External Advisory Board Meeting

May 12, 2011Discovery Learning Research Center

Purdue University

Overview

Our aim is to increase grade 3-6 student learning of science by developing an integrated, engineering design-based approach to elementary school science education.

SLED Goals1. Create a partnership of university engineers and scientists, teacher educators, school teachers, school administrators, and community partners to improve science education in grades 3-6 through the integration of engineering design in science teaching and learning.

2. Enhance the quality and quantity, and diversity of in-service and pre-service teachers prepared to utilize engineering design as a means to teach science through authentic, inquiry-based, multi-disciplinary, design projects.

SLED Goals

3. Adapt, refine, and test existing project- and design-based curricular materials/tasks, and where necessary develop new ones, to support the teaching of elementary science through authentic, inquiry-based, multi-disciplinary, design projects.

4. Generate evidence-based outcomes that contribute to our understanding of how teachers teach science through the engineering design process and how young students effectively learn science concepts through design-based activities.

SLED Organizational Structure and Role of the Advisory Board

Current ProgressPiloting

TASK DESCRIPTION TIMELINE

Mitten Task Make a mitten that holds heat in

Pilot #1 – FebruaryPilot #2 – March Pilot #3 – March (NSTA)Pilot #4 – March

Compost Task Devise a protocol to make compost

April – present

Roller Coaster Design and construct a model of a roller coaster

May

Hot/Cold Pack Make a hot or cold pack

TBD

Current ProgressSTEM Faculty Participation

SchoolDesign Team

1 2 3

Engineering 2 3 0

Technology 2 0 2

Science 1 1 1

Current ProgressSTEM Faculty Participation

Design Team 1Prostethic Leg (5th)Chemical Reaction Race Car (6th)

Design Team 2Power of Water (6th)Water Filtration (5th)

Design Team 3 Sensing Vibrations (6th)

Questions

• Initial impressions• Process for Faculty retention / continued

participation• Design team composition

Current ProgressTeacher Recruitment

Inservice– School-based

presentations– Brochures– Email list serve via

College of Education– Word of mouth

40 inservice teachers

Preservice– Classroom

presentations– Email list serve– Application– Word of mouth

8 preservice teachers

SLED Teacher DistributionSchool Partner Grade

5 6Discipline

STEM Other

Lafayette 7 6 13 5

Plymouth 11 8 13 6

Taylor 6 4 5 5

Tippecanoe 5 2 7 0

Total 29 20

SLED Summer Institute Activities

• Week 1: Engineering design activities– Introduce teachers to engineering design – Try out examples of activities that can be used to

address science content in grades 5 and 6• Week 2: Building curriculum and context– Field trips to science/engineering sites– Mini-workshops to build knowledge/skills– Curriculum mapping and lesson development

SLED Summer Institute Schedule – Week 1

Monday, June 13 Tuesday, June 14 Wednesday, June 15

Thursday, June 16 Friday, June 17

AMWelcome and introductions Introductory brief design task

AMSLED Design Challenge #1 led by disciplinary faculty team 1

AMSLED Design Challenge #2 led by disciplinary faculty team 2

AMSLED Design Challenge #3 led by disciplinary faculty team 3

AMSLED Design Challenge #4 led by SLED team

PMComplete and reflect on introductory design task What is inquiry? What is design? Developing a model for engineering design-based science

PMSLED Design Challenge #1 completion and teacher debriefing

PMSLED Design Challenge #2 completion and teacher debriefing

PMSLED Design Challenge #3 completion and teacher debriefing

PMSLED Design Challenge #4 completion and teacher debriefing Week 1 wrap-up with focus on engineering design-based science

SLED Summer Institute Schedule – Week 2

Monday, June 20 Tuesday, June 21 Wednesday, June 22

Thursday, June 23 Friday, June 24

AMField experience / trip to research facility / partner (local to school)

AMField experience / trip to research facility / partner (Purdue area)

AMMini-workshops on selected topics Scientist/engineer panel discussion

AMMini-workshops on other selected topics

AMTeacher finalize curriculum maps and lesson plans

PMMapping curriculum Developing lesson plans

PM Mapping curriculum Developing lesson plans

PM Mapping curriculum Developing lesson plans

PMMapping curriculum Developing lesson plans

PMPresent and share curriculum maps and lesson plans Submit drafts of implementation plans

Questions

• Arrangement• Design of workshop• Suggestions for topics to be addressed• A model for design

SLED Research

Three domains• Partnership• Student Learning• Teacher Learning

SLED Research QuestionsPartnership

1. What factors in the partnership support and impede teachers’ development of engineering design in their classrooms?

2. How is administrative support of design-based curriculum and instruction achieved and sustained within and across partnering schools?

