Investigating the Impact of a District-Wide Implementation of Science Curricula on Science Teachers Effectiveness and Retention

该项目旨在满足国家对科学教师效率和留任的需求。十多年来，教育改革文件强调了将纳入科学教学的重要和创新的特点(例如，三维科学学习、优先考虑科学现象、具有连贯的科学叙述、纳入工程学)。然而，考虑到复杂的教育格局，科学教师仍在努力理解这些概念，并将其落实到课堂上。此外，管理人员还很难评估教师如何根据这些功能参与并为学生创造机会。这些挑战可能会导致科学方面的效率降低和教师流失。该项目旨在调查中学科学教师和管理人员如何支持采用开放源码课程，以及这些行动如何与科学教师的有效性和留任有关。将对一个大型高需求学区及其各级管理部门如何寻求支持科学和STEM教师使用开放获取的科学课程(即开放式科学教育)成长和持续发展进行调查。研究人员将致力于将这些想法与教师在该地区的留校率和流动性联系起来。这些成果将为在高需求地区留住高效科学教师的研究和实践提供参考。鉴于对科学素养社会的需求日益增加，确保留住有效的科学教师对每个人都有好处。内华达大学拉斯维加斯分校的这个项目包括与克拉克县学区的合作。项目目标包括：(A)探索和了解一个大的高需求地区如何通过开放式科学课程接触和潜在地改变教师对学生进行科学教学的实践和愿景，(B)调查行政人员在支持教师转变科学实践时所扮演的角色，以及(C)就全区课程实施对科学教师留任和有效性的影响进行研究。伴随着这些目标，研究人员将进行一项多阶段并行收敛的混合方法研究。这项工作包括三组研究问题，调查(1)校区和行政部门如何支持教师将其当前课程与开放获取材料相结合，(2)教师参与材料的使用，以及(3)这些因素对教师留任和流失的影响。这个项目将有助于更广泛的学术对话，即如何为科学教师提供广泛的支持，以鼓励他们的有效性和留任力。此外，还将开发材料来帮助管理人员评估有效的科学教学。这项工作将由一个专家咨询委员会进行评估，该委员会的技能集反映了STEM教育的更大需求(例如，科学教师的领导能力和专业发展、科学教育的公平、高质量的开放式科学材料)。从这项工作中得出的研究将在学术界和实践者受众中传播。这个Track 4：Noyce研究项目是由Robert Noyce教师奖学金计划(Noyce)支持的。Noyce计划支持有才华的STEM本科专业和专业人员成为有效的K-12 STEM教师，并支持经验丰富、模范的K-12教师成为高需求学区的STEM硕士教师。它还支持对高需求学区K-12 STEM教师的有效性和留住的研究。这一奖项反映了NSF的法定使命，并通过使用基金会的智力优势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 of science teacher effectiveness and retention. For over a decade, educational reform documents have highlighted important and innovative features to be incorporated into science teaching (e.g., three-dimensional science learning, prioritizing science phenomena, having cohesive science narratives, incorporating engineering). However, given the complex educational landscape, science teachers are still grappling to understand and implement these concepts into their classrooms. Additionally, administrators also struggle to assess how teachers engage and create opportunities for students in line with these features. These challenges can lead to lowered effectiveness and teacher attrition in science. This project seeks to investigate how middle grade science teachers and administrators support the uptake of an open-source curriculum and how those actions could be related to science teacher effectiveness and retention. Investigation of how a large high-needs school district and multiple levels of its administration seek to support science and STEM teachers to grow and persist using an open- access science curriculum (i.e., OpenSciEd) will occur. Researchers will work to link these ideas to teachers’ retention and movability rates within the district. These outcomes will inform research and practice on retaining highly effective science teachers within a high-needs district. Given the increased need for a science-literate society, ensuring the retention of effective science teachers benefits everyone.This project at the University of Nevada, Las Vegas, includes a partnership with Clark County School District. Project goals include (a) exploring and understanding how a large high-needs district engages with and potentially shifts teachers’ practice and vision of science instruction for students through an open-access science curriculum, (b) investigating the role that administrators play when supporting teachers’ shifting science praxis, and (c) conducting research on the influence of district-wide curricular implementation on science teacher retention and effectiveness. Along with these goals, researchers will conduct a multi-phase parallel-converged mixed-methods study. This work includes three sets of research questions investigating how (1) the school district and administration support teachers to integrate their current curriculum with the open-access materials, (2) teachers engage with the materials, and (3) these factors impact teacher retention and attrition. This project will contribute to the larger academic conversation of how to provide extensive support to science teachers to encourage effectiveness and retention. Additionally, materials will be developed to help administrators assess effective science teaching. This work will be evaluated by an expert advisory board whose skill set speaks to the larger needs within STEM education (e.g., science teacher leadership and professional development, equity in science education, high-quality open-access science materials). Research derived from this work will be disseminated across academic and practitioner audiences. This Track 4: Noyce Research 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 effectiveness and retention 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.