Some Problems with Secondary Science Education

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Total Number of Teaching Out-of- Percentage Teaching Field Out-of-Field Teachers FTEs Teachers FTEs Teachers FTEs UTeach at the University of Texas at Austin Subject Area Math 18,736 14,733 5,016 3,309 27% 22% Science 17,018 12,388 5,886 3,600 35% 29% Computer Science 3,536 1,684 2,814 1,274 79% 76% Total 2003 28,805 8,183 28% UTeach Addresses these Problems Some Problems with Secondary Science Education • Recruits science, math, and computer science majors to become new teachers. • ~ half of science/math college students receptive to possibility of teaching. • Early teaching field experience tests interest before a lot of time is invested. • Tuition covered for first two UTeach courses, plus several internship opportunities. • Several master teachers are on staff. • Streamlined program with several entry points, including returning students. • Produce high quality science and math teachers. • Students train in their discipline. • Train in scientific inquiry and how to apply it in the classroom. • Professional education courses focused on secondary math/science teaching. • Early and frequent field experience • Train to teach at multiple content levels and to students of varied backgrounds. • Lower attrition rates. • Master teachers & field experience help prepare students to succeed in 1st year and stay in the profession. • Post graduation support through continuing contact with fellow graduates, master teachers, and faculty at UT. • UTeach MA program to start summer 2004 for continuing education of graduates. • ~ 40% of high school graduates don’t have skills for post-secondary education, required for 80% of new jobs (McCabe 2000). • Teaching workforce is ageing (Santiago 2001). • Teacher recruitment is difficult (stress, long hours, low pay). • Attrition of new teachers is high (e.g. Joftus & Maddox-Dolan 2002).. • There is a current and projected teacher shortage. • ~ 1/3 of high school math/science teachers lack major or certification in field (McMillan Seastrom et al. 2002). UTeach Courses • Step 1 & Step 2 • Attract math/science students & introduce to teaching. • Master teachers introduce inquiry-based lessons & methods. • Students prepare & teach 4 elementary school lessons (Step 1). • 3 middle school lessons (Step 2). • Knowing & Learning • Current theories of learning & conceptual development. • Issues of diverse student population. • Classroom Interactions. • Moves from knowing & learning to teaching & learning. • Uses of curriculum & technology. • Research Methods • Curiosity  question  experiment design  data  analysis. • Students design & execute projects of their own in any topic. • Review of work by scientists; model is refereeing papers. • Perspectives • History & philosophy faculty. • Historical, social, philosophical implications of math & science. • 5 significant episodes in science history. • Project-based instruction • Use of technology & assessment techniques in the classroom. • Teach project-based lessons to high school students. • Class compilation of lesson plans for use later in teaching. • Student Teaching in area schools. • Special Topics Seminar • Reflect on student teaching experience. • Examine contemporary critical issues in education. Abstract Texas & Alabama research  teachers’ expertise accounted for ~ 40% of the variance in math and reading achievement. This is important, since ~ 1/3 of high school science and math teachers lack either a major or certification in their field. In 1996, the colleges of Natural Science & Education at U. Texas, Austin, in concert with the local school district and experienced teachers, developed a new joint secondary school science teacher preparation program called UTeach. This program provides early and frequent field experience, instruction from master teachers and university scientists, development of a teaching portfolio, plus a peer and support network extending beyond graduation. Innovative and streamlined courses focus on the particulars of secondary science education, project and inquiry teaching methods, and lab experiences more true to what actually happens in research. After starting with 28, UTeach now has > 400 students enrolled. Applicability on a National Scale • UTeach recognized by U. S. Secretary of Education (Paige et al. 2003) • Significant resources required. • Labor intensive. • Outside donations. • Strong support of administration. • Role model for similar programs at other institutions. Graduation and Retention • First grads from program in Spring 2000. • 121 graduates to date. • 104 started teaching. • 10 never taught. • 7 looking for a job. • Of the 104 who started teaching: • 99 still teaching (95% retention rate). • Of 5 who left, 2 entered grad school. • Compare to typical retention rates after first year teaching. • 2/3 to 