With support from the Robert Noyce Teacher Scholarship Program (Noyce), this Track 1: Scholarships and Stipends project at the New York Institute of Technology (NYIT) aims to serve the national and local need of preparing high-quality STEM teachers with strong content and pedagogical knowledge, cultural sensitivity, and technology and engineering design skills. The project will partner with four local high-need high schools (Roosevelt, Westbury, Valley Stream Central, and Academy Charter) and the New York Hall of Science. The project will recruit sixteen STEM post-baccalaureates to complete a Master of Arts in Teaching (MAT) program that includes secondary teacher certification. The Noyce scholars will receive scholarships to complete the MAT program and then will be supported during and after their MAT experience with several professional development experiences and workshops as well as a state-mandated mentoring program during the induction years.
This project will support sixteen Noyce scholars with baccalaureate degrees in the areas of Life Sciences, Mathematics, Physics, Engineering and Computer Science. Noyce scholars will receive a year of intensive professional training, culminating with a Masters of Arts in Teaching degree that includes coursework in culturally responsive teaching. Innovative aspects of this project include: (1) cultural competency courses to develop the Noyce scholars' competencies for teaching in high-need schools, (2) a teaching assistant program at the partner organization New York Hall of Science (NYSCI), (3) technology workshops to develop competency in technology integration and computational thinking skills for the scholars, and (4) workshops conducted by NYSCI and NASA certified providers to provide the scholars the opportunity to engage in STEM hands-on activities. These approaches and outcomes promise to contribute to preparing and retaining high-quality teachers in high-need schools. Research about these innovative components will add to what is known about preservice STEM teacher training. The Noyce program supports talented STEM undergraduate majors and professionals to become effective K-12 STEM teachers and experienced, exemplary K-12 STEM teachers to become STEM master teachers in high-need school districts. It also supports research on the persistence, retention, and effectiveness of K-12 STEM teachers in high-need school districts.
This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.
