Upgrading the Path to Mathematics Teaching by Adding Express and Multiple On-ramps

San Diego State University Foundation, San Diego CA

Investigators

Abstract

UPTEMPO: Upgrading the Path to Mathematics Teaching by Adding Express and Multiple On-ramps is a Robert Noyce Track 1: Scholarships & Stipends project at San Diego State University (SDSU). UPTEMPO aims to increase the number and diversity of highly-effective mathematics teachers in high-need California schools. At SDSU, several impediments prevent high-achieving students from considering mathematics teaching: (1) women and underrepresented minorities often feel that they do not belong in STEM fields; (2) those who are STEM majors rarely engage in authentic teaching experiences that pique their interest in education; and (3) students who are interested in teaching choose not to pursue a teaching career because they must complete and pay for a fifth-year credential program. UPTEMPO activities aim to address each of these impediments. The project will partner with Grossmont College, a nearby community college, to attract new candidates to STEM. To attract STEM majors to teaching, UPTEMPO will create multiple authentic teaching experiences. Experiences will range from tutoring (in a middle school, high school, or community college) to teaching labs for undergraduates enrolled in precalculus at SDSU. Additionally, to support STEM teacher prospects, the project will develop new pathways, also called on-ramps, to expedite SDSU students? ability to earn a mathematics teaching credential. Noyce Interns and Scholars will be mentored by SDSU's Noyce Master Teaching Fellows and other exemplary teachers in partnering school districts. UPTEMPO will support initiatives to attract (via new on-ramps) and retain (via authentic experiences and research-based coursework) candidates from Grossmont College and San Diego State University. The project aims to produce at least 44 new secondary teachers of mathematics by 2023. Thirty-two Noyce Scholars will be enrolled in SDSU's credential program as post-baccalaureates. The remaining 12 will be undergraduates enrolled in the institution's new 4-year teacher certification program. All Noyce Scholars will participate in teaching experiences in San Diego Unified School District or Sweetwater Union High School District, both of which are high-need school districts that are partnering with UPTEMPO. Given the lack of a single ?best way? to attract and retain teaching candidates, UPTEMPO will provide multiple pathways (or on-ramps) for Noyce Scholars and follow these Scholars through their first three years of teaching. This sustained interaction will provide the field with valuable research regarding the efficacy of specific affordances provided by the different pathways, as well as the ability of these affordances to meet specific candidate needs. The project will also investigate the process of supporting mathematics majors to develop caring perspectives toward students. As such, project could contribute to the diversification of the teaching community coupled with an ongoing supply of excellent teachers of mathematics for K-12 students. 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.