90% retention. • Depends on demographics. • See, e.g., Joftus & Maddox-Dolan (2002). Astronomers in UTeach • Two astronomers active in UTeach • One (PK) is a professor who teaches Research Methods. • Other (EJH) is an NSF Astronomy & Astrophysics Postdoc Fellow. • 1st national astronomy fellowship incorporating education. • Teaches parts of Research Methods & Project Based Instruction. • Research Methods • Little astronomy used in this course. • Other skills which are important for teaching the course: • Science teaching. • Supervise projects in many different areas, none known in advance. • Experiment design. • Use of statistics in analysis. • Physics • Very thorough review of proposals and research reports. • Modeled after professional review of papers & proposals. • Project-Based Instruction • Students must lead high school students in a project lesson. • Originally went only to UT Marine Science Institute • Marine biology, geology, climate. • Less relevant for physics, math, computer science majors. • Long weekend trips problematic for some students. • Added option of astronomy & related physics/math/comp. sci. at UT. • More appealing to several of these majors. • Local at UT, more flexible. • Nighttime & solar observing, optics, hands-on demos, computer simulations, impacts, applied math, even biology (extremophiles). • Teaching as a postdoc • Limited, focused, but still substantial involvement. • More flexible for meetings, observing runs. • Much of the personal reward with less responsibility. • Apply many skills learned as a researcher. • Community & funding agencies placing more emphasis on combination of teaching and research. • Student teaching: Field Experience • Substantial Field Experience before student teaching • Start in first UTeach course. • Explore teaching under guidance of master teachers • Find out early if a teaching career remains attractive. • Learn how to reflect on practice for purpose of improvement. • Wide range of situations leading up to student teaching. • Elementary school (Step 1 course). • Middle School (Step 2 course). • High/middle school & project lessons (2 courses: Classroom Interactions & Project-Based Instruction) • Placement in schools with high needs/challenging students. • Best preparation for the reality of their likely first teaching job. • Internships • Work with local non-profits (~30 organizations). • Education related. • Many work with public, not just schools. • Often work with families and children. • E.g., Texas Memorial Museum, Girlstart, Texas Parks & Wildlife, Zilker Botanical Garden. • Earn money for college doing relevant work. UTeach Student Majors References • Joftus, S. & Maddox-Dolan, B. 2002, “New-Teacher Excellence: Retaining Our Best,” Alliance for Excellent Education (http://www.all4ed.org/publications/NewTeacherExcellence/NTE.pdf) • McCabe, R. 2000, "Underprepared Students" in “Measuring Up 2000: The State by State Report Card for Higher Education” (http://measuringup.highereducation.org/2000/articles/UnderpreparedStudents.cfm) • McMillan Seastrom, M., Gruber, K. J., Henke, R., McGrath, D.J., Cohen, B. A. 2002, NCES 2002-603, "Qualifications of the Public School Teacher Workforce: Prevalence of Out-of-Field Teaching, 1987-88 to 1999-2000," U.S. Department of Education, National Center for Education Statistics, Washington, DC (http://nces.ed.gov/pubsearch/pubsinfo.asp?pubid=2002603) • Paige, R. et al. 2003, in “Meeting the Highly Qualified Teachers Challenge, The Secretary’s Second Annual Report on Teacher Quality,” U.S. Department of Education, Office of Policy Planning and Innovation, Washington, DC (http://www.ed.gov/offices/OPE/News/teacherprep/index.html) • Santiago, P. 2001, March 30, OECD (Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development) Observer (http://www.oecdobserver.org/news/fullstory.php/aid/431) Many Thanks!!! • National Science Foundation for major program support. • EJH particularly thanks the NSF Astronomy & Astrophysics Postdoctoral Fellowship Program. • The many supporters listed at http://www.uteach.utexas.edu/uteach/html/donors.html • Austin Independent School District. Taking Back the Future with an Innovative Program for Training Science Teachers Eric J. Hooper, Gail Dickinson, Mary H. Walker, Michael P. Marder, Pawan Kumar (UT Austin) ehooper@astro.as.utexas.edu; dickinson@mail.utexas.edu; marywalker@mail.utexas.edu; marder@chaos.ph.utexas.edu; pk@astro.as.utexas.edu. UTeach Student Demographics http://www.uteach.utexas.edu Need for Teachers in Texas UTeach Growth and Current Status • Retention within the program • 74% of students who take introductory course (step 1) continue the program. • Of these, 72% complete the program • Freshmen 58% • Sophomores 76% • Juniors 78% • Seniors 83% • Returning students already with degrees 77% • 97% who complete upper division education courses go on to complete student teaching and graduate.