A Robert Noyce Spatial Thinking Academy for Preparing Effective K-12 STEM Teachers

该项目旨在满足国家对更多高素质STEM教师的需求。为此，它将创建罗伯特·诺伊斯空间思维学院，旨在激励有才华的STEM学生和专业人士在高需求的公立学校成为成功的STEM教师。在迈向认证的过程中，未来的教师将提高他们的空间思维知识和技能。此外，他们将学习使用空间思维作为提高学生STEM学习的一种方法。该项目将为纽约州教师认证提供两条途径：途径1面向近期STEM毕业生，途径2面向STEM劳动力专业人员。三组途径1和途径2的学生将获得奖学金或津贴。通过空间思维学院，该项目将：(1)培养和留住来自不同文化背景的STEM教育人才；(2)提高未来教师对正式和非正式STEM学习环境的理解；(3)提高高素质STEM教育工作者的能力，通过加强他们的空间思维技能来促进STEM概念的学习。圣约翰大学的这个项目包括与纽约市大都会区高三需求学区（扬克斯，纽约学区和史坦顿岛的31学区）的合作。该项目的目标是招募、支持和留住有才华的STEM毕业生，他们将在高需求的公立学校从事生物、化学、物理、环境科学或数学教师的职业。为此，空间思维学院将支持36名有才华的STEM毕业生在这些学校服务，并将提供通往纽约州教师初始认证的两条途径。途径1是为24名圣约翰大学STEM专业的应届毕业生设计的。途径2是为12名寻求职业转换初始教学认证的STEM专业人士设计的。途径1和途径2的未来教师都将参加为期一年的教育硕士学位，并将获得当年的奖学金或津贴。通过纵向混合方法研究方法，项目研究者将：(a)设计、测试和验证旨在在其他大学可持续和适应性的STEM教学实习模式；(b)测试和验证机构政策和最佳做法，以增加来自多元文化社区的STEM专业学生从事教学工作的人数；(c)审查、修改和实施为STEM专业学生提供职业道路的制度战略，以追求STEM教育工作者的职业；(d)设计、测试、验证和验证课程，认识到空间思维作为21世纪STEM教育、专业和职业准备技能的重要性；(e)为STEM教师设计、测试和验证一个持续的专业发展和教学指导模型。测试和验证将在参与之前，在项目期间以及在合作学区就业后的一年内通过跟踪学者进行。该研究不仅将探索未来教师将空间技能与STEM科目联系起来的能力，还将探索他们从空间思维的角度教授STEM主题的能力。这项工作的结果可能对在全国范围内将空间认知研究与STEM教学实践联系起来具有深远的意义。该项目由罗伯特·诺伊斯教师奖学金计划（诺伊斯）资助。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。

This project aims to serve the national need for a greater number of highly qualified STEM teachers. To do so, it will create the Robert Noyce Spatial Thinking Academy, which will be designed to motivate talented STEM students and professionals to become successful STEM teachers in high-need public schools. In the process of moving to certification, the future teachers will improve their spatial thinking knowledge and skills. In addition, they will learn to use spatial thinking as an approach to improve their students' STEM learning. The project will provide two pathways to New York State Teacher Certification: Pathway 1 for recent STEM graduates and Pathway 2 for STEM workforce professionals. Three combined cohorts of Pathway 1 and Pathway 2 students will receive scholarships or stipends. Through the Spatial Thinking Academy, the project will: (1) train and retain talented individuals from culturally diverse backgrounds in STEM education; (2) increase future teachers' understanding of the context in which STEM learning occurs in both informal and formal settings; and (3) increase the capacity of highly qualified STEM educators to advance learning of STEM concepts by reinforcing them with spatial thinking skills.This project at Saint John's University includes partnerships with New York City metropolitan area high-three need school districts (Yonkers, New York School District and School District 31 in Staten Island). The goal of the project will be to recruit, support, and retain talented STEM graduates who will pursue a career as a biology, chemistry, physics, environmental science, or mathematics teacher in high-need public schools. In doing so, the Spatial Thinking Academy will support 36 talented STEM graduates to serve in these schools and will provide two pathways leading to New York State Teacher Initial Certification. Pathway 1 is designed for 24 recent Saint John's graduates with STEM majors. Pathway 2 is designed for 12 STEM professionals seeking initial teaching certification as career changers. Both Pathway 1 and 2 future teachers will enroll in a one-year master's degree in education and will receive scholarships or stipends for that year. Through a longitudinal mixed methods research approach, the project investigators will: (a) design, test, and verify a STEM teaching residency model intended to be sustainable and adaptable at other universities; (b) test and verify institutional policies and best practices to increase the number of STEM majors from culturally diverse communities who pursue careers in teaching; (c) review, modify, and implement institutional strategies that provide a career pathway for STEM majors to pursue careers as STEM educators; (d) design, test, verify, and validate curricula that recognize the importance of spatial thinking as a 21st-century STEM educational, professional, and career-readiness skill; and (e) design, test, and validate a model for ongoing professional development and instructional coaching for STEM teachers. Testing and validation will be conducted by tracking scholars prior to participation, during the program period, and for one year following employment in the partner school districts. The study will explore not only future teachers' abilities to connect spatial skills and STEM subjects, but also their ability to teach STEM topics from the perspective of spatial thinking. The results of this work may have far-reaching implications for connecting spatial cognition research with STEM teaching practice throughout the country. 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 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.