TSETS: Tribal Steppingstones in Educational Transformative STEM: A TCU-Led Secondary and Middle School Teachers Mathematics Networking Strategy

Navajo Technical University, Crownpoint NM

Investigators

Abstract

A goal of the Tribal Colleges and Universities Program (TCUP) is to support TCUP-eligible institutions in strengthening and applying their science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) instructional and research capacities to better serve the Nation's citizens. Supporting these goals is the program’s TCUP for Secondary and Elementary Teachers in STEM (TSETS) funding focus which offers funding for TCUP-eligible institutions to apply their resident STEM capacity in providing professional development projects for inservice pre-college STEM educators in their communities. Specifically, TSETS projects are designed to strengthen K-12 teacher proficiency in STEM disciplinary or STEM education content and/or research. The TSETS Tribal Steppingstones in Educational Transformative STEM: A TCU Led Secondary and Middle School Teachers Mathematics Networking Strategy project, led by faculty members at Navajo Technical University, will directly address this goal through the delivery of three-year professional development experiences focused on improving the mathematics content knowledge of local educators employed in middle and high schools on the Navajo Reservation. Working with educators serving Navajo Reservation precollege students, the project is designed to strengthen mathematics instruction overall with the ultimate outcome of improving students’ mathematics outcomes. The project incorporates flexible elements designed to meet the professional development needs of twenty local educators and employs a comprehensive set of strategies to ensure long term systemic improvements in schools’ mathematics curriculum and instruction. This STEM teacher professional development project is designed to support educators in improving their mathematical instruction with options to renew and/or gain new mathematics teacher credentials. A range of mathematics courses that are required for New Mexico teacher licensing will be offered over the project’s five-year duration, providing a variety of entry points for educators tailored to their individual competencies and needs. Additional critical strategies for the project’s success include the extensive use of peer mentors who will contribute to the professional development activities design and delivery, regularly mentor individual teachers in group and one-one-one forums, and foster a strong professional learning community that includes precollege educators, NTU faculty members, and peer mentors. Activities will also address pedagogical content knowledge, aiming to improve teachers’ knowledge of and proficiency with using effective instructional methods. An additional anticipated outcome is the development of more robust precollege STEM curriculum pathways to better prepare students for success in college STEM degrees and workforce positions. The project evaluation will enable leadership to synthesize the effective elements of the project design which will be disseminated to the mathematics education community, thereby advancing understanding of effective mathematics teacher preparation. 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.