Authentic STEM Laboratory Research Experiences for Prospective Science Teachers

该项目旨在满足国家对高效科学教师的需求，支持未来教师的学术准备和专业发展，这些教师将向学生传达对开展基础科研的理解和兴奋。STEM研究为社会采用的许多进步提供了基础。由于对准备充分的STEM劳动力的需求持续增长，在高中科学课上学习实验设计和解决问题的基本方面的学生更有可能考虑STEM领域的职业。该项目将吸引和指导未来的科学教师，他们将通过作为STEM研究实验室团队成员的工作获得利用研究方法的第一手经验。具有这种真实研究经验的未来教师将更有能力创建课程，提高学生对基础研究价值的欣赏，并鼓励学生将STEM领域的就业视为可行的职业选择。作为对研究的补充，未来的教师将参加专业发展活动，以获得教学内容知识，并学习让中学生参与真实研究经验的最佳做法。斯托尼布鲁克大学（SBU）的这个项目包括与SBU和布鲁克海文国家实验室（BNL）的STEM研究教师以及长岛的几个学区的合作伙伴关系，特别是那些已经为学生提供STEM研究项目的学区。为期三年的项目将提供二十四（24）未来的中学STEM教师，每年8，在SBU和BNL的夏季科学实验室研究经验。该项目有四个基本目标。第一个目标是让这些未来的教师中的每一个都能作为STEM研究实验室团队的一员参与真实的研究体验。其次是纳入专业发展计划，旨在为这些有远见的STEM教师提供知识基础，以便在未来的课堂上为学生提供研究经验。这一目标的必然结果是建立科学教师队伍，他们将把真实研究的知识带到他们的中学。第三是评估项目各组成部分对项目参与者进行真实研究和将经验带入课堂的成熟和准备的影响。第四是传播项目成果，以其他教师，部门和机构的兴趣和激情，改善和加强干职前教师准备，特别是通过研究经验。项目评估的目的是提供有用的见解，如何的技能，知识和队列互动，未来的科学教师获得通过项目的研究和专业发展活动将影响他们的自我效能感，以及他们的教学。调查结果将通过在地方，区域和国家会议上的演讲传播，目的是让科学教师教育工作者了解在科学教师准备计划中包括真实的STEM研究经验的价值。这个诺伊斯职前教师项目的研究经验是通过罗伯特诺伊斯教师奖学金计划（诺伊斯）的支持。诺伊斯计划支持有才华的STEM本科专业和专业人士成为有效的K-12 STEM教师和经验丰富的模范K-12教师，成为高需求学区的STEM硕士教师。该奖项反映了NSF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。

The project aims to serve the national need for highly effective science teachers by supporting the academic preparation and professional development of prospective teachers who will convey understanding and excitement of conducting basic scientific research to their students. STEM research provides the foundation for many of the advances that are adopted by society. As there is a continuing and increasing need for a well-prepared STEM work force, students who learn the fundamental aspects of experimental design and problem solving while in high school science classes are more likely to consider careers in STEM fields. The project will engage and mentor prospective science teachers who will gain first-hand experience utilizing research methods through their work as members of STEM research laboratory teams. Prospective teachers who have such authentic research experiences will be better equipped to create lessons that enhance their students’ appreciation for the value of basic research and will encourage their students to view employment in a STEM field as a viable career choice. Complementing the research, prospective teachers will participate in professional development activities to gain pedagogical content knowledge and to learn best practices for engaging secondary school students in authentic research experiences. This project at Stony Brook University (SBU) includes partnerships with STEM research faculty at both SBU and Brookhaven National Laboratory (BNL) and with several school districts on Long Island, especially those that already house STEM research programs for their students. The three-year project will provide twenty-four (24) future secondary STEM teachers, 8 per year, with summer science laboratory research experiences at SBU and BNL. The project has four underlying goals. The first goal is for each of these future teachers to be engaged in an authentic research experience as a member of a STEM research laboratory team. Second is to incorporate a professional development program designed to furnish these perspective STEM teachers with the knowledge base to incorporate research experiences for students in their future classrooms. A corollary to this goal is to build cohorts of science teachers who will bring knowledge of authentic research into their secondary schools. Third is to evaluate the impact of project components on the project participants' maturating and preparation for conducting authentic research and bringing experiences to the classroom. Fourth is to disseminate project outcomes to other faculty, departments, and institutions with an interest in and passion for improving and enhancing STEM pre-service teacher preparation, especially via research experiences. Project evaluation is designed to provide useful insights into how the skills, knowledge, and cohort interactions that prospective science teachers gain through the project's research and professional development activities will influence their self-efficacy as well as their teaching. Findings will be disseminated through presentations at local, regional, and national meetings with the goal of informing science teacher educators about the value of including authentic STEM research experiences in science teacher preparation programs. This Noyce Research Experiences for Pre-Service Teachers 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 teacher to become STEM master teachers in high-need school districts. It also supports research on the 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.