Collaborative Research: Design and Development of a K-12 STEM Observation Protocol

探索研究K-12项目（DRK-12）旨在通过研究和开发创新资源、模型和工具（rmt），显著提高pre -12学生和教师对科学、技术、工程和数学（STEM）的学习和教学。DRK-12计划中的项目建立在STEM教育的基础研究和先前的研究和开发工作的基础上，为拟议的项目提供了理论和实证依据。该项目将设计和开发一种新的K-12课堂观察方案，用于综合STEM教学（STEM- op）。STEM- op将开发用于K-12 STEM设置。虽然综合STEM教育的重要性已经确立，但对综合STEM教学的模式和有效方法仍存在分歧。由于缺乏对综合STEM教学和学习敏感的观察协议，从而使研究人员了解新模型和策略的有效性，这一问题变得混乱。现有的仪器不是为在综合STEM学习环境中使用而开发的。STEM-OP将被设计为在各种情况下由多个利益攸关方有效使用。研究人员将受益于STEM- op，他们可以利用STEM- op进行研究，并以各种方式继续改进STEM教育。现有的仪器不是为在综合STEM学习环境中使用而开发的。STEM-OP和相关的培训材料将通过一个公开的在线平台提供给其他教育利益相关者，如K-12教师和地区行政人员。简而言之，STEM- op将在许多情况下为综合STEM教学提供信息，目标是改善综合STEM教育。该项目的主要产品是新的观察协议，称为STEM- op，用于K-12教室实施综合STEM课程。该项目将使用500多个综合STEM课堂视频来设计STEM- op。通过探索性和验证性因素分析，STEM-OP将成为一种有效和可靠的工具，可用于各种教育环境。本研究将探讨小学、初中和高中科学教师实施综合STEM教学的不同方式。本研究将阐明每个年级STEM教学的本质，并为理解跨年级工程实践的学习进展提供信息。研究STEM整合的性质如何在一个单元的过程中每天发生变化，将提供有关STEM单元不同测序和轨迹的关键信息。考察综合STEM教学如何在一个完整的教学单元中展开，将在微观和宏观层面上分析对综合STEM实践的理解。STEM-OP和相关的培训材料将通过一个公开的在线平台分发，供其他教育利益相关者使用，例如K-12教师和地区行政人员，该平台包括培训手册和用于练习评分的课堂视频。该奖项反映了美国国家科学基金会的法定使命，并通过使用基金会的知识价值和更广泛的影响审查标准进行评估，被认为值得支持。

The Discovery Research K-12 program (DRK-12) seeks to significantly enhance the learning and teaching of Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics (STEM) by preK-12 students and teachers, through research and development of innovative resources, models and tools (RMTs). Projects in the DRK-12 program build on fundamental research in STEM education and prior research and development efforts that provide theoretical and empirical justification for proposed projects. This project will design and develop a new K-12 classroom observation protocol for integrated STEM instruction (STEM-OP). The STEM-OP will be developed for use in K-12 STEM settings. While the importance of integrated STEM education is established, there remains disagreement on models and effective approaches for integrated STEM instruction. This issue is confounded by the lack of observation protocols sensitive to integrated STEM teaching and learning to inform research to the effectiveness of new models and strategies. Existing instruments were not developed for use in integrated STEM learning environments. The STEM-OP will be designed to be used effectively by multiple stakeholders in a variety of contexts. Researchers will benefit from having the STEM-OP available for them to carry out research and continue to improve STEM education in a variety of ways. Existing instruments were not developed for use in integrated STEM learning environments. The STEM-OP and associated training materials will be available for use by other education stakeholders, such as K-12 teachers and district administrators, through a publicly available online platform. In brief, the STEM-OP will inform the instruction of integrated STEM in many contexts with the goal of improving integrated STEM education.The primary product of this project is the new observation protocol called STEM-OP for K-12 classrooms implementing integrated STEM lessons. The project will use over 500 integrated STEM classroom videos to design the STEM-OP. Using exploratory and confirmatory factor analysis, the STEM-OP will be a valid and reliable instrument for use in a variety of educational contexts. The research will explore the different ways that elementary, middle, and high school science teachers enact integrated STEM instruction. This study will shed light on the nature of STEM instruction in each of these grade bands and provide information building towards an understanding of learning progressions for engineering practices across grade bands. Research exploring how the nature of STEM integration changes from day to day over the course of a unit will provide critical information about the different sequencing and trajectories of STEM units. Examining how integrated STEM instruction unfolds over a full unit of instruction will inform the understanding of integrated STEM practices at both micro- and macro- levels of analysis. The STEM-OP and associated training materials will be available for use by other education stakeholders, such as K-12 teachers and district administrators, through a publicly available, which will be distributed via a publicly available, online platform that includes a training manual and classroom video for practice scoring.This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.