the [name] mathematics and science center · the mission of the glenn t. seaborg mathematics and...

For more information regarding Seaborg Center Programming— Please contact: Chris Standerford at (906) 227-2092

The Glenn T. Seaborg Mathematics and Science Center

2015-2016 Annual Report The mission of the Glenn T. Seaborg Mathematics and Science Center is to enrich the knowledge and understanding of science and mathematics in students and teachers of the Upper Peninsula (Pre-K through College). The Seaborg Center’s primary service area encompasses Marquette and Alger counties in the Upper Peninsula of Michigan, including 13 public school districts, several private and charter schools, and pre-service and in-service teachers enrolled at Northern Michigan University.

Overview of the Year’s Accomplishments At the Glenn T. Seaborg Mathematics and Science Center we believe Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics are all creative, hands-on, and exciting subjects. Being curious about our world, and worlds beyond, is central to the human experience. It is our hope that all people have the chance to celebrate this basic human instinct and be able to understand and influence the world around them. To support this work, Center staff coordinated, hosted, and facilitated a wide variety of STEM programs during the 2015-2016

year. Additionally, the Seaborg Center has become a leader in promoting STEAM education initiatives and emphasizing

innovation and creative uses for technology in many of our programs. Examples of this work include hosting classroom field trips related to creative uses of technology, supporting CoderDojo906, the local chapter of an international group, that supports student interests in becoming Makers and Coders, providing professional learning opportunities for educators to innovate and acquire new technologies, and presenting to key stakeholders in education about the benefits of the Maker Movement and STEAM education initiatives.

The Seaborg Center continues to offer a variety of other student experiences as well, such as our long running College for Kids program which brings K-8 students to Northern Michigan University’s campus for hands-on, minds-on STEM experiences, the Michigan Science Olympiad program, the FIRST Robotics program, and hosting multiple residential camps in STEM fields which bring groups of students to campus for extended learning experiences to promote careers in STEM fields. Additionally, the Seaborg Center continues to innovate and partner with various stakeholders to create professional learning experiences for educators as well. New programs and partnerships have allowed the Center to explore both Project-Based Learning, as well as, Place-Based Education with our local K-12 educators. The Center also hosted a regional site for physics teachers in the MSP project Modeling Instruction in Michigan, organized newly formed Math and Science Leadership Teams, and continued work supporting Michigan’s Integrated Mathematics Initiative (MI

2) for the Foundations

of Math program. All of these programs combined, provided a well-balanced list of opportunities for both science and mathematics teachers in the Seaborg Center’s service area.

Center staff coordinated, hosted, and facilitated many STEM programs

during the 2015-2016 year.

New programs and partnerships have allowed the Center to explore both Project-

Based Learning as well as

Place-Based Education.


Organization of the Report The Strategic Plan identifies six service areas: Leadership, Professional Learning, Student Services, Curriculum Support, Community Involvement, and Resource Clearinghouse. This report will focus on Professional Learning and Student Services for the entire service area. In addition, there will be a narrative on closing the achievement gap describing services to Priority and Focus School(s) in the area, including successes and challenges.

REGION-WIDE PROFESSIONAL LEARNING

Who participated in the professional learning? Professional learning opportunities were provided for classroom teachers, classroom support staff, administrators, parents/community members, and others involved in K-12 education. The table below describes who participated.

Table 1: Participants Receiving Professional Learning

Reported Gender**

Position

Participants # of

Indiv. Total Hours

M F Admin Math Tchr

Sci Tchr

Tech Tchr

Comb Subj

Other or Unknown*

Pre-School 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0

Elementary 52 563.5 10 42 4 6 2 1 35 4

Middle/Jr. High 31 240.65 9 22 0 2 16 0 3 10

High School 58 1918.75 33 25 0 17 29 1 0 11 K-12 Mixed

Levels 39 849.95 18 20 3 6 9 0 5 16

Other* 76 218.65 14 25 2 0 7 0 0 67

Total 256 3791.5 84 134 9 31 63 2 43 108 *Other includes persons who work across levels, are not teachers or administrators, or did not indicate position. **Gender was not reported by all individuals. Professional learning was delivered in many ways, depending upon the identified needs. Two primary formats included: (1) Single events, lasting for a portion of one day to several consecutive days, focused on a particular topic, skill, or issue; and (2) Series, which were a series of sessions (one building on the previous one and conducted periodically over a several week/month period). The goal was to systematically strengthen teaching practices based on local needs and current research.

