alternative pathways, alternative solutions to … physics teacher demand in nys physics first,...

Alternative Pathways, Alternative Solutions to… Physics Teacher Demand in NYS

Physics First, Cornell University28 July 2004

Joe Zawicki, Department of Earth Science and Science Education, SUNY—Buffalo State College130 SCIE Bldg BSC, 1300 Elmwood Ave, Buffalo NY 14222, E-mail: [email protected]

Dan MacIsaac, Department of Physics, SUNY—Buffalo State CollegeDavid Henry, Department of Elementary Education and Reading, SUNY—Buffalo State College

Dewayne Beery, Department of Physics, SUNY—Buffalo State CollegeKathleen Falconer, Department of Elementary Education and Reading, SUNY—Buffalo State College

26-27 July 2004 Physics First, Cornell University 2

DUE0304097 DUE0434103

Supporting Partners


National and New York State Demand for Physics Teachers

Currently there is not, in fact, a general nation-wide shortage of teachers in the United States

There are adequate numbers of prepared and certified teachers to meet most of the nation's needs

“We face shortages of people willing to work at the salaries and under the working conditions offered in specific locations” -- in rapidly growing, rural and urban areas.” (Darling-Hammond, 2001).

Real teacher shortages do exist in a few subject fields -- most particularly in special education, mathematics, physics, chemistry, and Spanish in order of national demand (AAEE, 2003)


Physics Teacher Preparation

US national high school physics enrollments are at a fifty-year high (AIP, 1999; Neuschatz & McFarling, 2000)

Only about one-third of all physics teachers received a major in physics or physics education (Neuschatz & McFarling, 2000).

More than half of all physics teachers (AIP, 1999) are actually teaching out-of-field (Ingersoll, 1999; CSMTP, 2001).


Certified Physics Teachers

61% of public and 27% of private high school physics teachers are state certified to teach physics

NCLB – certification changes are suggested but not standardized

NYSED reacts to NCLB


Changing Certification Requirements

NY State Education Department (NYSED) has intensified teacher certification and high school science graduation requirements (NYSED, 2000)

Curriculum and exam renovations have incorporated increased levels of conceptual understanding (Zawicki, Jabot, Falconer, MacIsaac, Henry & Fischer, 2003)


Changing Certification Issues

The NYS demand has increased (Willie-Schiff, 2002)

NYSED physics certification requirements have increased: thirty credits in physics (NYSED 2004) successful completion of the Content Specialty

Test in Physics (NES, 2002) Following initial certification, teachers must

complete a Masters degree within three (five) years to earn professional certification (NYSED 2004).


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Total number of physics teachers 1691 783 3132 0.46 100.0

Physcis teachers with no physics certification, temporary certification, or not in system 351 132 528 0.38 16.9

5 yr provisional & CQ 242 126 504 0.52 16.1permanent certification 1098 525 2100 0.48 67.0

Over age 55 454 221 884 0.49 28.2Over age 50 728 337 1348 0.46 43.0

Regents Physics 584 74.6Second Year Physics 2.6 0.3AP Physics 106 13.5Other 90 11.5

NYS Physics Teacher Data for the 2001-02 school


Current Physics Teachers Nearing Retirement

728 teachers are over the age of fifty This represents 43% of the entire NY HS

physics teaching population, orover half of the 2002 NYSED physics- certified HS physics teaching population.


Number of Physics Certificates Issued in New York State

(this counts permanent and provisional certifications, hence is an overstatement of actual number of physics

teachers gained by up to 2 times)

0100200300400500

19

70

19

73

19

76

19

79

19

82

19

85

19

88

19

91

19

94

19

97

20

00

Year


Irregular Certification

‘Hot button’ (US Department of Education Secretary's Annual Report, 2002, p21; Darling-Hammond, 2002; Darling-Hammond & Youngs, 2002)

Alternative certification Differs from traditional certification pathways Usually avoids student teaching

Emergency certification Transcript Evaluation


Third Year Departure Rates

Traditional programs – 33% Extended five-year programs --

10% Emergency or Temporary – 90-100%

Short-term hiring policies are costly in the long term, and dollars spent upon teacher preparation are one of the most cost-effective predictors of student achievement.


There are many “ifs”, but if the program is run correctly…there is a clear need for…

“… extended teacher education programs with year-long internships in … high quality alternative pathways at the post-graduate level… for mid career changers…” (Darling-Hammond, 2000, p35).


