Improving STEM Education through a Teacher Residency Program

West Chester University Of Pennsylvania, West Chester PA

Investigators

Abstract

The project aims to serve the national need of developing highly effective secondary science and mathematics teachers. Two cohorts of six Teacher Fellows each will progress through a novel residency program. They will then enter the workforce with a Masters in Secondary Education and will become well-prepared STEM teachers leaders in both rural and urban schools. As teachers, these Fellows will have access to research experiences as well as learning opportunities with partnering industries and organizations. Through these experiences and their graduate program, it is intended that Fellows will gain understanding of the Pennsylvania "STEM ecosystem" and will broaden their networks. This project at West Chester University in Pennsylvania includes partnerships with the Oxford Area School District and the Chichester School District, as well as Longwood Gardens, Fluxspace, and Texas Instruments. Twelve teachers, in two cohorts, will be supported in attaining their Master's degree and persisting through four years of teaching in this six-year project. Project goals include: recruiting diverse cohorts and preparing those cohorts for teaching diverse populations with culturally-relevant pedagogy, supporting Fellows through a rigorous and innovative Master's program that centers on a residency model, and providing induction opportunities that enhance and extend Fellows' STEM knowledge and networks. Through their residency, Fellows progress through a stable year-long teaching experience with a single classroom and mentor. The partnership with Longwood Gardens is expected to benefit both Fellows and the organization as they work together to align garden outreach activities with K-12 Next Generation Science Standards. Other informal and formal learning can occur through summer activities with Fluxspace and technology training through Texas Instruments, as well as potential research experiences in collaboration with Penn State University. Through an assessment of the residency model and the multi-faceted induction opportunities, this project will add to the knowledge of how to prepare novice teachers to become teacher leaders. The partnerships involved may also lead to a more robust regional STEM ecosystem and serve as models for other states as to how industry and informal STEM institutions can support teacher education and increased public scientific literacy. This Track 2: Teaching Fellowships 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.