Culturally and Linguistically Sustaining STEM Pedagogies Using Mixed-Reality Simulations

该项目旨在通过一种包括虚拟化身实践教学的学习模式，培养STEM本科教育学生在文化和语言上的教学能力，从而为国家利益服务。虽然在家不说英语的学生人数持续增长，但在K-12学校，以英语为母语的学生一直在苦苦挣扎，尤其是在大学和劳动力市场的STEM领域，他们的代表性都不足。在美国，大多数STEM教师在ESOL教学中只接受了有限的准备。因此，为STEM职前教师做好准备，以更好地为非英语母语学生服务是至关重要的。该项目提供在线模块，以开发在文化和语言上可持续的STEM教学法，并在整个学习过程中提供重点导师反馈和高质量的混合现实模拟实践。该项目的预期成果是提高本科生制定文化和语言上可持续的STEM教学法的能力，因为它们支持在家学习英语以外的其他语言的学生，以及开发有效的基于实践的教师教育学习经验，包括可复制的在线教学活动。项目目标包括：1)培养本科STEM教育学生的文化和语言可持续性STEM教学实践；2)了解混合现实模拟在线学习模式对他们改善文化和语言可持续性STEM教学的影响。本项目采用混合方法的研究设计。发展教学专业知识不仅需要学习知识和观察示范教学，还需要有目的的实践，具有批判性的反思和集中的反馈。与传统的职前教师在课程中学习知识和概念，并在退出课程之前体验实际教学相比，体验式学习模式在一开始就提供了“体验”，使STEM职前教师能够认识到他们现有的实践，进行有目的的学习，并进行更有效的概念构建。通过该项目开发的数学和科学模拟中包含多语言化身。此外，嵌入多个混合现实模拟机会，集中导师反馈，提供高质量的实践机会，有目的地分布在整个职前教师学习项目中。带指导的混合现实模拟旨在为职前STEM教师提供实践教学法的机会，这些教学法涉及STEM中语言需求的多层概念化和学习者对文化融合的认同，以及复杂的实施技能发展。该项目的结果将通过专业途径（即国家和地方会议和同行评议期刊）、NSF STEM for All视频展示和项目网站传播。该项目有可能使STEM教育界受益，为多文化和多语言课堂培养STEM教师，最终提高所有学生的教育公平。NSF IUSE: EHR计划支持研究和开发项目，以提高所有学生STEM教育的有效性。通过参与学生学习轨道，该计划支持有前途的实践和工具的创建，探索和实施。部分资金来自Robert Noyce教师奖学金项目。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 interest by developing undergraduate STEM education students’ ability to teach in a way that is culturally and linguistically sustaining through a learning model that includes practicing teaching with virtual avatars. While the number of students who speak a language other than English at home continues to grow, English Speakers of Other Languages (ESOL) students have persistently floundered in K-12 schools and are underrepresented particularly in STEM fields in both college and the workforce. Most STEM teachers in the United States have received only limited preparation in ESOL instruction. Therefore, it is critical to prepare STEM pre-service teachers to better serve students who do not speak English as their primary language. This project provides online modules to develop culturally and linguistically sustaining STEM pedagogies with focused mentor feedback and high-quality mixed-reality simulation practices throughout the learning sequence. Anticipated outcomes of this project are the improvement of undergraduate students’ ability to enact culturally and linguistically sustaining STEM pedagogies as they support learning of students who speak another language than English at home, as well as the development of effective practice-based teacher education learning experiences including replicable online instructional activities.Project goals include 1) developing undergraduate STEM education students’ culturally and linguistically sustaining STEM teaching practices and 2) understanding effects of an online learning model with mixed-reality simulations on their improvement of culturally and linguistically sustaining STEM teaching. This project uses a mixed-methods research design. Developing instructional expertise requires not only learning knowledge and observing exemplary teaching but also purposeful practices with critical reflection and focused feedback. Compared to a typical teacher education program in which pre-service teachers learn the knowledge and concepts in their coursework and experience actual teaching toward exiting the program, the experiential learning model provides "experience" in the very beginning so that STEM pre-service teachers can recognize their existing practices, proceed through purposeful learning, and develop more effective concept building. Multilingual avatars are included in the mathematics and science simulations developed through this project. In addition, embedding multiple mixed-reality simulation opportunities with focused mentor feedback provides high-quality practice opportunities purposefully distributed throughout the pre-service teachers program of study. The mixed-reality simulations with mentoring are designed to provide the pre-service STEM teachers with opportunities to practice pedagogies that attend to the multi-layered conceptualization of language demands in STEM and learners' buy-in regarding incorporation of culture as well as complex implementation skill development. Results of this project are to be disseminated through professional avenues (i.e., national and local conferences and peer-reviewed journals), the NSF STEM for All video showcase, and a program website. The project has the potential to benefit the STEM education community by preparing STEM teachers for multicultural and multilingual classrooms, which will eventually improve educational equity for all students. The NSF IUSE: EHR Program supports research and development projects to improve the effectiveness of STEM education for all students. Through the Engaged Student Learning track, the program supports the creation, exploration, and implementation of promising practices and tools. Partial funding is from the Robert Noyce Teacher Scholarship program.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.