Collaborative Research: Investigating STEM Teacher Preparation and Rural Teacher Persistence and Retention

合作研究：调查 STEM 教师准备和农村教师的坚持和保留

• 批准号: 2050095
• 负责人: David Long
• 金额: $ 7万
• 依托单位: Morehead State University
• 依托单位国家: 美国
• 项目类别: Standard Grant
• 财政年份: 2021
• 资助国家: 美国
• 起止时间: 2021-07-01 至 2025-06-30
• 项目状态: 未结题
• 来源: https://www.nsf.gov/awardsearch/showAward?AWD_ID=2050095&HistoricalAwards=false
• 关键词: Collaborative; Research; Investigating; STEM; Teacher

The project aims to serve the national need of addressing STEM teacher shortages in rural communities. Staffing schools with high quality STEM teachers has been a persistent challenge for rural schools for the past century, however, to date, relatively few resources have been allocated toward the improvement of teacher education to prepare teachers to work in rural settings. Addressing STEM teacher workforce needs in rural America is critical for future student success. This project aims to address STEM teacher workforce challenges through a focus on how educator preparation programs (EPPs) address the unique contexts of rurality and teaching STEM in rural settings. Moreover, it seeks to identify the programmatic features of educator preparation programs that support rural STEM teacher recruitment, retention, and persistence. This project, led by Mississippi State University with thirteen collaborative partners (Texas A&M University, Stephen F. Austin University, University of Wisconsin River Falls, Fort Hayes State University, Clarkson University, University of Kentucky, University of Alabama Birmingham, Texas Tech University, Morehead State University, Texas A&M University- Commerce, Winthrop University, Alabama A&M University, and North Dakota State University) has three main goals. First is to investigate the impact of EPP features on program completers’ intention to teach as well as their persistence (continuing to teach at the same school) and retention (continuing to teach but at a new school) in rural STEM classrooms. Second is to engage in deep reflection leading to programmatic adjustments within collaborating partners’ educator preparation programs intended to increase equitable access to effective instruction for rural schools. Third is to share emerging knowledge about programmatic features of EPPs that support program completers’ intention to teach, their employment decisions after completing the EPP, and their persistence and retention in rural placements. The overarching hypothesis guiding this study is that EPPs that explicitly address rurality through programmatic features including context (e.g., addressing the strengths and challenges of rural teaching and stereotypes about rural places), curriculum (e.g., a focus on place-based instruction and rural field experiences), and conveyance (e.g., recruiting from rural or online delivery) will support recruitment, retention, and persistence in rural schools, which can lead to a more diverse and effective STEM teaching force for rural schools. Research is needed to understand the impact of these programmatic features in order to guide the design and delivery of educator preparation programs that serve rural schools and communities. This foundational research project uses a longitudinal, repeated-measures, mixed-methods research design in which 14 collaborating partners across the U.S. will identify programmatic features that address rurality and track program completers’ intentions to teach, persistence, and retention and thus produce evidence that will be disseminated both internally (to collaborating partners) and to broader audiences (e.g., STEM education, teacher education, and rural education communities). Data sources include curricular artifacts such as degree plans, course syllabi, field placement data, and assessment data; interviews with program faculty; and two surveys to capture demographic data, employment data, and the three outcome variables over time. The broader impact aim of this collaborative research is to create actionable knowledge to support rural STEM teacher persistence and retention. This Track 4: Noyce Research 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 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.

该项目旨在满足全国解决农村社区STEM教师短缺的需求。在过去的一个世纪里，为学校配备高质量的STEM教师一直是农村学校面临的一个挑战，然而，迄今为止，用于改善教师教育以使教师为农村环境做好准备的资源相对较少。解决美国农村地区STEM教师的劳动力需求对学生未来的成功至关重要。该项目旨在通过关注教育工作者准备计划（EPPs）如何应对农村地区的独特环境和农村地区的STEM教学，解决STEM教师队伍面临的挑战。此外，它还试图确定支持农村STEM教师招聘、保留和坚持的教育工作者准备项目的规划特征。该项目由密西西比州立大学牵头，有13个合作伙伴（德克萨斯农工大学、斯蒂芬·f·奥斯汀大学、威斯康星河瀑布大学、海斯堡州立大学、克拉克森大学、肯塔基大学、阿拉巴马大学伯明翰分校、德克萨斯理工大学、莫尔黑德州立大学、德克萨斯农工大学-商业大学、温斯洛普大学、阿拉巴马农工大学和北达科他州立大学），主要目标有三个。首先是调查EPP特征对项目完成者在农村STEM教室中的教学意图以及他们的持久性（继续在同一所学校任教）和保留性（继续在新学校任教）的影响。二是深入反思，在合作伙伴的教育工作者准备项目中进行方案调整，以增加农村学校获得有效教育的公平机会。第三是分享关于EPP项目特征的新知识，这些特征支持项目完成者的教学意愿、完成EPP后的就业决策以及他们在农村的持久性和留任性。指导本研究的首要假设是，通过包括语境（例如，解决农村教学的优势和挑战以及对农村地区的刻板印象）、课程（例如，关注基于地点的教学和农村实地经验）和运输（例如，从农村招聘或在线交付）在内的规划特征明确解决农村问题的epp将支持农村学校的招聘、保留和坚持。这可以为农村学校带来更加多样化和有效的STEM教学力量。为了指导为农村学校和社区服务的教育者准备课程的设计和实施，需要进行研究以了解这些程序化特征的影响。这个基础研究项目采用纵向、重复测量、混合方法的研究设计，其中美国的14个合作伙伴将确定解决农村问题的项目特征，并跟踪项目完成者的教学意图、持久性和保留性，从而产生证据，这些证据将在内部（合作伙伴）和更广泛的受众（例如，STEM教育、教师教育和农村教育社区）传播。数据来源包括课程工件，如学位计划、课程大纲、实地安置数据和评估数据；项目教师面试；通过两次调查来获取人口数据，就业数据，以及随着时间推移的三个结果变量。这项合作研究的更广泛影响目标是创造可操作的知识，以支持农村STEM教师的坚持和保留。本Track 4: Noyce研究项目由Robert Noyce教师奖学金计划（Noyce）支持。Noyce计划支持有才华的STEM本科专业和专业人士成为有效的K-12 STEM教师，并支持经验丰富的模范K-12教师成为高需求学区的STEM大师教师。它还支持对高需求学区K-12 STEM教师的持久性、留任性和有效性的研究。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。