3. Dig deeper into the standards.
One of our goals for the grant project was to help teachers develop a deeper understanding of the Florida Next Generation Sunshine State Standards (NGSSS) for Science. So, within each PD session, the trainer led teachers in a frank discussion of the standards being covered, which helped them uncover their own misconceptions.
For each standard, the trainer helped the teachers identify the most important part of the standard (e.g. what exactly students need to know) at each grade level. She also demonstrated how the standards are interrelated and vertically aligned throughout each grade level. The trainer then led the teachers through a lesson from the online, standards-based curriculum so they could see first-hand how to engage students and effectively teach the standard.
Next, the teachers would return to their schools, try out the lesson with their students, and report back in the following PD session about what went well and what didn’t, and discuss how to improve.
4. Model key instructional strategies.
In addition to increasing teachers’ content knowledge, we wanted to expand their use of inquiry-based instructional strategies. So, throughout the PD, the trainer modeled the 5E (Engage, Explore, Explain, Elaborate, Evaluate) inquiry model, which is what we expect teachers to implement with their students. Experiencing the 5E model first-hand gave teachers new insights into how effective and engaging this model is for students, and it helped them become much more comfortable with this approach in their own labs.
Improving Teacher Effectiveness and Student Achievement
An evaluation of our MSP project conducted by Dr. Laura Frost of Florida Gulf Coast University found that teachers felt that their knowledge and skills in STEM improved by participating in the SEE Student Success project. Results from a self-efficacy survey called the “Science Teacher Efficacy Belief Instrument (STEBI )” reflected positive changes due to the training.
In addition, teacher buy-in and excitement were evidenced in a variety of ways during and after the training—from the presentations teachers made to their colleagues at faculty meetings to their increased usage of the online STEM curriculum and exploration kits.
We also examined student achievement based on the fifth grade results from the Florida Statewide Science Assessment, which measures student achievement of the NGSSS. In 2014-15, the year before our MSP grant project began, our fifth graders’ proficiency rate was 50 percent. In 2016-17, it was 53 percent. In contrast, from 2015 to 2017, the average proficiency rate for the state of Florida dropped from 53 percent to 51 percent.
Thanks to the MSP grant, the training, and the use of the online curriculum, our teachers now feel like experts in standards-based learning in STEM. They have a deeper knowledge of the content and the standards as well as inquiry-based instructional strategies, which will have a long-lasting impact on their effectiveness with students.
For us, the training and curriculum were the missing pieces that helped teachers make sense of the standards and that allowed students to experience the science reflected by the standards. Even better, students enjoy learning STEM and they look forward to going to the STEM lab because they’re actually doing STEM.