3. How do partnership-supported activities impact the scientists and engineers who participate?

4. How does the partnership support affect teachers’ confidence levels in implementing engineering design-based instruction?

SLED ResearchPartnership

• Surveys and interviews of project participants• Case studies of key participant groups (e.g.,

teachers, school administrators, disciplinary faculty)

• Analysis of usage data from SLEDhub cyber-infrastructure

SLED Research QuestionsStudents (gr 3-6)

1. How do students conceptualize and learn design?2. How do students utilize and learn science when

engaging in engineering design-based tasks? 3. What new science content knowledge do students

construct when engaging in engineering design-based tasks?

4. How do students connect individual scientific concepts together in the context of an engineering design-based task and how enduring and accurate are these connections?

Measuring student knowledge and conceptual understandings:

• Context maps• Word associations• Indiana State-wide Test of Educational Progress

(ISTEP)• Pre- and Post-Instructional Engineering Knowledge

Tests

SLED ResearchStudent learning

Measuring gaps in students’ transfer of knowledge:

• Student Participant Interviews• Think-aloud Protocol Method• Classroom Observations• Supporting Documents (journals, teacher-

created assessments, artifacts)

SLED ResearchStudent Learning

SLED Research QuestionsTeachers (gr 3-6)

1. How do science teachers conceptualize design?2. In what ways do science teachers construct and

implement design-based science tasks that capitalize on the strengths of their existing curriculum and/or currently available curriculum resources?

3. What design-informed pedagogical methods do they employ?

4. How do teachers reflect on, develop, and sustain their design-informed methods?

SLED Research QuestionsTeachers

5. What classroom-based challenges do teachers encounter and how do they solve them?

6. In what ways do teachers collaborate with one another and with other members of the community of practice to reflect on their challenges, ideas, and solutions?

7. What differences exist in teacher-identified challenges in implementing an engineering design challenge when comparing teachers of rural school settings with non-rural school settings?

SLED ResearchTeacher Learning

• Semi-structured interviews• Document analysis (summer implementation

plans and lesson plans)• Monthly collaborative action research

meetings • Teacher reflections

External EvaluationCenter for Evaluation and Education Policy (CEEP)

• To ensure fidelity to program objectives, the SLED Partnership Leadership Team enlisted CEEP to monitor and evaluate program objectives through:– Designing pre, post, and follow-up surveys to gauge

teachers’ implementation of core SLED curriculum;– Ensuring that survey responses reflect the 4

objectives of SLED;– Monitoring the implementation of SLED objectives

into participants’ classrooms over the course of the grant.

Questions

• Recommendations / suggestions

External Evaluation

• CEEP will employ advanced methodologies to develop measurable criteria and outcome-oriented data to maximize program adaptability over the course of the grant:– Aggregating survey data to determine teachers’ fidelity to

SLED program goals and objectives; – Holding continuous project meetings and program surveys;– Conducting staff interviews to gauge stakeholders’ support

for SLED;– Implementing long-term strategies to reflect the ongoing

nature of the grant.

Evaluation Tasks Year 1Task Timeline

Measure Partner Needs/Satisfaction Summer ‘11

Measure Partner Use/Satisfaction with Cyber Infrastructure

Summer ‘11

Administer/Analyze Teacher Pre-Post-FollowUp Surveys of Institute

Spring, Summer, Fall

‘11

Measure Pre-Service Teacher Comfort Level Fall ’11

Survey Cooperating Teachers Fall ’11

Interview Participating Teachers Fall ‘11/Spr ’12

Interview SLED Leadership Summer ’11

Measure Student Performance Fall ‘11/Spr ‘12

Dates to Remember

October 23-24, 2011 (Sunday and Monday)External Advisory Board meeting at Purdue University

Questions

• What would you like to see at October meeting