Research on the Integration of Science, Engineering, Mathematics, and Computational Thinking in Rural Elementary Teacher Professional Development and Effects on Practice

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This interdisciplinary research project represents a collaboration between Longwood University's Institute for Teaching through Technology and Innovative Practices, Department of Mathematics and Computer Science, Department of Biological and Environmental Sciences, and rural schools in Virginia to develop and test a professional development program for 4th grade teachers in rural elementary schools. Teachers will gain experience designing lessons that integrate computational thinking (CT), science, and mathematics. During the first summer of the program, teachers will focus on subject matter content and instructional strategies for integrating CT with science and mathematics. During the following school year, teachers will be supported in implementing integrated learning modules designed by the project team. During the second summer, participating teachers will develop their own modules and units for implementation during the academic year to follow. Activities of the project are guided by three overarching goals: 1) Increase rural elementary teachers' content and pedagogical knowledge regarding CT characteristics and dispositions, 2) Increase rural elementary teachers' confidence in integrating CT concepts as part of transdisciplinary lessons that include mathematics, science, and CT, and 3) Improve student awareness of and skill with CT characteristics and dispositions. To support teachers in achieving these goals, the project team will develop a STEM CT Integration Framework that explicitly connects elements of the Next Generation Science Standards, Common Core State Standards for Mathematics, and CT characteristics as defined by the International Society for Technology in Education, and the Computer Science Teachers Association. As computing has become integral to the practice of science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM), the STEM+Computing program seeks to address emerging challenges in computational STEM areas through the applied integration of computational thinking and computing activities within STEM teaching and learning in early childhood education through high school (PreK-12). This research and development project will focus on professional growth opportunities for rural elementary teachers that help them learn how to create and teach interdisciplinary lessons at grade four that explicitly link concepts in mathematics and science with CT concepts. Research on the impacts of this project will be guided by two research questions: 1) To what extent do elementary teachers? practices shift and self-efficacy change when they create and implement an integrated curriculum that includes CT concepts, science and engineering practices, and mathematics practices? And 2) How do elementary student CT dispositions change with the implementation of an integrated curriculum that includes CT concepts, science and engineering practices, and mathematics practices? The project team will use a mixed-methods, participatory research approach for collecting, analyzing, and integrating quantitative and qualitative data. Twenty-four grade 4 teachers who teach both mathematics and science in rural school districts will participate in the project, and their individual classes are expected to have 20 students on average. An array of validated instruments, tailored surveys, observation protocols, and teacher interviews will be used to gather teacher data and document changes over time, and students will be tasked with solving a predetermined problem and interviewed about CT dispositions. Qualitative teacher data will be analyzed using an emergent dimensional coding schema, and triangulated with findings from student responses. The project will examine shifts in teacher practices and changes in beliefs and attitudes regarding learning how to create and implement science and mathematics curricula that feature computational thinking. The project will also examine how dispositions and attitudes of students change when exposed to curricula that integrate computational thinking with science and mathematics concepts.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.