Learning Assistant Model for Teacher Recruitment and Preparation at the University of Colorado at Boulder Supported by the NSF and PhysTEC Colorado Valerie Otero University of Colorado-Boulder valerie.otero@colorado.edu Conference on the Preparation of Physics and Physical Science Teachers Fayetteville, Arkansas March 24 &25

Participants STEM Leadership Team Dick McCray (Astronomy) Colorado STEM Leadership Team Dick McCray (Astronomy) Valerie Otero (Science Education) Jim Curry (Applied Math) Bill Wood (Molecular Biology) Carl Wieman (Physics) Steve Iona (Physics/K12) Project Manager Angela Babar Beth Kovacs Evaluation Team Derek Briggs, Kim Geil, Danielle Harlow, Linda Hassel 108 Learning Assistants (2003 through 2006) Participating Faculty Physics Steve Pollock Noah Finklestein Kathy Perkins Mike Dubson Ed Kinney Carl Rogers Jim Shepard Ed Kinney Murray Holland James Nagle Shijie Zhong Steve Wagner Mike Fuchs (TIR) Astronomy Doug Duncan Nick Schneider John Stocke Biology Mike Klymkowsky Jennifer Knight Sylvia Fromherz Applied Math Mary Nelson Adam Norris Ann Dougherty Jim Weiss Susan Hallowell Chemistry Linda Koch Veronica Bierbaum Margaret Asirvatham Geosciences Alan Lester

Outline Overview of STEM Colorado Program Impact of the Program on Teacher Recruitment Impact on Departmental Change

Teacher Education Programs Knowledge of Content (typically A&S; physics, astronomy, etc.) Knowledge of Pedagogy (typically School of Education) Usable knowledge for teaching students mathematics and science Knowledge of Students (typically psychology class-rarely connected to content) Knowledge of the nature of science and scientific inquiry (typically implicit or not present at all)

The Learning Assistant Model Goal: Integration of content, pedagogy & practice for all participants Teacher Recruitment & Preparation: Increase the number of qualified mathematics and science K-12 teachers 2. Course Transformation: Transform large enrollment introductory courses using undergraduate learning assistants to help facilitate collaboration among students Undergraduate Learning Assistants are Talented Undergraduate Students who make up the pool from which we recruit new teacher candidates

Transformation of Large-Enrollment Introductory Courses with Undergraduate Learning Assistants (LAs) Instructor Graduate TA Instructor Learning Teams Enrolled Students Traditional large enrollment lecture course: one instructor and a graduate TA to serve 400+ students Course transformed using Learning Assistants to facilitate collaboration

The LA Experience Introductory Astronomy Introductory Physics Content: Collaboration within the content area through weekly planning meetings led by mathematics or science research faculty Pedagogy and Reflection: Mathematics & Science Education Class for LAs, taught by School of Education Faculty and K-12 Teacher K-12 Teacher School of Education Faculty Practice: LA Teaching experience in Transformed Courses Introductory Biology Calculus II

Timeline of LA experience 3 2 1 4+ K-12 Math/Science Teacher Student in mostly traditional courses Semester in LA Program Teaching Experience Applies to be a Learning Assistant - Student in transformed STEM course Learning Assistant - Teaching and Learning Seminar for LA’s Learning Assistant - Begin taking School of Education courses Noyce Fellow - Enrolled in teacher certification program … Learning about Teaching Experience In the LA program, students learn about teaching while they are teaching and while they are learning science/math content.

Is the LA program effective? We have had 108 LAs since the program began in Fall 2003. 18 have entered the teacher certification program as of the beginning of Spring 2006 That’s a recruitment rate of 17% We began with 7 faculty involved now we have over 28 faculty who have used or are using LAs But wait! There’s more!

