THE YOUNG SCIENTISTS

What kind of science programs produce Westinghouse winners? Why are so many winners born overseas or to recent immigrants? What does their success foretell? Here, New York Times bureau chief Berger looks at schools where such students flourish, finding that the best programs teach not the study of science but methods of scientific research. These schools' students welcome more demanding courses and often find relief in settings where perseverance is valued. Many but not most are children of scientists and mathematicians. Most excel in more than one area (music, skating) and have appealing personalities—good prospects for the collaborative realities of ``science.'' All have received substantial support from their families—who often can't follow the essence of their children's exotic inquiries—and from teachers experienced in research and enamored of sharing its elegant processes. Doing science is the key—whether at the impressively organized Bronx Science, which offers a course in Westinghouse English and looks out for unhealthy ambition; at heartland state academies that offer space, time, and solidarity to select young citizens; or even at well-designed half- day programs. Why have 34 families produced more than one winner? Why do immigrants claim more than one in four places each year? Although ``guilt and obligation'' partly motivate children whose parents have made minor sacrifices, many come from cultures where industry is prized and education a privilege—and from families who have thrived on struggle. Berger, a Bronx Science graduate, clearly enjoyed this extended field trip, and he repeatedly makes connections between specific experiences (classifying butterflies, analyzing embryonic brain tissue) and the larger scientific enterprise: what kind of thinking is reflected, what skills have been learned. A report with major implications for every school in a country where only seven percent of high-school seniors can do college- level science work. Moreover, it's easily accessible to anyone who shares the author's exuberant respect for excellence and the sustaining wonders of scientific pursuit.