Expert Clinically-Based Teacher Educators (ECBTE)

University Of Cincinnati Main Campus, Cincinnati OH

Investigators

Abstract

This Noyce Master Teaching Fellowship (MTF) project invests in master teachers and enhances their growth opportunities by supporting them to become educators who will close the gap between university teacher preparation programs and high-needs school districts in the greater Cincinnati area. The goals of this project are to (a) retain 18 experienced STEM teachers and develop their capacity to become expert clinical educators, (b) enhance the preparation and support for pre-service and new STEM teachers and, (c) provide access to high quality STEM instruction for local secondary students. The partnership between the University of Cincinnati, Cincinnati Public Schools, and Cincinnati State Technical Community College is particularly strong. Each partner institution will take a leadership role in providing teachers with a menu of professional development activities that are related to each of the project's goals. Thus, this plan will provide an exemplary model for creating synergy between high-needs school districts and institutions of higher learning as well as for master teacher development. There is an emerging body of research that shows that opportunities for professional growth for teachers tend to diminish by the time they are beginning to be recognized as master teachers; a time when they are also likely to want to consider career trajectories in administration or higher education. This ambitious plan is based on the hypothesis that if master teachers are provided with options to create new career paths they will be more likely to remain in the classroom. Therefore, the project provides master teachers with a variety of options to advance their careers such as, learning how to teach dual credit or AP courses, serving as adjunct faculty, receiving certification to teach English Language Learners, participating in curriculum revision for pre-service teachers, or instructing and devising curricula for blended STEM e-learning. The project's core activities, which include advanced content coursework, mentor training, and advanced pedagogical training is grounded in the literature on emerging instructional practices that have been shown to be effective. Formative and summative evaluation will be performed using a mixed-methods approach to monitor progress toward the project goals for retention, master teacher development, and overall project effectiveness. Classroom observations, surveys, and focus group interviews will be collected and analyzed to provide insight into whether or not master teachers are using their experiences to provide high-quality learning experiences, strengthening teaching networks through mentoring and other leadership activities, and developing action research plans. Project results will be disseminated at national meetings held by the American Educational Research Association and in the journals such as, Educational Action Research, Innovative Higher Education, the Journal of STEM Education, and the Journal of Research in STEM Education.