Preparing Effective STEM Teachers by Advancing the Cultural and Computational Engagement of STEM Scholars

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This project aims to serve the national need of preparing high-quality STEM teachers for high-need school districts, with an emphasis on computer science teachers. Through a partnership with the College of Technology and the Departments of Computer Science and Physics, the University's STEM teacher preparation program will create a pipeline for preparing secondary STEM teachers. The project aims to provide an inquiry-based computer science education course in which pre-service teachers will learn computational tools, as well as how to integrate them into the STEM courses they will teach in the future. The project will recruit STEM majors to pursue teaching careers and provide the future teachers with financial and other supports. These Noyce Scholars will have access to a Teacher Interest Group to help build community among the Scholars. This interest group will also provide support and opportunities to participate in community events that incorporate culturally responsive approaches in a diverse community context. This project at the University of Houston includes partnerships with local independent school districts including Aldine, Alief, Alvin, Cy-Fair, Fort Bend, Houston, Katy, Pasadena, and Spring Branch. Over a five-year duration, it aims to produce 30 highly qualified STEM teachers to teach in high-need school districts in Greater Houston and the nation. The program will use a unique culturally responsive process to recruit undergraduates in computer science, physics, and technology. The technology major is ABET accredited; Mechanical Engineering Technology majors will be targeted along with physics and computer science majors. These STEM majors will be prepared to become secondary STEM teachers who will have the potential to prepare a diverse STEM workforce and address technical and computational issues facing society. Moreover, teacher education courses will be infused with culturally responsive pedagogy to prepare teachers to help their students make direct connections between STEM careers and addressing local and national issues. Researchers will evaluate the impact of including a culturally responsive emphasis in Noyce Scholar selection and training on the production, teaching, and persistence of STEM educators. In addition, they will examine how a course and curriculum developed for all STEM majors as a computer science pedagogy course might encourage and positively influence the career paths of undergraduates, especially underserved students of color. Knowledge gained from this project will be disseminated through presentations, demonstrations, and journal publications. This Track 1: Scholarships and Stipends project is supported through the Robert Noyce Teacher Scholarship Program (Noyce). The Noyce program supports talented STEM undergraduate majors and professionals to become effective K-12 STEM teachers and experienced, exemplary K-12 STEM teachers to become STEM master teachers in high-need school districts. It also supports research on the persistence, retention, and effectiveness of K-12 STEM teachers in high-need school districts.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.