Teachers who participated in Glenn T. Seaborg M/S Center activities received, on average, 14.8 hours of professional learning related to mathematics, science,

technology or other.

Goal: For educators who participate in Center Professional Learning to reflect best instructional practices in their own settings.


Table 2 below details the number of sessions offered for each subject by grade level as well as total hours and total number of participants in the sessions.

Table 2: Professional Learning Activities

Math Science Technology Other Total

Elementary

Activities 0 3 0 0 3

Hours 0 7 0 0 7

# Participants 0 22 0 0 22

Elementary & Middle/Jr. High


Hours 0 0 18 0 18


Middle/Jr. High


Hours 2 0 0 0 2


Middle/Jr. High & High School


Hours 4.15 8 6 0 18.15


High School


Hours 6 96 0 0 102


Other (includes mixed levels)


Hours 57.65 113.5 3 2 176.15

# Participants 66 118 46 15 245

Total


Hours 69.8 224.5 27 2 323.3

# Participants 102 209 65 15 391

Professional Learning:

Modeling Instruction in Chemistry


Spotlight on Professional Learning The Seaborg Center provided professional learning opportunities for mathematics, science, and technology educators during 2015-2016. For the second year, the Seaborg Center served as a regional site for the Modeling Instruction in Michigan MSP program, being the only site located in the Upper Peninsula. The Center worked with high school physics teachers as participants engaged with instruction of physics content and pedagogical approaches that involve modeling and discourse during student learning. Specifically, physics teachers gained experience with and were provided a curriculum for the Modeling Instruction program originally developed at Arizona State University. As described by the American Modeling Teachers Association, “Modeling Instruction corrects many weaknesses of the traditional lecture-demonstration method, including fragmentation of knowledge, student passivity, and persistence of naive beliefs about the physical world. Unlike the traditional approach, in which students wade through a stream of seemingly unrelated topics, Modeling Instruction organizes the course around a small number of scientific models, thus making the course coherent. It applies structured inquiry techniques to the teaching of basic skills and practices in mathematical modeling, proportional reasoning, quantitative estimation and technology-enabled data collection and analysis.” This professional learning program helped strengthen leadership in the schools, developed learning communities, and supported growth in content knowledge. Pre and post content assessments showed a 14.1% growth overall in content knowledge on pre- and post-tests. Another initiative funded by grant dollars from the Michigan STEM Partnership was the Coding & Circuits for Cultivating Potential & Opportunity for Students (C

3PO) grant, which brought middle level educators

together for three days of professional learning centered on projects and choice for learners using the Arduino platform to support critical thinking and creativity. The program concluded with students working with the new technology and showcasing their work stemming from the teacher’s developed curriculum ideas and technology toolkit supplied by the grant. Participants showed a 40% gain in content knowledge and over 90% of responses indicated the professional learning required high use of STEM skills and was valuable training in pedagogical approaches.

The Seaborg Center was involved with a series of Math Teacher Circles sessions, as well as Math Foundations offered in partnership with MI

2

and Marquette-Alger RESA. Each of these programs provided teachers with many hours of professional learning and has resulted in improved best practices in the classrooms of our service area. Additionally, pre and post evaluation data has shown positive results for each of the programs, including both in content knowledge and perceived benefit of

the learning experiences. Lastly, the Seaborg Center established Science and Mathematics Leadership Teams this year. Four full day sessions were organized and hosted by the Center as we built leadership within each school building throughout Marquette and Alger counties. The SLT and MLT groups looked deeply at standards and best practices as Michigan adopted new science standards. These groups also served as a communication conduit for each building as information was shared through the Math and Science Centers Network.

For the second year, the center served as a regional

site for the Modeling Instruction in Michigan MSP

Program.

The center was involved with a series of Math Teacher Circle

sessions and Math Foundations in partnership with MI

2 and

Marquette-Alger RESA.


