Investigating Factors Influencing Engineering and Computer Science Teachers’ Professional Identity, Support Networks, Effectiveness, and Retention

该项目旨在满足国家招聘和留住有效的工程和计算机科学（CS）教师的需求。由于工程和CS已成为K-12教育的优先事项，迫切需要增加对工程和CS教师经验的了解，以及影响其保留和有效性的因素。虽然有一个强大的研究基础上保留的数学和科学教师，很少有研究探讨影响保留和有效性的工程或CS教师的因素。本研究旨在探讨高需求学校中，工程与计算机教师的专业认同与支持网络如何影响他们的保留与效能。此外，本研究旨在探讨学校或学区层面的特征如何与教师的专业身份，支持网络，有效性和保留。此外，本研究旨在了解教师教育计划对工程和CS教师的有效性和保留的影响。最终，这项工作将有助于我们了解如何最好地支持和留住高需求的K-12学校有效的工程和CS教师。格鲁吉亚理工学院的这一项目包括与格鲁吉亚教育部、格鲁吉亚学院和州立大学以及皮埃蒙特大学的伙伴关系。三个项目目标指导主要调查员的工作。首先是分析国家级工程和CS教师的流动性，自然减员和有效性数据。第二是围绕职业认同、自我效能、支持网络、有效性和保留制定和管理一项全国调查。第三，也是最后，是进行案例研究，以发展工程和CS教师的经验深刻的，情境化的理解。采用顺序解释混合方法设计，该项目将调查与这三个研究目标相一致的一系列研究问题。研究问题包括：哪些因素影响工程和CS教师在高需求学校的持续性？工程与计算机教师专业认同、自我效能与保留之间的关系为何？又有哪些经验会影响工程与计算机教师的专业认同、自我效能、效能、保留与持续性？这项研究的更广泛影响将在国家一级。确定影响工程和CS教师的有效性和保留的因素，特别是在高需求学校的教师中，有可能支持教师教育计划，在未来准备工程和CS教师。该项目也有可能通过对教师职业身份，个人网络，支持结构，自我效能，教师效能和教师保留之间的相互联系产生新的见解，为STEM教育文献做出贡献。这个轨道4：诺伊斯研究项目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。

This project aims to serve the national need for recruiting and retaining effective engineering and computer science (CS) teachers. As engineering and CS have emerged as priorities in K-12 education, there is a pressing need to increase understanding of the experiences of engineering and CS teachers and factors that influence their retention and effectiveness. Although there is a strong research base on the retention of mathematics and science teachers, little research has examined factors impacting the retention and effectiveness of engineering or CS teachers. The purpose of this research is to investigate how engineering and CS teachers’ professional identity and support networks impact their retention and effectiveness in high-need schools. Additionally, the research aims to explore how school or school district-level characteristics might be associated with teachers’ professional identity, support networks, effectiveness, and retention. Further, the research aims to understand the influence of teacher education programs on engineering and CS teachers’ effectiveness and retention. Ultimately, this work will contribute to our understanding of how best to support and retain effective engineering and CS teachers in high-need K-12 schools. This project at the Georgia Institute of Technology includes partnerships with the Georgia Department of Education, Georgia College and State University, and Piedmont University. Three project goals guide the work of the principal investigators. First is to analyze state-level engineering and CS teacher mobility, attrition, and effectiveness data. Second is to develop and administer a national survey around professional identity, self-efficacy, support networks, effectiveness, and retention. Third, and finally, is to conduct case studies to develop deep, contextualized understandings of engineering and CS teachers’ experiences. Employing a sequential explanatory mixed-methods design, the project will investigate an array of research questions aligned with these three study goals. Research questions include: What factors influence engineering and CS teachers’ persistence in high-need schools? What are the relationships among professional identity, self-efficacy, and retention for engineering and CS teachers? And what experiences influence the professional identities, self-efficacy, effectiveness, retention, and persistence of engineering and CS teachers? The broader impacts of this research will be at the national level. Identifying factors that influence engineering and CS teachers’ effectiveness and retention, specifically among teachers in high-need schools, has the potential to support teacher education programs in preparing engineering and CS teachers in the future. The project also has the potential to contribute to STEM education literature by generating new insights about the interconnections among teacher professional identity, personal networks, support structures, self-efficacy, teacher effectiveness, and teacher retention. 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.