"Understanding Science: Improving the Achievement of Elementary Students in Geoscience Through Proven Professional Development and Collaboration" is a Track 2 GeoEd project with a fundamental goal of helping grade 3-5 teachers gain a more solid understanding of core Earth science topics and effective instructional approaches so they are better prepared to teach in ways that result in higher student achievement and a lasting interest in geoscience. Toward this end, three regional Geoscience Alliances in Alabama, California, and Wisconsin bring together scientists and educators to collaboratively design and nationally field test a professional development curriculum - Understanding Earth Systems - using WestEd's Understanding Science model for teacher learning that has a proven track record of positively impacting teacher knowledge, classroom practices, and student achievement in science. Key partners include: the University of Wisconsin - Madison in conjunction with the Office for Science Outreach and Madison Metropolitan School District; the University of Alabama - Huntsville along with the Institute for Science Education (ISE) and the Alabama Math, Science, and Technology Initiative (AMSTI); California State Universities at Dominquez Hills and Northridge; LSAMP programs within these states; and the U.S. Geological Survey. Innovation and the creation of new knowledge often emerge from interactions across boundaries of discipline and practice. This model of network building utilizes an authentic task - developing materials for teacher learning - to knit together practicing scientists, university faculty, teacher educators, and classroom teachers toward a shared vision of strengthening STEM education in the geosciences.
Goals The fundamental goal of this three-year project was to improve the science achievement of grades K–8 students, especially for English learners and students with poor literacy skills, and build their interest for further study of earth science, by strengthening their teachers’ knowledge and skill. In order to improve public earth science literacy, we brought together research scientists, university faculty, teacher educators, and classroom teachers to form regional Geoscience Alliances to help teachers, beginning to veteran, help their students make sense of earth science in ways that lead to a deeper, more connected understanding. Outcomes As a result of this work, four regional Geoscience Alliances were established in Alabama, Arizona, North Carolina, and Wisconsin, involving more than 80 members who have a shared mission of strengthening earth science education. This alliance contributed to the development of materials for teacher learning and facilitated knowledge and resource transfer and exchange among sites. The intellectual merit is a model of network building that utilized the authentic task of collaboratively developing professional development materials. Each Geoscience Alliance partner gained valuable training and resources. Alliance members used an online forum to share Earth systems resources, facilitation photos and tips, and to contact one another between the scheduled face-to-face meetings. Through collaboration with Geoscience Alliance members, we developed Making Sense of SCIENCE: Earth Systems for Grade K–8 Teachers, a professional development course that prepares teachers to effectively teach the earth science concepts outlined in the Next Generation Science Standards (NGSS) through a collaborative inquiry learning experience designed for adults. The course combines in-depth sense-making with hands-on investigations, a focus on classroom practice, and pedagogical reasoning. It also addresses important literacy needs that focus on supporting students’ reading and writing, as well as talking and listening in science. This approach to teacher learning has been informed by more than a decade of research and development at WestEd. Impact A multi-state impact study of the MSS Earth Systems course found this professional learning opportunity enhanced teachers’ content knowledge of core earth science concepts. The study showed statistically significant pretest-posttest gains in teacher content knowledge for the entire group of 77 teachers across all four states. These results parallel findings from other rigorous randomized control trials of Making Sense of SCIENCE courses that have been shown to significantly strengthen teachers’ content knowledge and boost students’ science achievement. As Geoscience Alliance partners work to strengthen STEM education, the broader impact is greater potential for nation-wide gains in K-8 students’ earth science achievement, resulting from the availability and use of professional development materials that enhance teachers’ science content knowledge, and improve their teaching practices. With the recent adoption of the NGSS, the MSS Earth Systems course ensures more teachers will be prepared for success. Overview of MSS Earth Systems The materials for this professional development course are presented in a set of two books: a Teacher Book for classroom teachers and a Facilitator Guide for teacher educators. Materials for Teachers — The Teacher Book provides all the materials teachers need to participate in the 40-hour professional development course comprised of a 5-day summer institute (30 hours), plus a school-year follow up (10 hours) in which teachers collaboratively look at student work. The course is comprised of five separate sessions, each offering integrated science, teaching, and literacy learning. Each session contains hands-on science investigations, a teaching case of classroom practice that illustrates students’ science thinking and common instructional dilemmas, a literacy investigation, and a review of the key concepts, including illustrations of the common-yet-incorrect ways students think about related concepts and the rationale behind the literacy supports. At the end of the Teacher Book is a Looking at Student Work Guide that provides materials for the follow-up component and includes: a protocol for analyzing student work and a task bank of approximately 20 assessments for elementary and middle school students designed to reveal their ideas about core earth science concepts. Materials for Facilitators — The Facilitator Guide provides extensive support materials and detailed procedures needed to successfully lead the 40-hour MSS Earth Systems course. For each session/day of the professional learning, the Facilitator Guide describes the underlying science and provides scripted yet flexible procedures, such as instructions to guide hands-on and sense making work in each science investigation, guiding questions for each literacy investigation, teaching investigation, and classroom connection, along with instructions for supporting teachers in completing a literacy planning assignment. For ease of use, the Facilitator Guide also includes: goals, sample agenda, required materials and preparation, and black-line masters of all handouts and charts. It also addresses logistical issues inherent in organizing and leading a course. For example, the facilitator guide offers practical suggestions for adapting the course to different settings and audiences, recommends roles and responsibilities for solo and co-facilitation, and helps teacher educators know what up-front preparation is necessary.
