Pathway to Science Phase II

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Currently the lack of certified science teachers is a major cause of poor achievement and low expectations for high-risk pupils. This problem is greatly intensified in both rural and urban areas because schools in these locales typically have: overpopulated science classrooms and inadequate science teacher staffing; teachers who teach outside of their field of certification; and/or long-term substitute teachers who do not have a science, mathematics, or engineering background. With funding from the National Science Foundation's Robert Noyce Teacher Scholarship program, the Pathway to Science (PTS) Phase 2 project, is recruiting undergraduate majors in science disciplines and recent graduates and preparing them to become middle grades and high school science teachers. The project is funding 12 scholarships over four years. In this project, the Colleges of Education, Arts & Sciences, and Engineering at the University of South Alabama are collaborating with Mobile County Public Schools. PTS Phase 2 will enable recent STEM bachelor degree graduates to complete secondary science certification through an intensive, four-semester program that culminates with an earned master's degree and will directly address the need to increase the number of science teachers in Mobile County. A distinguishing feature of the project is the pre-residency experiences provided to help individuals with strong science backgrounds gauge their interest in a career in teaching before they commit time to completing the education coursework.A research study will investigate the longitudinal impact of the program, by addressing questions such as, (1) With regard to preparedness, what are the effects of increased field experiences on the self-efficacy of graduating Noyce PTS scholars? (2) With regard to retention of Noyce graduates in the teaching profession, what are the effects of a Professional Learning Community (PLC)? (3) What are the effects of a PLC on Noyce graduates and current PTS scholars? (4) What effect does a mentoring program have on the retention of current and graduated scholars? (5) How does engaging in professional development (PD) both as a student and as a teacher through the Noyce PTS program effect teacher self-efficacy? (6) What impact do Noyce graduates have on the departments of the schools in which they work in terms of teacher leadership and student advocacy? The results of the longitudinal study on the effectiveness of former PTS graduates on student achievement, along with qualitative data describing their experiences, will assist in better preparation of science teachers to meet student needs.