Supporting Middle School Teachers’ Implementation of STEM Design Challenges

We describe and analyze a professional development (PD) model that involved a partnership among science, mathematics and education university faculty, science and mathematics coordinators, and middle school administrators, teachers, and students. The overarching project goal involved the implementation of interdisciplinary STEM Design Challenges (DCs). The PD model targeted: (a) increasing teachers’ content and pedagogical content knowledge in mathematics and science; (b) helping teachers integrate STEM practices into their lessons; and (c) addressing teachers’ beliefs about engaging underperforming students in challenging problems. A unique aspect involved low‐achieving students and their teachers learning alongside each other as they co‐participated in STEM design challenges for one week in the summer. Our analysis focused on what teachers came to value about STEM DCs, and the challenges in and affordances for implementing DCs. Two significant areas of value for the teachers were students’ use of scientific, mathematical, and engineering practices and motivation, engagement, and empowerment by all learners. Challenges associated with pedagogy, curriculum, and the traditional structures of the schools were identified. Finally, there were four key affordances: (a) opportunities to construct a vision of STEM education; (b) motivation to implement DCs; (c) ambitious pedagogical tools; and, (d) ongoing support for planning and implementation. This article features a Research to Practice Companion Article . Please click on the supporting information link below to access.     

Urban Third Grade Teachers' Practices and Perceptions in Science Instruction with English Language Learners

The study examined relationships among key domains of science instruction with English language learning (ELL) students based on teachers' perceptions of their classroom practices (i.e., what they think they do) and actual classroom practices (i.e., what they are observed doing). The four domains under investigation included: (1) teachers' knowledge of science content; (2) teaching practices to support scientific understanding; (3) teaching practices to support scientific inquiry; and (4) teaching practices to support English language development during science instruction. The study involved 38 third‐grade teachers participating in the first‐year implementation of a professional development intervention aimed at improving science and literacy achievement of ELL students in urban elementary schools. Based on teachers' self‐reports, practices for understanding were related to practices for inquiry and practices for English language development. Based on classroom observations in the fall and spring, practices for understanding were related to practices for inquiry, practices for English language development, and teacher knowledge of science content. However, we found a weak to non‐existent relationship between teachers' self‐reports and observations of their practices.     

Enhancing Formative Assessment Practice and Encouraging Middle School Mathematics Engagement and Persistence

In the transition to middle school, and during the middle school years, students' motivation for mathematics tends to decline from what it was during elementary school. Formative assessment strategies in mathematics can help support motivation by building confidence for challenging tasks. In this study, the authors developed and piloted a professional development program, Learning to Use Formative Assessment in Mathematics with the Assessment Work Sample Method (AWSM) to build middle school math teachers' understanding of the characteristics of high‐quality formative assessment processes and increases their ability to use them in their classrooms. AWSM proved to be feasible to implement in the middle school setting. It improved teachers' practice of formative assessment, especially in their feedback practices, regardless of their pedagogical content knowledge at entry. Results from focus groups suggested that teachers were better able to implement ungraded practice and student self‐ and peer‐assessment after AWSM, and that students were more willing to engage in complex problem solving.     

Urban Elementary STEM Initiative

The new standards for K–12 science education suggest that student learning should be more integrated and should focus on crosscutting concepts and core ideas from the areas of physical science, life science, Earth/space science, and engineering/technology. This paper describes large‐scale, urban elementary‐focused science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) collaboration between a large urban school district, various STEM‐focused community stakeholders, and a research‐focused private university. The collaboration includes the development of an integrated STEM curriculum for grade K–5 with accompanying teacher professional development. This mixed‐methodology study describes findings from focus group interviews and a survey of teachers from Title I elementary schools. Findings suggest the importance of the following critical features of professional development: (a) coherence, (b) content focus, (c) active learning, (d) collective participation, and (e) duration to the success of large‐scale STEM urban elementary school reform     

Student Initiatives in Urban Elementary Science Classrooms

Student initiatives play an important role in inquiry‐based science with all students, including English language learning (ELL) students. This study examined initiatives that elementary students made as they participated in an intervention to promote science learning and English language development over a three‐year period. In addition, the study examined whether student initiatives were related to other domains of classroom practices. The study involved 70 third‐, fourth‐, and fifth‐grade classrooms with ELL students in six urban elementary schools. Results indicated that students generally made few, low‐quality initiatives. Student initiatives were generally not related to the other domains of classroom practices for grades 3 and 4, whereas initiatives were significantly related to almost all the other domains for grade 5. These results contribute to the knowledge base for fostering ELL students' initiatives in science classrooms.     

