The NewsHour with Jim Lehrer – Science Unit Study

The NewsHour with Jim Lehrer received a three-year National Science Foundation grant from Fall 2003 to Spring 2006 to develop, produce and air science reports during the regularly televised news program. The Online NewsHour Web site extends the reach of the science reports by housing the broadcast transcripts of the science reports, as well as information, graphics, and links that enhance the televised segments. In addition, EXTRA, a feature within the Web site designed for teachers and students, provides lesson plans and resources to support the use of the science segments in the classroom. NewsHour producers contracted with ROCKMAN ET AL to conduct the external evaluation of the grant activities. The purpose of the evaluation was to assist the Science Unit in understanding the impact of the science reports and online resources and assessing the value and impact of the resources to their various audiences. The evaluation team designed and implemented three focused studies. Study 1 was designed to gather data on the science segments aired periodically during the nightly newscast from a broad television and radio audience; Study 2 gathered face-to-face, in-depth feedback from focus group participants on the science segments and the Web site, Online NewsHour; Study 3 focused on the usability and value of the EXTRA online science lessons as science curriculum resources for high school teachers and students. The appendix of this report includes the survey instruments used in the study.