Inclusive Instructor Behaviors in the Calculus Sequence

本项目将支持一项教育研究项目，旨在设计、实施和分析一项调查结果，该调查旨在探索一年级微积分课程中包容性教师的行为。此外，它还将支持专业发展，使首席研究员（一名新的STEM教育研究员）能够发展开展项目所需的技能。K-12阶段的研究提供了大量证据，表明课堂环境和教师实践影响学生的成长心态、归属感和自我效能感，尤其是代表性不足的学生。研究还表明，STEM领域的边缘群体可能以不同于非边缘群体的方式感知环境和教师行为。在本科阶段，这方面的工作做得很少。在这个能力建设项目中，将开发一种测量包容性教师行为的调查工具，并将其提供给宾夕法尼亚州立大学1000多名STEM微积分专业的学生。同时，研究者将参与一个密集的，由两部分组成的专业发展过程。PI将有一个由数学教育和STEM多样性研究专家组成的导师团队，他们将在整个项目中为PI提供支持。此外，他还将参加统计和数学教育方面的研究生课程，以增加他在数学教育研究方面的知识和技能。在这个项目中，将使用相关的K-12和本科调查的项目来开发一个衡量包容性教师行为的工具。该工具将在第一年试行，然后根据结果进行修订。宾夕法尼亚州立大学微积分课的学生将被要求完成该仪器，研究者将分析和解释调查结果。此外，将收集和分析来自课堂观察、焦点小组和认知访谈的定性数据，以帮助验证工具的有效性和解释数据。这项为期两年的能力建设项目的成果有望为今后大学数学课程公平教学实践的相关工作奠定基础。该项目得到了EHR核心研究：STEM教育研究能力建设（ECR: BCSER）竞赛的支持，该竞赛旨在培养个人在STEM学习和学习环境中开展高质量基础STEM教育研究的能力，扩大STEM领域的参与，以及STEM劳动力的发展。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。

This project will support an educational research project to design, implement, and analyze the results of survey that explores inclusive teacher behaviors in first year calculus classes. In addition, it will support professional development to enable the principal investigator, a new STEM education researcher, to develop the skills needed to conduct the project. Research at the K-12 level provides considerable evidence that classroom environment and teacher practice affect the growth mindset, sense of belonging, and self-efficacy of students, particularly underrepresented students. Research also shows that marginalized groups in STEM may perceive the environment and teacher behavior in different ways than those from non-marginalized groups. Little work in this area has been done at the undergraduate level. In this building capacity project, a survey instrument to measure inclusive instructor behaviors will be developed and given to over 1000 STEM majors in calculus at Penn State University. Simultaneously, the investigator will be involved in an intensive, two-part professional development process. The PI will have a mentor team consisting of experts in mathematics education and STEM diversity research who will support him during the entire project. In addition, he will take graduate level classes in statistics and mathematics education to increase his knowledge and skills in math education research.In this project, an instrument to measure inclusive teacher behaviors will be developed by using items from relevant K-12 and undergraduate surveys. The instrument will be piloted in year one, and then revised based on the results. Students in calculus classes at Penn State University will be asked to complete the instrument, and the investigator will analyze and interpret the survey results. In addition, qualitative data from classroom observations, focus groups, and cognitive interviews will be gathered and analyzed to help validate instrument validity and interpret the data. Results of this two-year capacity building project are expected to lay the foundation for future work related to equitable teaching practices in college mathematics courses.The project is supported through the EHR Core Research: Building Capacity in STEM Education Research (ECR: BCSER) competition that is designed to build individuals' capacity to carry out high quality fundamental STEM education research in STEM learning and learning environments, broadening participation in STEM fields, and STEM workforce development.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.