Student Services

Student services are delivered based on identified needs to improve and enhance science, technology, engineering, and mathematics education. Students who participate in enrichment activities have the opportunity to explore new concepts, develop process skills, cooperate on group tasks, and discuss their findings. Student services include:

school-day classroom programs provided by Center staff

afterschool and summer enrichment and support programs

field trips to museums, natural areas, laboratories, and businesses to expose students to practical application of mathematics and science knowledge

organization of science and mathematics fairs and academic competitions Table 3 below details the number of student sessions offered for each subject by grade level as well as total hours and total number of participants in the sessions.

Table 3: Student Services Activities Provided in 2015-2016

Math Science Technology Engineering Other Total

Elementary

Activities 0 40 5 0 2 47

Hours 0 409 19 0 18 446

# Participants 0 1347 68 0 44 1459

Elementary & Middle/Jr. High


Hours 2.5 154.5 6 3 0 166

# Participants 30 138 38 11 0 217

Middle/Jr. High


Hours 0 135 2 0 3 140

# Participants 0 91 17 0 38 146

Middle/Jr. High & High School


Hours 0 16 0 0 0 16

# Participants 0 516 0 0 0 516

High School


Hours 0 142 29 0 142 313

# Participants 0 20 199 0 10 229

Other (includes Mixed Levels)


Hours 0 57 14 0 0 71

# Participants 0 18 116 0 0 134

Total


Hours 2.5 913.5 70 3 163 1152

# Participants 30 2130 438 11 92 2701


The Seaborg Center offers a wide selection of experiences for area youth through our student services work. The Center has increased the number of programs offered, the number of participating students, the range of ages participating, and the content areas available for student interest over the last several years. All of these enhancements have improved the visibility and reputation of the Seaborg Center and the Michigan Math and Science Centers Network. The 2015-2016 year marked a turning point in the Center’s work, as we maintained the quality programs of the past, while diving into new technology, engineering, and STEAM related work with students as well. The Center was successful in launching a number of new camps that specifically targeted high school age students, a population that has traditionally been more difficult to reach. Pre and post survey data shows evidence for shifts in the perception of students’ thinking about STEM fields and demonstrate the quality of the programming through positive comments and enjoyed experiences. Anecdotal feedback from parents, grandparents, teachers, and the community also provide support for the high value of Seaborg Center programming. The bullet points below provide specific details related to several examples of Center level student programming.

College for Kids – The Center conducts a series of weekend and summer enrichment classes called “College for Kids” (C4K) for grades K-8: Twenty-four sessions of Summer College for Kids served 217 students. Students in these programs are engaged in a variety of STEM topics through hands-on and project based instruction. In the summer, community teachers conduct the College for Kids courses which featured four weeks of weeklong classes. The Weekend C4K program runs during the school year and is conducted by NMU elementary education students under the supervision of their professor and Center staff. This is a rare opportunity for pre-service teachers as well as the students and the Center was able to serve an additional 171 students.

Science Olympiad – This was the 28th year that the Seaborg Center has sponsored the Upper

Peninsula Science Olympiad Tournament for over 300 middle and high school students in 25 teams. In the fall, the Center also hosted a Science Olympiad Coaches Workshop for UP coaches to help recruit teams and new coaches, and provide professional learning.

Upward Bound Math and Science – Upward Bound Math Science (UBMS) works to help low-income and first-generation-to-college high school students recognize and develop their potential to excel in fields related to STEM. Upward Bound Math and Science program services include: summer programs with intensive math, science, writing and language training; year-round counseling, advisement and academic support services; exposure to research; education or counseling services designed to improve the financial and economic literacy of students; and assistance with application to competitive post-secondary institutions leading to bachelor's degree in a STEM related discipline.

CoderDojo906 – This is a local chapter of an international organization that promotes learning how to code, develop websites, apps, programs, games and explore technology in an informal and creative environment. Students meet like-minded people and are exposed to the possibilities of technology. CoderDojo focuses on community, peer learning, youth mentoring and self-led learning, with an emphasis on showing how coding is a force for change in the world. Approximately 40 hours of open lab time and mentoring were provided for area youth this year.

Cyber Camp – Cyber Camp reached its third year and provided high school age students a chance to explore coding, networking, and other computer science topics. Participants expressed interest in pursuing computer science related career fields and provided excellent ratings on the post-survey form for the camp.

