Building a Pathway for Recruiting and Preparing STEM Teachers in Rural West Central Illinois

Western Illinois University, Macomb IL

Investigators

Abstract

The Noyce Track 1 project, #3343323, at Western Illinois University, aims to serve the national need of preparing highly-qualified STEM teachers for high needs secondary schools, especially in West Central Illinois and rural areas of the state. This project intends to fund 24 full-ride scholarships at WIU to juniors and seniors majoring in STEM field (Math, Physics, Chemistry, and Biology) and working toward a secondary teaching license. This Noyce project at Western Illinois University includes partnerships with Black Hawk College (BHC) and several school districts in West Central Illinois. Additionally, this project will support these Noyce scholars by providing/offering specialized professional development, workshops, and networking for these scholars in the areas of math, science, and general education. The proposed project components will enable high-achieving students to become secondary STEM teachers with extensive expertise in active learning instruction, student engagement and connections, problem-solving and inquiry instructional methods, and real-life applications in math and science. These future STEM teachers will develop a hand-on, minds-on approach to learning that will have a significant impact on the teaching and learning of math and science in their communities and on all the students in their classrooms. Project goals include: (1) Expand opportunities to introduce early STEM majors to the theory and practice of teaching STEM, (2)Prepare STEM teachers who are broadly trained in both content and pedagogy and specifically trained to be aware of particular needs and factors when teaching STEM in primarily rural communities, (3) Expand the Learning Assistant (LA) program at WIU and establish an LA program at BHC by providing opportunities for potential Noyce scholars to serve as LAs in math and science courses at both schools, and (4) Use the LA program and related Introduction to STEM Teaching course to recruit potential Noyce scholars, to improve the student learning of math and science at both institutions. This project will be iteratively evaluated. Evaluation of the project will be guided by the following evaluation question(s): (1) With what quality and fidelity is the project implemented?, (2) To what extent does the project attain its specific measurable objectives as described in the proposal?, and (3) To what extent has the project team adapted to changing circumstances and recommendations from the formative evaluation process? This Track 1: Scholarships and Stipends 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 persistence, retention, and effectiveness 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.