CAREER - Transforming Science Teaching and Learning through Empowering Teachers and Students as Climate Justice Action Researchers and Change Agents

本项目支持校本科学教师和学生开展以社区为基础的科学研究，研究极端高温/城市岛屿在种族和民族多样化社区的原因和影响。在学校进行这种性质的研究很重要，因为学生参与社区科学研究的机会通常发生在校外。教师将参与专业学习经验，以支持他们在课堂上设计和实施研究项目所需的内容知识、科学研究实践和批判性教学法的发展。学生将识别与这一现象相关的当地相关问题，进行调查以探索问题，通过基于艺术的社区叙事分享他们的发现，并倡导变革。该项目将扩大以青年为中心、支持科学学习和身份建构的赋权方法的使用范围。这项研究的教育活动包括开发一门以气候正义行动研究为重点的研究生课程，以及供教师和学生在K-12课堂上使用的课程材料。该职业奖由发现研究preK-12计划（DRK-12）资助，该计划旨在通过研究和开发创新资源、模型和工具，显著提高preK-12学生和教师对科学、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，为拟议的项目提供了理论和实证依据。该项目也得到了STEM教育项目中的种族平等（EHR种族平等）的支持。该项目支持通过研究和实践促进STEM教育和劳动力发展中的种族平等的项目。将采用定性和定量方法来研究4个队列的40名教师如何培养他们的能力，以带领学生研究与他们社区相关的城市热岛问题。本研究将探讨学生参与这种行动研究如何影响科学学习和身份建构。该项目通过赋予教师和学生作为气候行动研究人员和变革推动者的权力，提出了一种以学校为基础的科学教学的新方法。这项研究将有助于发展一个以正义为中心的科学教育中心，还将产生以学校为基础的材料和专业发展活动，研究气候正义和种族正义的相互交织的本质。此外，项目成果将支持一种变革性的科学教师教育模式，使教师能够成为社区参与科学研究的设计者、公平倡导者和领导者。该奖项全部或部分由《2021年美国救援计划法案》（公法117-2）资助。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 supports school-based science teachers and students in conducting community-based science research on the causes and effects of extreme heat/urban islands in racially and ethnically diverse communities. Doing research of this nature in schools is important, as students’ opportunities to engage in community-based science research usually occur in out-of-school contexts. Teachers will participate in professional learning experiences that support their development of content knowledge, scientific research practices, and critical pedagogies needed to design and implement research projects in their classroom. Students will identify locally-relevant issues related to this phenomenon, conduct investigations to explore the issue, share their findings through arts-based community narratives, and advocate for change. This project will broaden access to empowering youth-centered approaches that support learning and identity construction in science. Educational activities culminating from this research include the development a graduate-level course focused on climate justice action research as well as curricular materials for K-12 classroom use by teachers and students. 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. This project is also supported by the Racial Equity in STEM Education program (EHR Racial Equity). The program supports projects that advance racial equity in STEM education and workforce development through research and practice. Qualitative and quantitative measures will be employed to study how 40 teachers across 4 cohorts develop their capacity to lead students in studying urban heat islands, an issue germane to their community. The research will explore how student participation in this action research shapes learning and identity construction in science. This project presents a novel approach to school-based science teaching and learning by empowering teachers and students as climate action researchers and change agents. The research will aid in the development of a hub for justice-centered science education and will also yield school-based materials and professional development activities that examine the interwoven nature of climate justice and racial justice. Further, project findings will support a transformative science teacher education model that empowers teachers as designers, equity advocates, and leaders in community-engaged science research. This award is funded in whole or in part under the American Rescue Plan Act of 2021 (Public Law 117-2).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.