CRISIS (Creative Resolutions of Impending Situations with Intelligent Solutions) is Duke TIP’s first summer residential program for current fifth and sixth graders in the 4th–6th Grade Talent Search. Through problem-based learning, CRISIS will build leadership and teamwork skills by asking students to assume the role of a professional on a research team, collaborating with team members to solve a community crisis. They will explore a field such as engineering, business, medicine and health while participating in leadership and development activities designed to help participants discover more about who they are and what they want to be.

What is Problem-based Learning?

CRISIS is unique in its utilizaiton of problem-based learning. Pioneered in medical school programs, problem-based learning actively engages students in constructing knowledge by

• allowing students to learn in the context of complex and multifaceted problems.  
• leading students to see the relevance of learning to future roles,
• building motivation for learning, and
• developing responsible, professional attitudes to complex societal problems.

The Current Crisis: Hurricane TIP

Over the past two decades, damage inflicted by hurricanes has increased exponentially, and the most vulnerable areas—coastal counties along the Gulf and Atlantic seaboards—are some of the country's fastest growing places. And new research shows that stronger hurricanes could become more normal as climate change continues.

From Katrina to Isabel to Sandy, hurricanes affect everyone in their path. Now, meteorologists are predicting that Hurricane TIP, expected to be a disastrous storm, will make landfall nearby, and participants must do their part as experts in their field to prepare for the storm.

Participants join peers on a college campus to:

• Study under TIP’s expert instructors as they build students’ confidence to take on the problem, encourage students, and stretch their understanding.
• Gain access to cutting edge computer technology.
• Utilize college science labs, library facilities, and instructional classrooms.
• Role-play and problem solve your way through hands-on activities.

Students participate in leadership development and team-building activities. Interactive games, role-play, and student-centered activities are facilitated by experienced college students. At the end of the week, students host an open house for families.