Recent studies have posited that K-12 science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) education should go beyond traditional subject silos and take an interdisciplinary approach that integrates these core subjects into a cohesive curriculum to foster authentic problem-solving skills. The purpose of this study was to field test one of five…

Background and Objective: Teacher assessment research suggests that teachers have good conceptual understanding of CT. However, to model CT-based problem-solving in their classrooms, teachers need to develop the ability to recognize when and how to apply CT skills. Does existing professional development (PD) equip teachers to know when and how to…

The rapidly evolving landscape of higher education demands not only changes in teaching approaches but also organizational transformation. This paper explores the potential of problem-based learning (PBL) as a lever for organizational change, particularly within higher education institutions. Based on a comprehensive organizational development…

[This paper is part of the Focused Collection on Instructional labs: Improving traditions and new directions.] We present the pedagogical design and implementation of "ESSENCe": Experimental problem solving using Staging, Scaffolding, Embedded information sources, iNstruments, and Collaboration. Research in experimental physics requires…

For the past three years, Digital Promise has embarked on an expansive and human-centered endeavor to empower school districts to cultivate context-relevant solutions to the teacher of color workforce disparities. Through Digital Promise's Inclusive Innovation approach, teachers of color from various school districts were engaged to develop and…

A common approach to scaling up a professional development program is for the researchers who designed the program to prepare teacher leaders to facilitate it at their schools. When researchers eventually leave, however, teacher leaders may receive less support. To ensure that teacher leaders continue receiving support, researchers can prepare…

Educational escape rooms (ER) are an instructional activity designed to incorporate many elements of recreational ERs, which have become popular in recent years. There are many reasons to consider incorporating educational ERs into K-12 math instruction or after-school programs/camps. First, they are highly motivating for students because they…

Societal changes brought about by the COVID-19 pandemic have shown the importance of both intrapersonal and interpersonal skills in virtual environments. Two midwestern university instructors joint-taught their spring 2021 agricultural education and training program development courses, bringing students together in virtual teams during the…

The role of "design" in the exploration of integrated "Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics" (STEM) education has rapidly expanded in recent years. "Design" has made an important contribution by providing instructional scaffolds in synthesising knowledge from multiple disciplines to solve real-world…

The Campbellian validity typology has been used as a foundation for outcome evaluation and for developing evidence-based interventions for decades. As such, randomized control trials were preferred for outcome evaluation. However, some evaluators disagree with the validity typology's argument that randomized controlled trials as the best design…

While a growing body of research supports active, student-centered approaches to teaching, the implementation of such methodologies in the undergraduate STEM classroom has not been widespread. In an effort to increase student success in an introductory course for biology majors, we developed Biology Boot Camp, a peer-led program based on active,…

Despite the emerging discussions about the growing role of engineers in achieving the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), there is a lack of agreement on which competences should be prioritised to prepare engineering students to resolve future sustainability challenges. This study examined and compared the views of key stakeholders of…

This program model describes the phases of planning, implementing, and evaluating a program designed for Tennessee public schools to manage student behavior in at-risk populations. This program model employs a hybrid asset-based community development, logic, and interactive model to implement interventions based on the principles of applied…

Using the case study of HSE University (Russian Federation), this article will focus on how professional development programmes can be used by universities to ensure transformations and achieve their goals. It will focus on the administrative (professional services) staff and how universities can develop and leverage their potential in order to…

Escape rooms are collaborative puzzle solving activities that require the participants to utilize logical reasoning and teamwork. With a slight refocusing on previously acquired knowledge, escape rooms can also be used to test and promote learning of certain topics. This paper describes the development of a one-hour in-person STEM focused escape…