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Higher Education Engagement with K-12: Partnerships, Possibilities, and

Pitfalls

Nancy S. Shapiro

Office of Academic AffairsUniversity System of Maryland

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Overview of Webinar P-20: What does it mean? P-20 partnership work: A case

study Opportunities, challenges, and

lessons learned Links to new science framework,

standards, and assessments

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P-20 Partnership Opportunities

Seamless educational alignment from pre-school through college

Raising standards and expectations for both students and teachers

Collaboration among diverse educational segments and with the larger community to improve student learning outcomes

Changing higher education behavior

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Evolution of P-20 in Maryland

K-16 (1994)

P-16 (2002)

P-20 (2007)

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P-20 Partnership Grants Emphasis Diversity of Partners Range of four-year colleges and universities Community colleges Range of public school systems Business/community partners

Individual Expertise Partners bring varying types of expertise. Partners chosen based on grant needs, their needs, and

what they “bring to the table.”

Shared Experience Synergy in bringing together partners that otherwise may

not work together, and sharing ideas, experiences, and findings.

Developing long-term relationships among partners, which often leads to collaboration on other grants and projects.

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NSF MSP P-20 Grants in Maryland

VIP K-16 – Vertically Integrated Partnerships (2002-2008)

Partners: USM, Montgomery County Public Schools, Montgomery College, Towson University, UMBC, UMCP, UM Biotechnology Institute, UM Center for Environmental Science, Maryland Sea Grant College, Universities at Shady Grove

High school science teacher professional development, master/mentor teachers, higher education faculty learning communities, increase the number of undergraduate science majors going into teaching

(MSP)2 – Minority Student Pipeline Math and Science Partnership (2008-Present)

Partners: USM, Prince George’s County Public Schools, Bowie State University, Prince George’s Community College, UMCP, Towson University

Elementary and secondary science professional development, dual enrollment/early college experiences, teaching experiences for undergraduate science majors, increase the number of minority and other underrepresented students who enter science disciplines

NSF MSP P-20 Grants in Maryland

CASHÉ – Change and Sustainability in Higher Education (2004-2008)

Study the key feature of institutional change and sustainability among higher education institutions with MSPs.

What can we learn about MSP-supported changes that have expanded institutional capacity to support the reform of P-20 STEM education and the meaningful engagement of faculty in this enterprise?

What strategies are MSP institutions using to sustain these developments over time?

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What is a successful partnership?

How do you know you have a successful partnership?

What is the evidence?

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What does a partnership look like?

VIP K-16 Case Study

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Networking Among VIP K-16 Participants

New networks: Collaboration on teaching strategies for inquiry science

Connections before VIP: 194 Connections since VIP: 711

Networking: VIP K-16’s Central Figure

Without the Central Figure

One Year After the Partnership Ended

New networks: Collaboration on teaching strategies for inquiry science

Connections before VIP: 194

Connections during VIP: 711Connections after VIP: 376

Promises and Pitfalls: VIP K-16

Promises: Project reached all high school science

teachers and all high schools in district Developed cadre of master science teachers High school science curriculum redesign Summer institutes and professional

development workshops Increased student performance on

standardized science tests Faculty learning communities created on each

college and university campus14

Promises and Pitfalls: VIP K-16

Pitfalls: Personnel changes Lack of upfront buy-in for assessment

and evaluation Misalignment between school needs and

faculty priorities

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Pitfalls as Challenges and Opportunities

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Pitfalls as Challenges and Opportunities:

Cultural and Structural Differences Differences between higher education

partners and K-12 partners Calendar, workday Academic freedom High stakes testing Chain of command; level of “putting out fires” External accountability

Differences among higher education partners

Role and mission differences Research emphasis versus teaching emphasis

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Challenges and Opportunities: Leadership and Infrastructure

Institutional Leadership and Support Importance of top-down endorsement with

bottom-up grassroots leadership and support Partnership visibility

Infrastructure Getting the right people in the right jobs to

support the grant Venues for boundary-spanning

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Challenges and Opportunities: Faculty Involvement

Funding Source Matters National Science Foundation

Faculty Leadership Who’s involved?

Faculty Development Effects on promotion and tenure Importance of rewards and recognition Opportunities for research and publications Value within discipline and department

Pitfalls as Challenges and Opportunities

How do our experiences with partnership work resonate with yours? What looks similar? What looks different?

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Additional Questions

Who decides whose needs take priority in a partnership?

What if these needs are in direct conflict with each other?

What should you do when the partnership priorities are not faculty priorities?

Can we agree the priority is the students? 21

Link to Common Core Standards and Assessments

How can our experiences with MSPs and other P-20 partnerships inform the new work on Common Core Assessments?

What have we learned that we can apply to our work with the new science framework, standards, and assessments?

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Presenter Contact Information

Nancy S. ShapiroAssociate Vice Chancellor for Academic

Affairs and Special Assistant to the Chancellor for P-20 Education

University System of Marylandnshapiro@usmd.edu

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