Advancing Physics Education Where Diversity Resides through Professional Development: Creating the Organization for Physics at Two-Year Colleges (OPTYCs)

该奖项的全部或部分资金来自《2021年美国救援计划法案》(公法117-2)。该项目将通过为两年制大学的物理教育工作者创建一个专业组织来服务于国家利益。美国有1000多所两年制大学，每年为超过21.5万名学生提供物理课程，但在两年制大学环境中，致力于为物理教育工作者提供特定学科专业发展的课程稀缺。该项目将通过针对多个职业层次的专业发展活动、领导力发展、多样性、公平和包容性(DEI)培训，以及创建包括两年制大学教职员工和学生在内的物理教育研究文化，为物理教师提供持续的支持，以填补这一关键空白。该项目提出了一套个人、合作伙伴和顾问，为专门为两年制大学教师设计的全国实践社区的发展带来了重要的专业知识。该项目最终寻求通过创建一个具有凝聚力、包容性、多样性和面向未来的组织来改变两年制大学物理教学社区，以响应全国范围内物理教育工作者不断变化的目标。这个项目的总体目标是通过建立一个旨在为全国提供职业发展机会的协作性组织来填补物理两年制大学社区的空白。该项目有七个目标：1)将可持续的实践社区制度化；2)针对所有职业水平的教师提供变革性的专业发展；3)为新的物理教师创建指导小组；4)用新的和最新的数据增强物理界的能力；5)在教师中灌输物理教育研究的文化；6)定义和传播研究型教学和学习方法的最佳实践；以及7)成为其他STEM学科创建国家实践社区的典范。该项目旨在通过结合观察、调查、访谈和焦点小组来衡量干预措施的有效性，以得出关于社区建设、教师参与和机构变革的结论。该项目计划使用项目可持续性评估工具评估整体可持续性。据估计，每个讲师每年有50名学生，在五年的资助期内，该项目试图积极影响11万名在两年制大学上物理课的学生。最终，该项目有可能通过创建一个综合实践社区，为教师成长提供基准，并通过增加学生多样性和对STEM劳动力的参与，来改变两年制大学物理教学界。NSF关于在两年制高等教育机构推进本科STEM教育的创新和影响的项目描述支持在两年制大学推进STEM教育倡议的项目。该项目描述促进了两年制大学本科STEM教育的创新和循证实践。该奖项反映了NSF的法定使命，并通过使用基金会的智力优势和更广泛的影响审查标准进行评估，被认为值得支持。

This award is funded in whole or in part under the American Rescue Plan Act of 2021 (Public Law 117-2). This project will serve the national interest by creating a professional organization for physics educators at two-year colleges. There are over 1,000 two-year colleges in the country that offer physics courses to more than 215,000 students per year, yet there is a scarcity of programs dedicated to discipline-specific professional development for physics educators in a two-year college setting. This project will fill this critical gap by providing sustained support to physics faculty through professional development activities aimed at multiple career levels; leadership development; diversity,equity, and inclusion (DEI) training; and creating a culture of physics education research that includes two-year college faculty and students. The project puts forth a suite of individuals, partners and advisors that bring significant expertise to the development of a national community of practice designed specifically for two-year college faculty. This project ultimately seeks to transform the two-year college physics teaching community by creating a cohesive, inclusive, diverse and future-focused organization that is responsive to the evolving goals of physics educators on a national scale. The overall goal of this project is to fill a void in the physics two-year college community by establishing a collaborative organization that aims to provide professional development opportunities across the country. The project has seven objectives: 1) institutionalize a sustainable community of practice; 2) provide transformative professional development aimed at faculty at all career levels; 3) create mentoring groups for new physics faculty; 4) empower the physics community with new and updated data; 5) instill a culture of physics education research among faculty; 6) define and disseminate best practices in research-based teaching and learning methods; and 7) become a model for other STEM disciplines to create national communities of practice. The project intends to measure efficacy of the interventions using a combination of observations, surveys, interviews, and focus groups to draw conclusions about community building, faculty participation and institutional change. The project plans to assess overall sustainability using the Program Sustainability Assessment Tool. With an estimated 50 students per year per instructor, over the course of the five-year grant period the project seeks to positively impact 110,000 students taking physics classes at two-year colleges. Ultimately, the project has the potential to transform the two-year college physics-teaching community through the creation of an integrated community of practice, providing benchmarks for faculty growth, and by increasing student diversity and participation in the STEM workforce. The NSF program description on Advancing Innovation and Impact in Undergraduate STEM Education at Two-year Institutions of Higher Education supports projects that advance STEM education initiatives at two-year colleges. The program description promotes innovative and evidence-based practices in undergraduate STEM education at two-year colleges.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.