Enriching Science and Math Through Engineering

This case study reviewed the collaborative efforts of university engineers, teacher educators, and middle school teachers to advance sixth‐ and seventh‐grade students' learning through a series of project‐based engineering activities. This two‐year project enriched regular school curricula by introducing real‐world applications of science and mathematics concepts that expanded opportunities for creativity and problem‐solving, introduced problem‐based learning, and provided after‐school programming (for girls only) led by engineering students from the local university. This engineering education initiative showed significant impact on students' (1) confidence in science and mathematics; (2) effort toward science and mathematics; (3) awareness of engineering; and (4) interest in engineering as a potential career. With regard to gender, there were no significant differences between boys' and girls' responses. The girls' confidence in their own skills and potential, however, was significantly more positive than the boys' confidence in the girls. These results gave rise to new questions regarding mentor/mentee relationships and the overall effect of “girls only” mentoring.     

Relationship Between Professional Development,Teachers' Instructional Practices,and the Achievement of Students in Science and Mathematics

The purpose of this study was to examine the relationship between different types of professional development, teachers' instructional practices, and the achievement of students in science and mathematics. The types of professional development studied included immersion, examining practice, curriculum implementation, curriculum development, and collaborative work. Data regarding teachers' instructional practices and the amount of professional development were collected using teacher surveys. Ninety‐four middle school science teachers and 104 middle school mathematics teachers participated in the study. Student achievement was measured using eighth grade state science and mathematics achievement test data. Regression analyses suggested that for both science and mathematics teachers, examining practice and curriculum development were significantly related to the use of standards‐based instructional practices. Only curriculum development for mathematics teachers was significantly related to student achievement. Implications of results for the professional development of science and mathematics teachers are discussed.     

Investigating Essential Characteristics of Scientific Practices in Elementary Science Learning Environments: The Practices of Science Observation Protocol (P‐SOP)

Within the field of science education, there remains little agreement as to the definition and characteristics of classroom inquiry. The emerging emphasis on scientific practices in science education reform discourse is underpinned by a need to better articulate the constituent elements of inquiry‐based science. While a small number of observation‐based instruments have been developed to characterize science learning environments, few are explicitly aligned with theoretical constructs articulated by the National Research Council and/or have been substantially field‐tested. We employ a newly developed instrument, the Practices of Science Observation Protocol (P‐SOP), to investigate essential features of inquiry and scientific practices in which early learners engage in elementary classrooms. This research is part of a multiyear professional development program designed to support elementary teachers (K‐5) in a large, urban school district to learn to better engage students in scientific practices. Project teachers video‐recorded enacted science lessons (n = 124) which were used as data. Findings illustrate both essential features of inquiry and scientific practices observed in elementary classrooms, as well as establish the P‐SOP as a valid and reliable observation protocol. These findings have important implications for the design of elementary science learning environments and associated research and development efforts in the field.     

Science Camp as a Transformative Experience for Students,Parents, and Teachers in the Urban Setting

This paper reports on creative partnerships to create learning communities to benefit students, parents, and teachers in the urban setting. Science Camp is a university day camp offering problem‐based science exploration for urban middle school students and an introduction to college life. For parents it is an opportunity to learn about college opportunities for their children and to gather information about funding sources. For middle school science teachers and preservice teachers it is a learning laboratory for conducting problem‐based learning in the urban setting. The findings describe the effects of the learning communities on the transformation of students, parents, preservice teachers, and in‐service teachers.     

Teaching Science in Higher Education: Faculty Professional Development and Barriers to Change

The focus of this research was to better understand the change processes necessary for university science teaching reform to be successful. The professional development processes involved faculty cognitive perceptions of learning, teaching skills, and pedagogical knowledge, as well as faculty culture in teaching science courses. A series of faculty development programs were conducted at nine U.S. locations to explore, develop strategies, and implement changes in science classrooms. A review of research and these professional development experiences provided a base to carry out research activities related to understanding change in science faculty. Faculty participants in the program from 30 institutions were selected to be involved in the study. Ethnographic and case study approaches were used to collect and analyze data. Many faculty members encountered in this study had conceptions of the change process that inhibited successful action. These research efforts provide a predictive model for assisting faculty change and help determine which faculty professional development efforts may be successful in overcoming barriers to change in undergraduate science classrooms.     