Alternative Certification Demographics

Alterative certification teachers: Leave the profession at higher rates Are preferentially hired Are far more likely to seek

immediate employ after certification (30-40% of new teachers graduating from traditional programs are not immediately employed)



Alterative certification teachers: Held the highest percentage of employment after

five years (Harris, Camp and Adkinson, 2003). Recruit significantly more minority teachers than

do traditional programs. These minority teachers

are significantly more likely to be employed in urban schools serving minorities

are significantly more likely to teach mathematics and science

are more likely to have considerable business or military experience.



Alternative certification program teachers have uniquely attractive backgrounds, interests and levels of underrepresented minority representation sought by schools, and alternative certification programs can address needs not adequately met by traditional programs.


Buffalo State College

~ 11,000 students Buffalo is the second largest city in NYS Largest comprehensive college in the SUNY

system The only urban SUNY campus

18% part-time student population 16% minority student population (mostly

African American) 55% female student population

~ 740 evening-only students and about 450 disabled students attend BSC


Buffalo State College

Undergraduate students 28% major in education many are first family college attendees

BSC classes are typically small BSC was the first and still is the largest

National Council for Accreditation of Teacher Education (NCATE) SUNY Institution

BSC is a Carnegie Master’s I institution, specializing in Bachelors and Masters -level students


Development of the PTP Program

Program revisions in 2001-2002 lead to the development of two programs: streamlined alternative certification program

(M.S.Ed.- Physics with Alternative Certification) The regular program (M.S.Ed.- Physics) was revised

to address forthcoming NY state permanent certification requirements.

Both revisions incorporate physics coursework that supports a second certification in physics

The MSEd programs satisfy the NYSED requirement for an approved masters’ degree which can lead to permanent or professional teacher certification (NYSED, 2004).


PTP Academy

In summers 2000 and 2001, BSC Physics, EER and BSC Department of Earth Sciences and Science Education (ESSE) faculty collaborated on the creation of Pathways to Physics Teaching PTP Summer Physics Academy intensive boot camps for MS physical science and

HS physics teachers run 10 hours+/day for 2-3 weeks courses are similar in format to better-know

courses offered by the Modeling Physics Group at Arizona State University (Modeling Physics, 2004; Wells, Hestenes & Swackhamer, 1995).


PTP Academy

Academy courses are unique Run for profit, unsupported by external funding of

instructors, or participant stipends Demand has grown; ninety teachers enrolled

during the summer of summer 2003. Most of these teachers paid full graduate tuition

Some NSF STEMTP (National Science Foundation - Science, Technology Engineering and Mathematics Teacher Preparation) funding

Some funding from the BSC Center for Excellence in Urban and Rural Education (CEURE) (MacIsaac, 2003; Truscott, 2001).

A recent NSF-Noyce Grant will support some future candidates


Buffalo Public Schools

A large (~ 46,000 student), inner-city, high-need, urban school district

Over 64% of BPS students are eligible for free or reduced lunch programs (Department of Education Title II definition as a "high need" district)

Employs more than 3600 preK-12 teachers, including about 170 grade 7-12 science teachers.


Buffalo Public Schools

Fall of 2002, only eight of eighteen BPS high schools (45%)

taught physics only 511 BPS students wrote physics exams (10% of

eligible students) Fewer than 50% of physics teachers hold NY state

certification to teach physics 70% of BPS students taking physics are attending

Hutchinson Central Technical High School There are some BPS high schools where physics is

never regularly taught (Shriver & Thompson, 2002; Josef, 2002), which is becoming very problematic in light of new NYS graduation requirements.


CEURE

The Center for Excellence in Urban and Rural Education (CEURE) at Buffalo State College is dedicated to the recruitment of, commitment by, and retention of qualified and effective teachers for high-need urban and rural areas.

The center's mission is to work with the greater educational community –"to respond thoughtfully and effectively to societal realities, the Center will work in partnership with schools, communities, institutions of higher learning and other constituencies.”


CEURE

CEURE has provided supplementary funding arrangements since 2000

CEURE has an outstanding commitment to continue supporting the academy through to institutionalization and self-sufficiency.

CEURE expertise will augment advertisement, recruiting and FTC creation and support efforts in particular.


