DR K-12: Teaching STEM with Robotics: Design, Development, and Testing of a Research-based Professional Development Program for Teachers

在科学和数学课程中提供有意义和激励的工程背景，如机器人，构成了一种引人注目的战略，以满足下一代科学标准和数学共同核心国家标准，同时提高所有学生的科学和数学学习。利用以设计为基础的研究，以教师为设计合作伙伴，该项目将创建和完善基于项目的动手课程，以便学习机器人学和相关工程设计实践中固有的科学和数学内容。为了向教师提供有效的模式，以利用机器人来阐明科学和数学概念，将使用技术、教学和教学知识(TPACK)的原则建立一个基于设计的专业发展计划。为了确保教师做好充分的准备，将采用以研究为基础的做法和有效专业发展的特点。机器人、工程、教育、课程设计和评估方面的专家--具有K-12教育、培训和推广的经验--组成了一个跨学科团队，使机器人成为中学科学和数学课堂的核心和可持续发展的核心。本项目中涉及的研究问题本质上是定性的，适合于设计研究问题。这些方法包括教师需求评估、教师对机器人的看法、前后测试、课堂观察和调查。研究问题的例子有：机器人技术的哪些特征促进了中学科学和数学的有效学习？专业发展的哪些要素产生了教师对机器人技术的TPACK并将其与课堂科学和数学联系起来？学生在科学和数学学习中有效使用机器人技术的先决条件是什么？学生在STEM参与度、兴趣、毅力和职业意识方面有哪些收获？机器人课程将包括用于机器人性能预期和运动稳定性的物理科学。此外，课程将包括工程设计过程，包括问题定义、解决方案开发和设计改进。机器人技术提供了支持下一代科学标准的科学和工程实践的机会，例如开发和使用模型、规划和进行调查、设计解决方案以及分析和解释数据。该项目将针对中学生，并将为实施新课程模块提供实质性的教师专业发展。合作学校的学生团体来自纽约市不同的学生群体。

Offering meaningful and motivating engineering contexts, such as robotics, within science and math courses constitutes a compelling strategy to address the Next Generation Science Standards and the Common Core State Standards for Math while enhancing science and math learning for all students. Using design-based research, with teachers as design partners, the project will create and refine project-based, hands-on curricula such that science and math content inherent in robotics and related engineering design practices are learned. To provide teachers with effective models to capitalize on robotics for elucidating science and math concepts, a design-based Professional Development program will be built using principles of technological, pedagogical, and content knowledge (TPACK). To ensure that teachers are well prepared, research-based practices and features of effective Professional Development will be adopted. Experts in robotics, engineering, education, curriculum design, and assessment--with experience in K-12 education, training, and outreach--have formed an interdisciplinary team to make robotics central to and sustainable in middle school science and math classrooms.The research questions addressed in this project are qualitative in nature as appropriate for design research questions. The methodologies include teacher needs assessment, teachers' perceptions of robotics, pre and post testing, classroom observations, and surveys. Examples of the research questions are:What characteristics of robotics promote effective learning of middle school science and math?What elements of Professional Development engender teachers' TPACK of robotics and link it with classroom science and math?What are student prerequisites to effectively use robotics in science and math learning? What are the gains in students' STEM engagement, interest, persistence, and career awareness? The robotics curriculum will include physical science used in robot performance expectations and motion stability. Additionally the curriculum will include the engineering design process consisting of problem definition, solution development, and design improvement. Robotics provides opportunities to support science and engineering practices of the Next Generation Science Standards such as developing and using models, planning and conducting investigations, designing solutions, and analyzing and interpreting data. The project will be aimed at middle school students and will provide substantial teacher professional development to implement the new curriculum modules. The partner schools have student bodies drawn from a diverse student population in New York City.