The Relationship of Teacher‐Facilitated,Inquiry‐Based Instruction to Student Higher‐Order Thinking

Commissions, studies, and reports continue to call for inquiry‐based learning approaches in science and math that challenge students to think critically and deeply. While working with a group of middle school science and math teachers, we conducted more than 100 classroom observations, assessing several attributes of inquiry‐based instruction. We sorted the observations into two groups based on whether students both explored underlying concepts before receiving explanations and contributed to the explanations. We found that in both math and science classrooms, when teachers had students both explore concepts before explanations and contribute to the explanations, a higher percent of time was spent on exploration and students were more frequently involved at a higher cognitive level. Further, we found a high positive correlation between the percent of time spent exploring concepts and the cognitive level of the students, and a negative correlation between the percent of time spent explaining concepts and the cognitive level. When we better understand how teachers who are successful in challenging students in higher‐order thinking spend their time relative to various components of inquiry‐based instruction, then we are better able to develop professional development experiences that help teachers transition to more desired instructional patterns.     

Capitalizing on Emerging Technologies: A Case Study of Classroom Blogging

The challenge many teachers face is how to incorporate new technology into their classrooms that strengthens classroom learning by capitalizing on students’ media literacies. Blogs, a new and innovative technological tool, can be used in math and science classrooms to support student learning by capitalizing on students’ interests and familiarity with on‐line communication. This study explores the emerging blogging practices of one high school mathematics teacher and his class to explore issues of intent, use, and perceived value. Data sources for this case included one year's worth of blog content, an interview with the facilitating teacher, and students ‘perceptions of classroom blogging practices. Findings indicate that (1) teachers’ intentions focused on creating additional forms of participation as well as increasing student exposure time with content; (2) blogs were used in a wide variety of ways that likely afforded particular benefits; and (3) both teacher and students perceived the greater investment to be worthwhile. The findings are used to critically consider claims made in the literature about the potential of blogging to effectively support classroom learning.     

Planning District‐Wide Professional Development: Insights Gained From Teachers and Students Regarding Mathematics Teaching in a Large Urban District

This paper describes the mechanism used to gain insights into the state of the art of mathematics instruction in a large urban district in order to design meaningful professional development for the teachers in the district. Surveys of close to 2,000 elementary, middle school, and high school students were collected in order to assess the instructional practices used in mathematics classes across the district. Students were questioned about the frequency of use of various instructional practices that support the meaningful learning of mathematics. These included practices such as problem solving, use of calculators and computers, group work, homework, discussions, and projects, among others. Responses were analyzed and comparisons were drawn between elementary and middle school students' responses and between middle school and high school responses. Finally, fifth‐grade student responses were compared to those of their teachers. Student responses indicated that they had fewer inquiry‐based experiences, fewer student‐to‐student interactions, and fewer opportunities to defend their answers and justify their thinking as they moved from elementary to middle school to high school. In the elementary grades students reported an overemphasis on the use of memorization of facts and procedures and sparse use of calculators. Results were interpreted and specific directions for professional development, as reported in this paper, were drawn from these data. The paper illustrates how student surveys can inform the design of professional development experiences for the teachers in a district.     

Learning to Teach Inquiry: A Beginning Science Teacher of English Language Learners

Early career science teachers are often assigned to classrooms with high numbers of English language learners (ELLs). For the underprepared early career science teacher, these circumstances are challenging. This study examines the changes in beliefs and practices of an early career science teacher who taught high numbers of ELLs in an urban setting. Victoria participated in the Alternative Support for Induction Science Teachers (ASIST) program during her initial two years of teaching. Our research team followed her over a three‐year period, and the data collected included classroom observations and interviews about her beliefs and practices. In addition, documents such as teacher evaluations and classroom artifacts were collected periodically for the purpose of triangulation. The analysis of the data revealed that with the support of the ASIST program, Victoria implemented inquiry lessons and utilized instructional materials that promoted language and science competencies for her ELLs. Conversely, standardized testing and her teaching assignment played a role in constraining the implementation of inquiry‐based practices. The results of this study call for collaborative efforts between university science educators and school administrators to provide professional development opportunities and support to build the capacity of early career science teachers of ELLs.     

Practicing Reform‐Based Science Curriculum in an Urban Classroom: A Hispanic Elementary School Teacher's Thinking and Decisions

This study explores the thinking and decisions of Vera (pseudonym), a Hispanic elementary teacher, while she enacted a reform‐based science curriculum in an urban school in the southern United States. Vera's thinking, decisions, experiences, and practices were documented over a 2‐year period. Using the data collected from semistructured interviews, participant observations and classroom documents, a rich and complex case study of Vera is developed in this paper. This case study describes how Vera makes curricular choices from reform‐based science curricula such as the LiFE curriculum; how she enacts those choices to empower poor urban minority students; how Vera believes that preparing students for the high‐stakes test is empowering because it ensures continued schooling for students; how, for Vera, teaching connected science using students' lived experiences is a risky act; and how she uses negotiation in her science teaching.     

