This exploratory project is designed to identify and describe evaluations of Professional Development in Science Teaching (PTST) interventions with the ultimate goal of improving the quality of science instruction in elementary school classrooms. The project will 1) identify and describe evaluations of PDST interventions and 2) develop mechanisms and examples for systematically reviewing, meta-evaluating, and aggregating results of these evaluations. The focus will be on establishing a credible base of appropriate professional development STEM evaluation reviews, developing meta-evaluation techniques, and identifying the most appropriate strategies for determine the cumulative effectiveness of PDST programs. In order to increase the capacity of professional evaluators in STEM education to conduct rigorous and useful evaluations, the project will disseminate project findings to education researchers and evaluators, sponsors, and developers of PDST interventions through research presentations, papers, and reports to the extent feasible. Dissemination products will clearly communicate the following:
(1) Methods for identifying and retrieving PDST evaluations, as well as their limitations
(2) Characteristics of accessible PDST evaluations
(3) Research designs and methodologies used in PDST evaluations Suitable methods for assessing the performance of available evaluation documents against evaluation standards and frameworks
(4) Suitable methods for assessing the performance and impacts of PDST intervention
