Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Office of Engineering Outreach Programs
Building 1-123, 77 Massachusetts Avenue, Cambridge 02139
617-253-8052 oeop@mit.edu
THE NEED
Despite the benefits of economic advancement, professional creativity and career growth, students from local urban communities are not being prepared to enter the technical professions. In collaboration with families, schools, community organizations and MIT, MSBP provides participants with critical academic support and blends it with a passion for one of the greatest pastimes, baseball.
Intrinsic interests typically lead individuals to set more challenging goals in the domain of their interests. Challenging goals, if channeled properly, motivate an individual to achieve said goals. High motivation levels, in turn, have been associated with academic achievement, resilience, and persistence.
On these principles of interests and relevancy, we believe we can foster motivation for, and achievement in, mathematics and science for urban male middle school students, a population that is not typically associated with high academic achievement. The MIT Science of Baseball Program (MSBP) aims to achieve this objective.
