Promoting Science among English Language Learners (P-SELL) Scale-Up

这项为期四年的有效性研究侧重于扩大课程和教师专业发展干预模式的规模，旨在提高所有学生，特别是英语学习者的科学成就。该模式由三个基本部分组成：(A)以探究为导向的科学课程，(B)与这些学生一起进行科学教学的教师专业发展，以及(C)用于科学教学的学校资源。该项目的主要目标是：(1)评估干预对学生成绩的影响；(2)确定干预对教师知识、实践和学校资源的影响；(3)评估教师知识、实践和资源是如何中介学生成绩的。该项目是在佛罗里达州现行科学教育政策和问责制度的背景下进行的(例如，通过下一代阳光州科学标准、五年级科学评估、争取最高奖项州)。这项研究借鉴了之前美国国家科学基金会资助的功效研究(035331)的研究结果，在该研究中，将扩大规模的模型在单一学区进行了测试。有效性研究包括三个(67个)学区作为主要合作伙伴，代表了种族、民族、语言和社会经济多元化的学生群体；小学，320名科学教师，以及三年期间的24,000名五年级学生。科学学习是主要的主题，包括生命科学、物理科学和地球/空间科学。与三个研究领域相对应的六个研究问题指导了拟议的工作范围。对于学生科学成就的研究领域，问题是：(1)与“一切照旧”相比，干预对五年级学生的科学成就有什么影响？(2)干预的影响在多大程度上受到学生的英语作为第二语言(ESOL)水平、社会经济地位和种族/民族背景的调节？以教师知识与实践为研究领域，问题是：(3)干预对教师的科学知识和教学实践有何影响？(4)学校科学教学资源在多大程度上预测学生的科学成就？对于科学学校资源，问题是：(5)干预对科学教育学校资源的影响是什么？以及(6)科学教育学校资源在多大程度上预测学生的成绩？为了评估干预对学生和教师成绩的影响，采用整群随机对照试验，随机抽取了就读的学校(按学校层面的ESOL百分比和免费减少午餐的学生进行分层)。来自学校的所有科学教师和学生都参与了该项目：治疗组32人(五年级项目课程、教师专业发展和教学资源)，对照组32人(学区采用五年级课程，没有教师专业发展，没有教学资源)。为了解决学生科学成就的研究领域，在每个课程单元的末尾使用形成性评估项目，除了佛罗里达州的综合评估测试-科学之外，还有两种等同形式的项目开发的科学测试(用作前后测试)，包括治疗组和控制组。这一研究领域的数据解释采用了一套三级HLM(学生，嵌套在教室，嵌套在学校)。为了解决教师知识与实践和学校科学资源的研究领域，该项目使用了三种衡量标准：(A)两种等同形式的35项教师科学知识测试，(B)一种课堂观察仪，衡量第三方对教师知识和教学实践的评级，以及(C)一份问卷，衡量教师对科学知识和教学实践的自我报告。所有措施均适用于治疗组和对照组。数据解释策略包括一系列HLM，强调相关教师的结果作为时间的函数，以及学校一级的中介变量。外部项目评价是由同心研究和评价使用定量和定性方法进行的，既涉及形成部分，也涉及总结部分。项目研究成果有助于完善反映国家新科学标准和新出现的国家科学标准的模型。这一努力所增加的价值在于它有可能为其他学习环境中科学课程的有效实施和教师的专业发展提供信息，包括ELL和传统上被边缘化的小学学生群体。它几乎是唯一一项关注这一学生群体有效科学教育实践的规模和可持续性问题的研究，由于种族、民族和语言多样化的学龄人口的急剧增长，美国学生科学成就的低水平，以及科学和数学在全国当前问责制度中的作用，这一问题变得突出。

This four-year effectiveness study focuses on the scale-up of a model of curricular and teacher professional development intervention aimed at improving science achievement of all students, especially English language learners (ELLs). The model consists of three basic components: (a) inquiry-oriented science curriculum, (b) teacher professional development for science instruction with these students, and (c) school resources for science instruction. The project's main goals are: (1) to evaluate the effect of the intervention on student achievement, (2) to determine the effect of the intervention on teacher knowledge, practices, and school resources, and (3) to assess how teacher knowledge, practices, and resources mediate student achievement. The project is conducted in the context of the Florida current science education policies and accountability system (e.g., adoption of the Next Generation Sunshine State Standards in Science, assessment of science at the fifth grade, a Race to the Top award state). The study draws on findings from research on a previous NSF-funded efficacy study (035331) in which the model to be scaled-up was tested in a single school district. The effectiveness study includes three (of 67) school districts as key partners, representative of racially, ethnically, linguistically, and socioeconomically diverse student populations; 64 elementary schools, 320 science teachers, and 24,000 fifth-grade students over a three-year period. Science learning is the primary subject matter, inclusive of life, physical, and earth/space sciences. Six research questions corresponding to three research areas guide the proposed scope of work. For the research area of Student Science Achievement, questions are: (1) What is the effect of the intervention on fifth-grade students' science achievement, compared to "business as usual"?, and (2) To what extent are the effects of the intervention moderated by students' English as a Second Language (ESOL) level, SES status, and racial/ethnic backgrounds? For Teacher Knowledge and Practices as a research area, questions are: (3) What is the effect of the intervention on teachers' science knowledge and teaching practices?, and (4) To what extent is students' science achievement predicted by school resources for science instruction? For School Resources for Science, questions are: (5) What is the effect of the intervention on school resources for science instruction?, and (6) To what extent is student achievement predicted by school resources for science instruction? To assess the effect of the intervention on students' and teachers' outcomes, a cluster-randomized-control trial is used, resulting in a total of 64 randomly selected schools (after stratifying them by school-level percent of ESOL and Free Reduced Lunch students). All science teachers and students from the 64 schools participate in the project: 32 in the treatment group (project curriculum for fifth grade, teacher professional development, and instructional resources), and 32 in the control group (district-adopted fifth-grade curriculum, no teacher professional development, and no instructional resources). To address the research area of Student Science Achievement, formative assessment items are used at the end of each curriculum unit, along with two equated forms of a project-developed science test (to be used as pre-and posttests) with both treatment and control groups, in addition to the Florida's Comprehensive Assessment Tests-Science. Data interpretation for this research area employs a set of three-level HLMs (students, nested in classrooms, nested in schools). To address the research area of Teacher Knowledge and Practices and School Resources for Science, the project uses three measures: (a) two equated forms of a 35-items test of teacher science knowledge, (b) a classroom observation instrument measuring third-party ratings of teacher knowledge and teaching practices, and (c) a questionnaire measuring teachers' self-reports of science knowledge and teaching practices. All measures are administered to both treatment and control groups. Data interpretation strategies include a series of HLMs with emphasis on the relevant teacher outcomes as a function of time, and of school-level mediating variables. External project evaluation is conducted by Concentric Research and Evaluation using quantitative and qualitative methods and addressing both formative and summative components. Project research findings contribute to the refinement of a model reflective of the new science standards in the State and the emerging national science standards. The value added of this effort consists of its potential to inform effective implementation of science curricula and teacher professional development in other learning settings, including ELLs and traditionally marginalized student populations at the elementary school level. It constitutes practically the only research study focused on the issue of scale-up and sustainability of effective science education practices with this student subpopulation, which has become prominent due to the dramatic growth of a racially, ethnically, and linguistically diverse school-aged population, low levels of U.S. student science achievement, and the role of science and mathematics in current accountability systems nationwide.