The M.S.Ed.-Physics degree programs at SUNY- Buffalo State College

Dr. Dan MacIsaac 716-878-3802 <[email protected]> <http://PhysicsEd.BuffaloState.Edu/>

M.S.Ed.-Physics (NY Alternative Certification via Transitional B) M.S.Ed.-Physics (usually second NY Cert)New teacher cert for Science/Tech/Engg/Math professionals STEM teacher cross certifies to physics

Program admission Physics or related bachelor's degree NYS certification in a secondary sciencerequirements 3.0 GPA 2.5 GPA

18 cr of non-physics science n/alanguage req n/a

NYSED Tchrs exams (LAST & Physics CST) n/a3 written references & interview 3 written references & interview

Program Admission Requirements





Coursework e = existing coursen = 2002 new courser = 2002 revised course

Seminar (3cr)PHY500: Physics Education Research Seminar Y Y r

Physics Teaching Methods (6cr)PHY510: Process Skills in Physics Teaching (6 cr) Y Y rw/ 40h early field experience grades 7-12 Y N

Physics Content w/Model Pedagogy (12cr)PHY620: Powerful Ideas & Quantitative Modeling: Force, Motion & Energy (6cr) Y Y nPHY622: Powerful Ideas & Quantitative Modeling: Electricity & Magnetism (6cr) Y Y n

Project (3cr)PHY690: Research Project Y Y e

ElectivesPHY518: Wave Phenomena and Optics 6cr 9cr rPHY520: Modern Physics rPHY525: Nuclear and Particle Physics ePHY616: Advanced Dynamics ePHY618: Advanced Electricity and Magnetism I eSCI527: Current Topics in Science eSCI632: Curricular Trends in Science Teaching in the Secondary School eSCI664: Teaching Science with Media eSCI685: Evaluation in Science Education eOr other courses by advisement


Or other courses by advisement Teacher Cert Requirements

EXE633: Adapting Content Area Instr for Children & Adolescents w/Disabilities Y N eEDF529: Adolescent Psychology Y N eEDU417: Adolescent Literacy Y N e

plus one of EDU416: Teaching Literacy in Middle and Secondary Schools 3cr 0cr eEDU609: Improving Reading in the Content Areas e

NYSED 52.21(b)(3)(xvii)-regulated college mentored physics teaching experiencepaid employment for 1 year w/ NYSED Transitional B Certification Y N

Total number of required credits: 42cr 33cr





PTP Courses

PTP courses are assembled from physical science curricula developed by world class PER researchers and curriculum developers under NSF sponsorship

Collaborate with the developers of curricula

Students also participate in project evaluation


PTP Courses

Modeling Physics (Arizona State) Force Concept Inventory (Hestenes, Wells &

Swackhamer, 1992). Eisenhower-funded Modeling workshops for

teachers (MacIsaac & Cole, 1999; 1997; MacIsaac 1997)

the ONLY physics teaching curriculum identified as exemplary by the US Department of Education.

Constructing Physics Understanding (CPU) (San Diego State)

Powerful Ideas in Physical Science (PIPS) (AAPT, Boise State)


PTP Courses

BSC has used the Constructing Physics Understanding (CPU) curriculum from Fred Goldberg's group for five years now by PTP staff with pre- and in- service teachers.

The Powerful Ideas in Physical Science (PIPS) curriculum has been used by the PI for three years for pre-service elementary teacher instruction and is currently under development by Dewey Dykstra.


Recruitment & Participation

Regional and statewide mailings to high schools Posters and appearances at the statewide and

regional conferences Website Regional news articles WNYPTA meetings New York State Section of the AAPT Word-of-mouth Advertisement in national publications such as The

Physics Teacher and regional engineering alumni newsletters has been considered. (Program enrollments are nearing capacity – we will shortly start qualified turning applicants away.)


Recruitment & Participation

~35 active candidates ~13 active M.S.Ed. (Physics by alternative

certification) candidates, or career switchers ~22 “traditional”, second certification candidates

10 alternative certification candidates hold engineering degrees (77%)

Non-engineers hold bachelors’ degrees in physics

~63% (22/35) of our masters’ program candidates already hold teacher certification, and almost all of these are working teachers.


In Conclusion

There is a substantial need for new physics teachers in New York State

Alternative certification programs, such as the PTP project at BSC, lead to retention in teaching beyond the third year

The PTP program continues to demonstrate growth


Questions, concerns,…

Resources:This talk –

http://physicsed.buffalostate.edu/pubs/PhysFirst

The paper –http://physicsed.buffalostate.edu/pubs/JPTEO

For additional information:[email protected]

(716) 878-3800

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