A Partnership to Adapt, Implement and Study a Professional Learning Model and Build District Capacity to Improve Science Instruction and Student Understanding

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The Lawrence Hall of Science (the Hall) and Stanford University teams have previously developed and tested the efficacy of a program of Professional Learning (PL) which is focused on improving teachers' ability to support students' ability to engage in scientific argumentation. Key components of the PL model include a week-long summer institute and follow-up sessions during the academic year that incorporate additional pedagogical input, video reflection, and planning time. In this project, the Hall and Stanford are working in partnership with the Santa Clara Unified School District (SCUSD) to adapt the PL model based on the District's objectives and constraints, to build the capacity of teacher leaders and a program coordinator to implement the adapted PL program. This will enable the District to continue to adapt and implement the program independently at the conclusion of the project. Concurrently, the project is studying the adaptability of the PL model and the effectiveness of its implementation, and is developing guidelines and tools for other districts to use in adapting and implementing the PL model in their local contexts. Thus, this project is contributing knowledge about how to build capacity in districts to lead professional learning in science that addresses the new teaching and learning standards and is responsive to the needs of their local context.This project is examining the sustainability and scalability of a PL model that supports the development of teachers' pedagogical content knowledge and instructional practices, with a particular focus on engaging students in argument from evidence. Results from the Hall and Stanford's previous research project indicate that the PL model is effective at significantly improving teachers' and students' classroom discourse practices. These findings suggest that a version of the model, adapted to the context and needs of a different school district, has the potential to improve the teaching of science to meet the demands of the current vision of science education. Using a Design-Based Implementation Research approach, this project is (i) working with SCUSD to adapt the PL model; (ii) preparing a district project coordinator and cadre of local teacher leaders (TLs) to implement and further adapt the model; and (iii) studying the adaptation and implementation of the model. The outcomes will be: a) a scalable PL model that can be continually adapted to the objectives and constraints of a district; b) a set of activities and resources for the district to prepare and support the science teacher leaders who will implement the adapted PL program internally with other teachers; and c) knowledge about the adaptations and resources needed for the PL model to be implemented independently by other school districts. The team also is researching the impact of the program on classroom practices and student learning.