Teachers measure parts with electronic micrometers in the "Pressroom Area" of Electron Energy Corp. as part of Project ARRMS - Achieving Rigor and Relevance in Math and Science - a program to make math and science instruction more relevant to students.
Unlike many other companies struggling through the recession, Electron Energy Corp. has been expanding its work force lately.
The East Hempfield Township magnet manufacturer has added about 25 workers in the past year, Kristina Connell, director of human resources, said.
One might think the company would have a glut of highly qualified workers from which to choose in these tough economic times, but filling the openings has been a challenge, Connell said.
"Many applicants are lacking basic math skills -- adding, subtracting and, especially, working with decimals and fractions," she said.
Some candidates also don't understand how to "do things in a certain order to get a specific result, an understanding that everything is a process and how to follow that process," she said.
On Friday, Electron took steps to improve the caliber of the local labor pool by welcoming 30 middle and high school teachers into its tidy Landisville plant, which produces rare earth magnets used in mine sweepers, cruise missiles and the aerospace industry.
The teachers spent the day at the plant as part of Project ARRMS -- Achieving Rigor and Relevance in Math and Science -- a partnership involving Lancaster Lebanon Intermediate Unit 13, 19 public school districts, five private schools, three colleges and local businesses.
The program, which is designed to make math and science instruction more rigorous and relevant to students, was established this summer by IU 13 with a $578,000 federal grant.
Participants are getting advanced instruction in math and science at Franklin & Marshall, Elizabethtown and Lebanon Valley colleges, then seeing how that knowledge is put into practice in real-life settings, such as Electron and other businesses.
After studying hypothesis testing, standard deviations, and statistics and probability earlier in the week, the teachers watched Electron workers use those skills in the design, manufacture and testing of magnets made to exacting standards.
They watched as quality-control leader Bonnie Johnson used a huge computer-controlled microscope to check hundreds of dimensions on a batch of thumb-sized magnets.
The teachers also learned about tolerances, measurement errors and hypothesis testing as they toured other areas of the plant and chatted with engineers, managers and laborers about their jobs.
The tour was inspiring, said Scott Miller, a Cocalico High School statistics, algebra and geometry teacher.
"A lot of times in the classroom you can give kids a book problem or even try to give them a real-world problem, but to actually be here and see people using this stuff that you're teaching in your classroom, that's a whole different twist," he said.
"It's going to give me just one more example to share that, hey, this stuff's important, and people do use it in the real world."
The training at LVC also opened Miller's eyes to a new way of teaching statistics using Pascal's triangle, he said.
"With kids, if they can't learn one way, you need to try another way, and this just gives me more tools to work with, a different way to present concepts," he said.
In addition to touring Electron Energy, the educators will learn how math and science are used in the pharmaceutical and insurance industries and how both subjects were integral to Pennsylvania's rich manufacturing history.
During the science portion of professional development, sponsored by F&M, the teachers will visit the Chesapeake Bay to study the relationship between water chemistry and quality and the diversity of life in freshwater ecosystems.
Other topics will include acid mine drainage and the biological consequences of coal mines, using the underground mine fires in Centralia as a case study in geology.
In all, teachers will get 80 hours of professional development this summer, followed by 24 hours of mentoring during the 2010-11 school year by coaches who will help them apply their new knowledge in the classroom.
The goal is to make math and science courses more challenging yet more accessible to students of all academic abilities.
In future years, the students' math and science skills will be assessed to determine if the curriculum tweaks have improved their knowledge base.
Depending on the availability of funding, the program will be expanded over the next two years to include more teachers at more schools.