The Recruitment, Preparation, and Retention of Mathematics and Science Teachers project is a Phase II Robert Noyce Teacher Scholarship project at the College of William and Mary (W&M). It supports twenty-seven undergraduate and graduate majors in biology, chemistry, earth science, mathematics, or physics in obtaining a teaching credential, as well as the opportunity to earn a Master's of Arts in Education degree. The program model provides early experiences and structured mentoring about careers in teaching. It includes out-of-class opportunities and freshman-to-junior-year education course offerings to recruit students to teaching, STEM internships in teaching and research for Noyce Scholars, and courses for Noyce Scholars that supplement W&M's teacher education program. Three different pathways into the profession of teaching are supported: a customary four-year baccalaureate program, an integrated "fifth-year" baccalaureate and M.A. Education Program, and a full-time, 12-month M.A. Education Program.
This Noyce Phase II project is testing a model for the many colleges and universities similar to W&M that face the dual challenges of low numbers of STEM students entering the teaching profession and being physically distant from high-need schools. Two issues for many institutions are: (1) sparking and developing an interest in a career in teaching in STEM students in the early undergraduate years, and (2) designing effective strategies for preparing students to teach in high-need schools. In this project, immersive experiences in high need schools develops familiarity and provides opportunity for reflection and deeper understanding for undergraduates at the freshman to junior level. A one-credit course for Noyce Scholars incorporates research findings from neuroscience and cognitive psychology to provide evidence-based, practical applications in STEM teaching and develops the ability of Noyce Scholars to evaluate new approaches to teaching. A practicum course for Noyce Scholars provides experiences in high-need settings to develop competencies and confidence of Noyce Scholars to teach in high need schools.
The College of William and Mary in partnership with the Williamsburg-James City County Public Schools works together to refine and expand the successful program developed during Phase I in several significant ways: (a) deepening collaborative engagement among STEM departments, the School of Education, and the W&M Office of Community Engagement, which educates and inducts students into practical, hands-on community service (b) developing a new program for recruiting and mentoring diverse, qualified students for a teaching career in high-need schools; (c) continuing to enhance the established teacher education program with special course offerings in STEM education and in science; (d) expanding experiences for W&M students in high-need schools and settings; (e) continuing to offer summer internships for STEM teaching and research; (f) providing student stipends to cover tuition and fees; (g) continuing to provide follow-up mentoring and support for teaching in high-need schools; (h) adding financial support for Noyce Scholars employed in high-need schools during their first two years of teaching; and (i) implementing a comprehensive evaluation and longitudinal study, inclusive of forty-three Phase I Noyce Scholars, to provide a rigorous evidence base for the program and publication.
