula based on examples fr om the gerontologic sciences; (2) to help students learn to make critical, life-determining decisions for extending and enhancing their lives; and (3) to help students develop a sensitivity t o the needs and concerns of the aging population. In its current form, Posi tively Aging(TM) consists of 12 interdisciplinary units with 276 teaching a ctivities and lessons. Using qualitative and quantitative methods, the Posi tively Aging(TM) teaching materials care currently being evaluated under a Science Education Partnership Award from the National Center for Research R esources. Preliminary data suggest that middle school students experience a shift toward a more positive outlook on aging after using the teaching mat erials. This article describes the background, evolution, structure, and cu rrent evaluation strategies for the Positively Aging(TM) teaching materials and program.