GK-12: The Pittsburgh Partnership for ENERGIZing Science in Urban Schools

University Of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh PA

Investigators

Abstract

Title: The Pittsburgh Partnership for ENERGizing Science in Urban Schools Institution: The University of Pittsburgh PI/Co-PIs: Joseph Grabowski (PI), Jennifer L. Cartier (co-PI) Fellows perYear: 11 Graduate Fellows and 7 Undergraduate Fellows School Partner: Pittsburgh Public School District (PPSD) Target: 3rd through 8th grades Setting: Urban Disciplines: Chemistry, Biological Sciences, Physics & Astronomy, Geology & Planetary Sciences, Mathematics, Neuroscience. Narrative: Well-documented barriers to good science teaching exist at the elementary and middle school level, most notable of which, there is little time in an overstuffed curriculum for sustained exploration of significant science concepts. One response has been the development of hands-on kits such as the Full Option Science System (FOSS) curriculum in use in the PPSD. While FOSS materials are a step in the right direction in terms of increasing the emphasis on exploratory experiences for students and decreasing the sheer number of "facts" and "topics" to be covered, they are not, in and of themselves, a solution to the problem of inadequate science instruction. The fact remains that too many teachers lack the necessary content knowledge to engage their students in rich discussions around the concepts underlying empirical experiences within the FOSS curriculum. We have selected the "big idea" of energy as a theme, as it fits with many of the FOSS units in use in PPSD. The adoption of a conceptual theme will provide better articulation between teams as well as providing students with a "conceptual consistency". Intellectual Merit: To increase content support for teachers, we will form partnerships between grade 3-8 teachers in PPSD and STEM students at the University of Pittsburgh (selected to represent the diversity of STEM personnel). Funding will support 12 teams of elementary/middle school teachers, STEM graduate students and undergraduate students, as well as math and reading specialists from selected schools. Given time demands on elementary curricula, it is important to have interdisciplinary support in order to establish the time within the school day to teach innovative and rigorous science. An important activity of each team will be to study and implement grade-level appropriate FOSS units and to design and deliver related professional development workshops to other PPSD teachers, in order to disseminate validated approaches. A project coordinator, with assistance from School of Education faculty, will provide support related to inquiry pedagogy and instructional approaches (emphasis on modeling and argumentation) consistent with those described in the National Science Teaching Standards. An external evaluator will oversee assessment instrument design and data planning, will conduct site visits, and will collect, analyze, and report on data on progress toward project goals. Broader Impacts: Increasing teacher content knowledge is an important goal of our project, but it is by no means the only one. We also anticipate that GK-12 Fellows will gain valuable insights into the complexities of urban school teaching and effective pedagogical strategies, both through the training activities, the mentoring they receive and deliver, discussions with other participants, and their interactions with school students. During the preparation course each summer and follow-up endeavors, particular emphasis will be placed on the nature of science as a "sense-making" endeavor supported by social discourse. This view of science, although consistent with current reform movements in science education, is still new and quite foreign to most STEM students (and many K-12 teachers). Thus, our work with teams will include explicit discussion of the nature of scientific inquiry, examples of strategies to engage elementary/middle school students in argumentation and explanation related to empirical phenomena, and reflective analysis of instruction provided by team members. All of the GK-12 activities will serve to establish links (currently completely lacking) between the PPSD teachers and the STEM faculty and students at Pitt while specific activities, such as the Family Science Night and monthly newsletter, will connect project personnel with school student's families. This project is receiving partial support from the Directorate for Mathematical and Physical Sciences.