STEM for ALL: Effective Models for Underrepresented Students October 10, 2013

The context: options, choices, and STEM Option: a thing that is or may be chosen Choice: the mental process of judging the merits of multiple options and selecting one or more of them

Options and choices Options Choices

STEM STEM education is an approach to teaching and learning that integrates the content and skills of science, technology, engineering, and mathematics. STEM Standards of Practice guide STEM instruction by defining the combination of behaviors, integrated with STEM content, which is expected of a proficient STEM student. These behaviors include engagement in inquiry, logical reasoning, collaboration, and investigation. The goal of STEM education is to prepare students for post- secondary study and the 21 st century workforce. ~

Confront the brutal facts  By 2018, 92% of traditional STEM jobs will be for those with some postsecondary education.  Close to two-thirds of STEM job openings will be for those with Bachelor’s degrees and above. Source: Georgetown Center on Education and the Workforce: STEM

Did you know 2013 The 25% of the population in China with the highest IQ’s is greater than the total population of North America. In India, it’s the top 28%. Translation: They have more honors kids than we have kids. Source:

Did you know 2013  Today’s learner will have jobs by the age of 38.  The top ten in-demand jobs in 2010 did not exist in We are currently preparing students for jobs that don’t exist, using technologies that haven’t been invented…. in order to solve problems we don’t even know are problems.

Did you know 2013  In 2002, Nintendo invested more than $140 million in research and development  The U.S. Federal Government spent less than half as much on Research and Innovation in Education

Did you know 2013 Today more than 220 of the world’s biggest companies have their IT operations based in India

Did you know 2013 We live in exponential times  2.7 zetabytes (2.7x10 21 ) of unique information will be created worldwide this year That is more than in the previous 5,000 years  The amount of new technical information is doubling every 2 years.

Did you know 2013 For students starting a four-year technical or college degree, half of what they learn in their first year of study will be outdated by their third year of study.

Maryland – creating the foundation Maryland School Performance Assessment Program  Standards-based, aligned to curriculum  Constructed response  Integrated reading, language, writing, mathematics, science, social studies  Used for program evaluation and school improvement

Maryland – creating the foundation  No Child Left Behind  Four High School Assessments were required as a graduation requirement beginning with the class of 2009  End-of-course, standards-based tests, aligned to the curriculum  Used for individual scores and school improvement

Maryland – creating the foundation  Race to the Top  Focused on student achievement, reducing gaps, turning around struggling schools, improving teaching profession  ESEA Flexibility Waiver

Effective instruction – the secret of the cycle Instructional Cycle Curriculum and Instruction Assess Evidence and Data Analysis Monitor and Adjust

Effective use of data Use data as a flashlight, not a hammer

Guiding Questions How are we doing compared to:  STANDARD? (Local, State, National)  SELF? (Trends over time)  Others? (Local, State, National)

A picture is worth a thousand words

Student Data Management System

Reading WB

Math WB

State and local efforts  Educator Effectiveness Academies  Preschool STEM  Maryland Out of School Time (MOST) network  Uteach program

State and local efforts  Maryland Business Roundtable  PreK – 6 th grade teacher endorsement in STEM  K12 Longitudinal Data System  Office of STEM Initiatives

Technology Education: the T and E in STEM  One credit graduation requirement that includes the application of knowledge, tools, and skills to solve practical problems and extend human capacities (COMAR 1992)  MD State Curriculum based on five overarching standards aligned to ITEEA’s Standards for Technology Literacy:  The nature of technology  The impacts of technology  The engineering design and development process  The core technologies  The designed world

CTE Career Clusters & Pathways o Arts, Media and Communication o Business Management and Finance o Construction and Development o Consumer Services, Hospitality and Tourism o Environmental, Agriculture and Natural Resources o Health and Biosciences o Human Resource Services o Information Technology o Manufacturing, Engineering and Technology o Transportation Technologies

Critical Thinking: The 16 Habits of Mind 1. Persisting2. Thinking and communicating with clarity and precision3. Managing impulsivity4. Gathering data through all senses5. Listening with understanding and empathy6. Creating, imagining, innovating7. Thinking flexibly8. Responding with wonderment and awe

Critical Thinking: The 16 Habits of Mind 9. Thinking about thinking (metacognition)10. Taking responsible risks11. Striving for accuracy12. Finding humor13. Questioning and posing problems14. Thinking interdependently15. Applying past knowledge to new situations16. Remaining open to continuous learning

Advocate for students Equity in Expectations Understanding the Integration of STEM into the full curriculum Educator roles Things to think about right now

 Micromessaging  Small, subtle, semiconscious messages we send and receive when interacting with others  Micro-inequities  Negative micromessages  Micro- affirmations  Positive micromessages ~ excerpted from PowerPoint by Claudia Morrell, NAPE ~ based on research of Mary P. Rowe, Ph.D.

Equality vs. Equity

People look into the future and expect that the forces of the present will unfold in a coherent and predictable way, but any examination of the past reveals that the circuitous routes of change are unimaginably strange. No logic and no prophesy can explain …. Rebecca Solnit