University of Colorado Boulder LA Program at CU Boulder Comparisons Colorado State of Colorado* (2004-2005) University of Colorado Boulder (5yr avg. to 2004) LA Program at CU Boulder Physics 5 0.7 Astrophysics MCD Biology 1 3 Applied Math 169 6** 4 *At 18 colleges and universities with 10,869 licensed candidates, 385 science majors **total Math, no data on Applied Math specifically Most of the LAs report in interviews that they had not seriously considered becoming a teacher until participating as a Learning Assistant Two most frequently stated reasons for making the decision: (1) Recognizing Teaching as a complex endeavor (2) Encouragement and support by participating STEM Faculty

Evidence of Departmental Change Interviewer: How would peers in your department respond to a possibility of you going into teaching? LA: It would have been weird at first when I first started and people would be like oh ok.  But now STEM-TP is really affecting the way a lot of us think.  But, yeah, so now its kind of a normal thing to hear.  Oh yeah, I’m thinking about K-12.  And it, its not even, its not weird.  Its not out of the ordinary where as a couple years ago it would have been strange for me to hear that. 

Perspectives from LAs Interviewer: One of the things that were trying to get at through this question is people’s attitudes towards teaching in different venues?  LA: Ok, physics yeah.  Physics professors are against it.  They laugh at you if you say that you’re going to go into teaching.  Um, besides, Ben Herman, Brian Potter, and Dr. Rogers.  But, um, besides those select rare few, they think that you’re just wasting your time if you go into K-12 teaching.  Wasting your time.  They don’t even want to teach you anymore!  They’re bad, mean people (LAUGHS), no, but uh, um. Interviewer: Have you actually seen that happen?  LA: I’ve had people, a professor like, yes, I’ve seen it happen.  He was just like, “what are you doing? What are you doing? That’s ridiculous!”  It just doesn’t make sense to them, you know.  Um, but that’s changing.  I feel like a lot of these things I’m angry about are changing, so its nice.  Um, but yeah, all the all the upper division classes I’ve had if any of my professors even thought, cause a lot of us in the classes were thinking about education, and they were really kind of negative about it, but all the professors involved with STEM (Colorado), they’re very, very supportive of it.  They’re funny and they’re like education pushers.  Its really, yeah, they like sweep you up in their enthusiasm too. 

Faculty Perspectives The other thing here that I just totally believe in where the learning assistants become absolutely essential to us, is that we get enormous feedback in this class. We really know where the students are on things. And it’s through the learning assistants. (STEM faculty member) But I am spending a whole lot more time preparing lessons. I mean, I’ve taught [this course] a million times. I could do it in my sleep without preparing a lesson. But I’m spending a lot of time preparing lessons for them, trying to think ‘Ok, first of all, what is the main concept that I’m trying to get across here? What is it I want them to go away knowing?’ Which I have to admit, I haven’t spent a lot of time in the past thinking about. (STEM faculty member)

Critical Elements of our LA program Faculty buy in: Representatives from each department meet bi-weekly Faculty commit to transforming course in some way using LAs Faculty should be aware of issues in educational research Assessment of transformations is a good idea for promoting program Student Recruitment and Preparation Being an LA should be conceived of as a good thing (the elite) LAs need some form of compensation (we pay $1500/semester) A special course for LAs in STEM Education 3. Collaborations: STEM faculty, Education faculty, K-12 Continuous pipeline from STEM major to prospective teacher Finding high quality practicum and student teacher placements for candidates Promoting teaching as a valuable and legitimate career option

If you are interested in implementing an LA program at your university… Questions to Consider What other faculty can you think of that would be interested in collaborating? From physics? From other departments? Which courses could you use LA’s in? How would you use LAs? How would you fund LAs? Course fees? TA salaries? Grants? Departmental funds? Who might teach a special course for LAs in math and science education? How might you get faculty to buy into the program? What’s in it for them? What might be the role of the TIR in the LA program?

Future work: Research on LA model for preparing quality teachers http://cosmos.colorado.edu/stem/ http://www.colorado.edu/physics/EducationIssues/phystec/ References: Colorado Commission on Higher Education (2006). Report to the governor and general assembly on education.