CAREER: Fostering Early STEM Exploration with Gifted and High Ability Black Girls and Their Elementary Teachers through Culturally Relevant Experiential Learning Activities

在STEM教育中有天赋的黑人女孩的经验的奖学金有限。黑人女孩在资优项目中的代表性不足近40%，并且在高级课程工作中的代表性不足，例如以STEM为重点的Advanced Placement和其他课程。这个建议的职业生涯项目填补了一个理论上的差距，种族，性别，阶级和认知能力的天才，城市和教师教育的交叉点。研究人员将开发和研究共同学习，社区参与的教育计划，为有天赋的黑人女孩提供STEM教育管道和途径。这个拟议项目的中心目标是在初级水平上带来一个可操作的变革理论，以培养对STEM的归属感，早期STEM探索和发展，并通过批判性和文化相关的体验式学习培养STEM身份。作为教育一体化计划的一部分，该项目还将为有天赋的黑人女孩及其家庭编写课程材料（见我的STEM）以及教师专业发展材料（教师作为人才催化剂）。该职业奖由Discovery Research preK-12计划（DRK-12）资助，旨在通过研究和开发创新资源，模型和工具，显着提高preK-12学生和教师的科学，技术，工程和数学（STEM）的学习和教学。DRK-12计划中的项目建立在STEM教育的基础研究和先前的研究和开发工作的基础上，这些研究和开发工作为拟议的项目提供了理论和经验依据。研究人员将根据相关文献和有天赋的黑人女孩在STEM中使用社区和家庭投入的表达需求，为20名小学教师提供专业学习。教师参与者将沉浸在与文化相关的体验式STEM教学过程中，以提高他们的教学方法。混合方法的研究设计将告知该项目的两个组成部分的开发和实施，教师发展计划，教师作为人才催化剂，以及为40名被确定为天才的黑人女孩及其家庭开发的课程，见我在干。 预期的研究成果包括：（1）通过体验式学习，增加对小学年龄的黑人天才女孩在STEM身份方面的经验的理解;（2）发展一种理论，该理论以黑人天才女孩的声音，历史遗产和利益，他们的社区利益和家庭为合作伙伴;（3）共同开发的伙伴关系发展模式，支持有天赋的黑人女孩在初级STEM方面的人才识别和发展的共同愿景;（4）增加了对共同体的了解，学习模式和协作方法通知STEM人才识别和有天赋的黑人女孩的发展。这个奖项反映了NSF的法定使命，并已被认为是值得的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来提供支持。

There is limited scholarship on the experiences of gifted Black girls in STEM Education. Black girls are underrepresented by almost 40% in gifted programs, and under-referred for advanced course work, such as STEM-focused Advanced Placement and other courses. This proposed CAREER project fills a theoretical gap related to the intersections of race, gender, class, and cognitive ability in gifted, urban, and teacher education. The researcher will develop and study co-learning, community-engaged educational programs that center STEM education pipelines and pathways for gifted Black girls. The central aim of this proposed project is to bring about an actionable theory of change at the elementary level to foster a sense of belonging in STEM, early STEM exploration and development, and nurturing a STEM identity, through critical and culturally relevant experiential learning. The project will also develop curricular materials for gifted Black girls and their families (See Me in STEM) as well as professional development materials for teachers (Teachers as Talent Catalysts) as part of the educational integration plan. This CAREER award is funded by the Discovery Research preK-12 program (DRK-12) which seeks to significantly enhance the learning and teaching of science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) by preK-12 students and teachers, through research and development of innovative resources, models and tools. Projects in the DRK-12 program build on fundamental research in STEM education and prior research and development efforts that provide theoretical and empirical justification for proposed projects.The researcher will provide 20 elementary teachers with professional learning based on relevant literature and the expressed needs of gifted Black girls in STEM using community and familial input. Teacher participants will be immersed in culturally relevant experiential STEM teaching processes to enhance their pedagogy. A mixed-methods research design will inform the development and implementation of two components of the project, the teacher development program, Teachers as Talent Catalysts, and the curriculum developed for use with 40 Black girls identified as gifted and their families, See Me in STEM. The intended research outcomes include: (1) increased understanding of the experiences of elementary-aged gifted Black girls with respect to STEM identity via experiential learning; (2) development of a theory that centers the voices, historical legacies, and interests of gifted Black girls, their community interests, and families as partners; (3) a co-developed model for partnership development that supports a shared vision for talent identification and development in elementary STEM for gifted Black girls; and (4) increased understanding of how the co-learning model and collaborative approach informs the STEM talent identification and development of gifted Black girls.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.