This study describes preservice teachers' beliefs about teaching mathematics for social justice (TMSJ) after experiencing a two-part professional development (PD) workshop on the subject. The research question is: To what degree does a PD experience, designed by a preservice teacher, influence preservice teachers' beliefs about TMSJ? The lead…

This study is situated within a large-scale national high school level engineering education initiative that aims to "demystify" engineering for high school students, teachers, and counselors through an all-inclusive high school level engineering course. Counselors participated in a series of PD activities centered on the following…

Logarithms are notorious for being a difficult concept to understand and teach. Research suggests that learners can be supported in understanding logarithms by making connections between mathematics and science concepts such as pH. This study investigated how an integrated chemistry and mathematics lesson impacted 29 teachers' understanding of the…

This study describes the design and implementation of a science outreach program (elementary; 2nd-5th) and its associated student outcomes. Key features of the program include: (a) phenomenon-based, NGSS-aligned curriculum designed by science education experts and influenced by educational, sociocultural, and cognitive science theories, (b) active…

This study investigates whether elementary science teachers participating in a four-week professional development workshop develop new understandings about classroom discourse and whether they are able to implement strategies toward teaching science as student-to-student discourse. Perspectives and the extent of teacher use of discourse strategies…

Next Generation Science Standards (NGSS) science and engineering practices are ways of eliciting the reasoning and applying foundational ideas in science. As research has revealed barriers to states and schools adopting the NGSS, this mixed-methods study attempts to identify characteristics of professional development (PD) that will support NGSS…

Despite monetary and educational investments in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) being at record high levels, little attention has been devoted to generating a common understanding of STEM. In addition, working with business, K-12 schools, and/or institutions of higher education to establish a grassroots effort to help…

Effective professional development that influences teachers' classroom practices starts with what teachers know, understand, and do in their classroom. The Next Generation Science Standards (NGSS) challenge teachers to make changes to their classroom; to help teachers make these changes, it is necessary to know what they are doing in their…

This study focuses on two main issues concerning changes in student attitudes toward science study and their perceptions of its usefulness in their lives. Information has been gathered concerning how student attitudes toward science have changed for teachers and schools not involved with any funded professional development project. Pretesting and…

This paper examines professional development workshops focused on Connected Math, a particular curriculum utilized or being considered by the middle-school mathematics teachers involved in the study. The hope was that as teachers better understood the curriculum used in their classrooms, i.e., Connected Math, they would simultaneously deepen their…

Reforms in mathematics education call for K-12 teachers to employ standards-based pedagogies, which embody the National Council for Teachers of Mathematics' principles and standards. In order to effectively support teachers' implementation of standards-based curricula, professional development must be provided that meets teachers' needs. The…

Two related case studies of secondary mathematics teachers examine the roles and conditions helpful in initiating, directing, and/or supporting teachers' own professional development. Using multiple data sources from school-based and professional settings, we applied analytic induction to identify patterns of similarities and differences in…

With increased study of teachers' beliefs about science and mathematics teaching in recent years, there is a need for instruments that assess beliefs in both content areas. Moreover, early field experiences in schools and professional development efforts may influence the beliefs that preservice and in-service teachers develop, and instruments for…

Numerous studies have been conducted regarding alternative conceptions about animal diversity and classification, many of which have used a cross-age approach to investigate how students' conceptions change over time. None of these studies, however, have investigated teachers' conceptions of animal classification. This study was intended to…

Validating and generalizing from holistic observation protocols of classroom practice have proven difficult. These tools miss crucial classroom characteristics, like the type of instruction, the organization of learners, and the level of cognitive engagement that occur differentially in the time span of a lesson. As a result, this study examined…