01.23.2012
, DETROIT
Nissan Sets “A World in Motion” With SAE Foundation
In 2007, Nissan CEO Carlos Ghosn announced a $1.5 million pledge to the Society of Automotive Engineers (SAE) Foundation to develop a Primary Curriculum for the “A World in Motion” (AWIM) program. The program is targeted specifically to students in the kindergarten through 3rd grades because national statistics indicate that many children fall behind and lose interest in science in the crucial 4th and 5th grades. SAE used Nissan’s donation to create four books and teaching guides that were pilot-tested and fine-tuned in U.S. elementary school classrooms.
At the 2012 North American Auto Show in Detroit, a press conference was held to show the results prior to the AWIM program’s official rollout in the United States and Canada. Attending the press conference were 100 students from local Detroit-area schools, along with NTCNA Vice President Bob Sump, SAE Foundation Board of Trustees Chairman, Mark Johnson, and fourth-grade teacher Amanda Blake, who has been piloting the program at Nashville’s Glenview Elementary School.
Students from kindergarten through fourth grade demonstrated the fresh, exciting, literature-based approach to science and problem-solving using books from the program with titles such as The Three Little Pigs’ Sledding Adventure and The Rocket Age Takes Off.
“If we can introduce students to the wonders of science or the usefulness of math in their early years, we may nurture a passion that will stay with them forever,” said Sump. “Programs such as this may help encourage more young men and women to pursue careers in science and engineering – careers that are essential for industries like ours.”