Spotlight on Innovative Student Services

24 sessions of Summer College for Kids served 217 students who

were engaged in a variety of STEM topics through hand-on

and project based instruction.


Field trips for area classrooms and homeschool groups – The Center hosted a number of field trip experiences for local students, including bringing students to the Digital Learning Design Lab where they experienced creative coding and design work using technology to enhance their content learning. These field trips result in student excitement about STEM subjects and provide insight into innovative techniques for classroom teachers as well.

Residential Camps – Several groups of students came to the campus of NMU through the efforts of the Seaborg Center and its partners. These residential camps provide an opportunity for students to live on campus for one week and work with campus faculty to study various topics in depth and in a hands-on way. This year, the Environmental Science Camp, the Area Heath Education Camp, and the Other Michigan camps were all highlights of the residential camp offerings.

The Center hosted a field trip for local students to the Digital

Learning Design Lab where they experienced creative coding and

design work.


Marquette-Alger RESA (MARESA) and the Seaborg Center are working together with the teaching staff in all of our districts to focus on building a curriculum that aligns closely with the Michigan Career and College Readiness Standards and addresses the need to reduce achievement gaps between student populations. MARESA performs yearly analysis of M-STEP data to identify areas of content weakness and the Seaborg Center is using MI School Data to identify specific needs of our districts as well. Through our extensive list of professional learning opportunities in both mathematics and science, the Seaborg Center and MARESA are working together to address weaknesses before students fail to achieve adequate progress. Together, we are also using the School Improvement Plan process to support all of our districts and all local districts are now utilizing the NWEA assessment data as well. At this time, there are currently no Priority or Focus Schools in the Seaborg Center’s service area. Our area has also done much work to increase math discussions and engagement of students in their mathematics instruction; the idea of creating assignments that are engaging, with low thresholds for entry but high ceilings for individualized learning, continues to permeate into our local schools helping all students benefit from classroom instruction. Finally, several of our professional learning opportunities included lesson study opportunities in the schools, or follow-up sessions after the bulk of the program instruction, to continue to learn and implement best practices.

Closing the Achievement Gap

The Seaborg Center is using MI School Data to identify specific

needs of our districts.


Spotlight on Partnerships

The Seaborg Center has continued to work closely with the pre-K-12 public schools and charter schools, the Marquette and Alger County communities, and Northern Michigan University’s academic and administrative departments. In addition, the Center has partnerships with NASA’s informal educator’s network, the Upper Peninsula’s Children Museum, Cliffs Natural Resources, and the Isle Royale Institute. The Seaborg Center works diligently each year to make fresh contacts with many groups that have similar missions or overlapping goals. For example, discussions of partnerships, projects, and grant writing were had with the Isle Royale Institute, Superior Watershed Partnership, the Upper Peninsula Children’s Museum, the Moosewood Nature Center, Marquette-Alger Regional Education Service Agency, Michigan Works, Career and Technical Education groups, the American Association of University Women, Homeschool groups, and Northern Michigan University. These partnerships have shown great benefit, and have resulted in several new programs that will impact both formal and informal STEM education. .

The Seaborg Center works diligently each year to make fresh contacts with many groups that

have similar missions or

overlapping goals.


