A Model of Educational Transformation: Developing a Community of Faculty Implementing Next Generation Physical Science and Everyday Thinking

该项目涉及科学教育的一个重要方面，即准备小学教师了解物理科学概念，并有信心让低年级学生探索物理科学。 此外，该项目旨在解决总统科技顾问理事会的第一项建议，即“促进广泛采用经经验验证的教学实践。“该项目将解决与从传播转向实施、影响和可持续性相关的核心挑战。 它将通过实施和研究现有的职前小学教师物理科学课程、下一代物理科学和日常思维，使教师、物理学教授和物理教育教授参与课程改革和持续专业发展。（下一代PET）课程，这是与下一代科学标准（NGSS）和国家研究理事会K-12科学教育框架。初步数据表明了这些材料的有效性。然而，仅仅提供这些材料并不能确保它们被更广泛的受众所采用;相反，研究表明，“制定和传播”的方法影响有限。相反，该项目将形成一个教师社区，可以分享专业知识，并记录实施战略，挑战和经验教训。该社区将吸引来自全国各地的50名教师参与使用下一代PET的课程转型，并将在项目期间接触7000多名学生。长期影响将包括一大批未来的小学教师，他们更好地准备迎接向未来的学生教授NGSS活动的挑战，以及一个专家从业者和倡导者社区，他们可以在更大的物理教育社区中参与教育转型。三个目标指导着这个项目。首先是建立和参与下一代PET实践社区，由项目领导和教师实施者组成。实践社区（CoP）将包括三个层次：项目领导层、一个由经验丰富的PET讲师组成的小组，称为专家干部（已经确定），以及一个更大的扩展干部。目标二是评估对教师和学生的直接影响。三是为教师变革与教育转型的研究奠定基础。该项目假设教师参与结构化和支持的CoP将导致深远和可持续的教育转型。该项目的研究议程将通过调查一个首要问题来研究这一猜想：下一代PET实践社区在多大程度上导致有效的教育转型？研究设计使用嵌入式系统或生态学的角度对人类发展的个人教师被视为影响社区的发展和社区被视为影响教师的发展（科尔，1996年;罗格夫，2003年）。 若干层面的研究将有助于解决上述首要问题。社区层面：CoP是如何建立的？随着时间的推移，CoP如何围绕有效的教学实践制定话语规范？学院级（a）：CoP是否支持教师应对与课程转型工作相关的已知挑战（这些挑战通常是标准传播模式变化的障碍）？学院级（B）：随着时间的推移，学院采用下一代PET材料和核心教学实践的部分和有条件的方式是什么？广泛的社区层面：在多大程度上，CoP模型影响教师不直接参与CoP？ 最终，该项目将有助于提高民众的知情程度和科学素养，并有助于编写关于教育改革和教师改革的文献。 该项目有助于本科教育的改善，因为它参加了NSF-IUSE框架，该框架“促进了新的和令人兴奋的方法，利用STEM学习和教育的研究来解决跨机构和机构内以及特定学科内和跨机构的STEM教育挑战。"

This project addresses a critical aspect of science education, that of preparing elementary teachers to be knowledgeable of physical science concepts and confident in engaging early grade students in exploring physical science. Moreover, this project seeks to address the first recommendation of the President's Council of Advisors on Science and Technology Engage to Excel report, to "catalyze widespread adoption of empirically validated teaching practices." This project will tackle a core challenge associated with moving beyond dissemination to implementation, impact, and sustainability. It will engage a community of faculty, professors of physics and of physics education, in course transformation and continued professional development through the implementation of and research on an existing physical science curriculum for pre-service elementary teachers, the Next Generation Physical Science and Everyday Thinking (Next Gen PET) curriculum, which is aligned with the Next Generation Science Standards (NGSS), and the National Research Council K-12 Science Education Framework. Preliminary data indicate the effectiveness of these materials. However, the simple availability of these materials does not ensure their adoption by a wider audience; rather, research indicates that "develop and disseminate" approaches have limited impact. This project will instead form a community of instructors that can share expertise, and document implementation strategies, challenges, and lessons learned. This community will engage 50 faculty members from across the country in course transformation using Next Gen PET, and will reach more than 7000 students during the project. Long-term impacts will include a large group of prospective elementary teachers better prepared to meet the challenges of teaching NGSS-aligned activities to their future students, as well as a community of expert practitioners and advocates who can engage in educational transformation in the larger physics education community. Three goals guide the project. The first is to establish and engage the Next Gen PET community of practice, consisting of project leadership and faculty implementers. The community of practice (CoP) will include three tiers: the project leadership, a small group of experienced PET instructors called the expert-cadre (already identified), and a larger expanded-cadre. Goal two is to evaluate direct impacts on faculty and students. The third goal is to contribute to the research base on faculty change and educational transformation. This project hypothesizes that faculty involvement in a structured and supported CoP will lead to far-reaching and sustainable educational transformation. The project's research agenda will examine this conjecture by investigating an overarching question: To what extent does the Next Gen PET community of practice lead to effective educational transformation? The research design uses an embedded systems or ecological perspective on human development where individual faculty are seen to influence the development of the community and the community is seen as influencing the development of faculty (Cole, 1996; Rogoff, 2003). Several levels of research will contribute to addressing the overarching question above. Community-level: How does the CoP get established and how does the CoP develop discursive norms around effective pedagogical practice over time? Faculty-level (a): Does the CoP support faculty in responding to known challenges associated with course transformation efforts (which are often barriers to change in the standard dissemination models)? Faculty-level (b): What are the partial and conditional ways faculty take-up the Next Gen PET materials and core pedagogical practices over time? Broad Community-level: To what extent does the CoP model impact faculty not directly involved in the CoP? Ultimately, this project will contribute to a more informed, scientifically literate population and to the literature on educational transformation and faculty change. This project contributes to the improvement of undergraduate education as it attends to the NSF-IUSE framework which "promotes new and exciting approaches to using research on STEM learning and education to address STEM education challenges across and within institutions, as well as within and across specific disciplines."