Foundations for Advancing STEM Teaching in Rural School Districts

Upper Iowa University, Fayette IA

Investigators

Abstract

With support from the NSF Robert Noyce Teacher Scholarship Program, this project aims to serve the national interest in high quality STEM teaching by investigating the STEM teaching needs of rural Iowa. The project involves a partnership between Upper Iowa University, local high-need school districts, and Northeast Iowa Community College. This partnership will define local teacher workforce needs and develop new recruiting strategies to interest STEM majors in teaching. It will build stronger pathways to teaching careers for community college students and identify supports that can help STEM majors become successful STEM teachers. Information produced by the project can inform efforts to increase the number and quality of STEM teachers who can meet the needs of rural schools. The activities of this project include surveys of local area school personnel, as well as focus groups with current STEM and education majors and alumni. The resulting data will provide insights into factors that support or hinder careers in STEM teaching at rural schools. The data will also document specific areas of STEM teacher shortage and inform the development of targeted recruiting strategies. Articulation agreements between Upper Iowa University and Northeast Iowa Community College will be strengthened by developing degree plans that enable STEM majors to graduate in four years with teacher certification and the skills to meet the needs of rural school districts. A review of existing academic support strategies for STEM majors will be conducted, and each strategy will be evaluated for potential success in the local context. Conference participation will enable project personnel to disseminate findings from the project and will inform the project of viable models in use elsewhere. A strong internal dissemination plan will ensure that information is shared with stakeholders directly engaged in the project and those whom the project intends to serve. The project may provide useful insights into affordances and constraints that arise in conjunction with the new All Science teacher endorsement area recently developed by the Iowa Department of Education. The NSF Robert Noyce Teacher Scholarship Program supports talented STEM undergraduate majors and professionals to become K-12 mathematics and science teachers in high-need school districts and in-service teachers to become STEM master teachers. It also supports research on the persistence, retention, and effectiveness of K-12 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.