Influence of mentoring and professional communities on the professional development of a cohort of early career secondary mathematics and science teachers

A challenge for public schools is to successfully support and professionally develop early career teachers (ECTs) and thereby prepare them for long and successful careers in education. The purpose of this qualitative research study was to describe how the professional practices of early career science and mathematics teachers, some of whom are career changers, were influenced by their interactions with mentors and professional communities. Topics examined included the contextual elements that influenced the ECTs’ interactions with mentors and professional communities, how teachers positioned themselves within multiple professional communities, and how they perceived these experiences had influenced the development of their teaching practice. An extensive semi-structured interview of the ECTs generated data that were analyzed to identify emergent themes and patterns. The findings of this study indicated that navigating professional communities and interacting with mentors had influenced the ECTs’ decisions to adopt important components of a learner-centered approach to teaching that included engaging students in active learning processes, utilizing formative assessment, and responding to students' individual needs. These findings have implications for school policies and approaches related to supporting and professionally developing unique cohorts of ECTs.     

Practicing Reform‐Based Science Curriculum in an Urban Classroom: A Hispanic Elementary School Teacher's Thinking and Decisions

This study explores the thinking and decisions of Vera (pseudonym), a Hispanic elementary teacher, while she enacted a reform‐based science curriculum in an urban school in the southern United States. Vera's thinking, decisions, experiences, and practices were documented over a 2‐year period. Using the data collected from semistructured interviews, participant observations and classroom documents, a rich and complex case study of Vera is developed in this paper. This case study describes how Vera makes curricular choices from reform‐based science curricula such as the LiFE curriculum; how she enacts those choices to empower poor urban minority students; how Vera believes that preparing students for the high‐stakes test is empowering because it ensures continued schooling for students; how, for Vera, teaching connected science using students' lived experiences is a risky act; and how she uses negotiation in her science teaching.     

The Indiana Science Initiative: Lessons from a Classroom Observation Study

The Indiana Science Initiative (ISI) is a systemic effort to reform K–8 science education. The program provides teachers with professional development, reform‐oriented science modules, and materials support. To examine the impact of the initiative's professional development, a participant observation study was conducted in the program's pilot year. Five teachers in grades 3–6 were observed and interviewed as they implemented the ISI‐provided modules. Analysis of the observation data revealed that the teachers incorporated each of the features of inquiry science instruction. However, they did not consistently teach in a way that was aligned with the intent of the ISI. Examination of interview data provided insight into influences on teachers' use of inquiry with the ISI‐provided modules. These data revealed that teachers were aware of the intent of the ISI and attempted to align their instruction. However, teachers were influenced by their perceptions of students' behavior and abilities as well as timing and the appropriate level of teacher control needed to facilitate science instruction. The research suggests that professional development activities should prepare teachers to help learners evaluate explanations against alternatives, connect explanations to scientific knowledge, and provide strategies to address teachers' perceptions of students, timing, and teacher control.     

Behind the Masks: Identifying Students' Competencies for Learning Mathematics and Science in Urban Settings

Three mathematics and science educators reexamine and reflect on their teaching within the context of the American Association for the Advancement of Sciences (AAAS) and National Council of Mathematics' call to make math and science education accessible to all. The paper highlights the importance of teachers reflecting on their teaching practices in order to create opportunities for their students especially those in the urban setting. The educators argue that teachers' reflection on their teaching can cause them to recognize and validate their students' ways of knowing as they identify the students' hidden/concealed abilities that are often masked by their behaviors. The educators discuss their experiences and highlight the lessons that they learned about ways to prepare teachers to successfully teach math and science students in urban settings. Culturally responsive pedagogy and cultural competency are critical skills that teachers need to develop in order to teach all children, especially those in the math and science classroom in the urban setting.     

Learning to teach science in urban schools: Context as content

The purpose of this phenomenological study was to explore how science teachers who persisted in urban schools interpreted and responded to the unique features of urban educational contexts. With 17 alumni who taught in metropolitan areas across seven states, the Science Educators for Urban Schools (SEUS) program provided a research setting that offered a unique view of science teachers’ development of knowledge of urban education contexts. Data sources included narratives of teaching experiences from interviews and open‐ended survey items. Findings were interpreted in light of context knowledge for urban educational settings. Findings indicated that science teaching in urban contexts was impacted by the education policy context, notably through accountability policies that narrowed and marginalized science instruction; community context, evident in teacher efforts to make science more relevant to students; and school contexts, notability their ability to creatively adjust for resource deficiencies and continue their own professional growth. Participants utilized this context knowledge to transform student opportunities to learn science. The study suggests that future science education research and teacher preparation efforts would benefit from further attention to the unique elements of urban contexts, specifically the out of classroom contexts that shape science teaching and learning.