Director’s 2015-2016 Budget Discussion Northern Michigan University provides the majority of funding for operational costs associated with Seaborg Center activities, however, the Center has a long history of successful grant projects and partnerships that also support Center level work. The Math and Science Centers state grant provides approximately 20% of the salary needs for work done supporting STEM professional learning and student services. Each year, additional funds are needed to both cover administrative costs and to ease the burden of local school districts needing services. Most often, the Seaborg Center relies on Math/Science Partnership grants (MSP) to supplement these projects and cover deficits. Fortunately, during the 2015-16 year, the Seaborg Center received support from smaller grants and partnerships as well and the Center ended the year with a balance budget. Moving forward into the 2016-2017 year, the Seaborg Center has several continuing and new grants that will support staffing costs and administrative expenses. The Center will also continue to monitor the amounts expected to be released statewide to support MSP projects and will need to be selective of the initiatives we support based on revenue streams provided by these initiatives. Through the MSP projects in Modeling Instruction, Project SMILE, and Math Recovery the Seaborg Center projects having sufficient funding to support important STEM education work in our region. Although the grant funds help support Center work and bring fresh programming into our service area, it is increasingly difficult to juggle the requirements of each grant while also weaving the objectives of each separate grant into a cohesive trajectory for local students and educators. Additionally, scheduling of the programs can sometimes be challenging due to the uncertainty of the funding award until late in the planning cycle. For this reason, it would be beneficial to see increases in funding for the Math and Science Centers Network to provide consistency, forward planning, and limits set on the Center’s reliance on soft funds tied to special interest groups that may dictate how funds can be spent. If the Michigan Math and Science Centers Network were to lose Section 99 funds, or if Northern Michigan University reduced its support of the Center work, our entire staff would be required to move to part-time employment at the Center and the types and number of programs the Center provides would be greatly reduced, resulting in a very limited impact on STEM education in our service area.


Director’s Summary 2015-2016 The Seaborg Center is well positioned to meet directives from the Michigan Department of Education and the Michigan Math and Science Centers Network. Given the small staff, the Center is fortunate to have expertise in both mathematics education and science education. This has allowed us to support the needs in our area to a much larger degree than would otherwise be possible. The Seaborg Center continues to focus on professional learning and student services as the main services offered to our community. Both of these focus areas, however, dovetail with Community Involvement and Curriculum Support and we keep all four of these service areas in mind while planning and evaluating programs. We continue to carry out our strategic plan and have been working hard to build partnerships for the future. Our leadership and resource clearinghouse for the pre-K-12 schools, and with NMU’s faculty in the area of pre-K-12 education, continue to grow as well. The Seaborg Center also continues to sponsor sustained professional learning, building on Network initiatives and supporting the needs of Marquette-Alger RESA. The Michigan Math and Science Centers Network delivers professional learning, materials development, and statewide support for the implementation of important STEM teaching and learning materials. These efforts are of great value. Examples include the Modeling Instruction in Michigan program and Project TESLA. Without the statewide Network of Centers we would not be able to accomplish many of the initiatives we currently have. As a Network, many more professional learning programs can be accomplished with superior results because of the sharing of resources across the state, especially in the remote counties of the Upper Peninsula.

Plans for the Future: The Seaborg Center’s vision for the future includes building our capacity to incorporate Art into Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics programming to provide opportunities for innovation and problem solving in STEAM education. The Center has worked hard to create hands-on, minds-on programs that integrate content areas, utilize creativity, and take advantage of new technologies over the last several years. This work is paying off in the form of new programs being offered and leadership roles opening up for Center staff. As curriculum shifts toward 21st learning and integrated models, the Seaborg Center has already developed engaging STEAM experiences that reflect best practices. Additionally, engineering standards and assessment are of concern for many educators. The Center will continue the positive growth we had in 2015-2016 in building partnerships with NMU, MARESA, and MDE to address these concerns. We will utilize our Math and Science Leadership Teams to improve communications between all stakeholders. The Center will also continue to explore innovative uses of technology in the Digital Learning Design Lab, project based learning, and career and technical education (CTE) connections. Finally, the Seaborg Center is taking bold steps forward to support professional learning in the Upper Peninsula. This is happening in science through the Next Generation Science Exemplar system where the Seaborg Center will be supporting three cohorts of educators in the central and western Upper Peninsula, as well as, continued work on the Modeling Instruction program into 2017 where the Center serves the entire Upper Peninsula. In mathematics, professional learning will be supported through the Foundations of Math program and Math Recovery. Throughout 2016-17, in partnership with the Eastern Upper Peninsula ISD and MARESA, the Center will be developing a level two Foundations facilitator and supporting a cohort of Add+Vantage Math Recovery (AVMR) teachers with a Math Recovery Specialist becoming certified at the Center by the end of summer in 2017. These bold steps forward to support professional learning linked to career and college readiness standards and the latest research in teaching and learning will be a tremendous asset for our service area.

This report was developed through a grant awarded by the Michigan Department of Education.

the [name] mathematics and science center · the mission of the glenn t. seaborg mathematics and...

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