Discovery Research K–12 (DR-K12) Program
Special Interest Groups
Designed Curriculum in the 21st Century
Learning Science in Informal Environments
Roles of Technology in STEM Teaching and Learning
Algebra K-12
Facilitators/Contacts:
E. Paul Goldenberg
Education Development Center (EDC)
pgoldenberg@edc.org
Phone: 617-618-2513
Al Cuoco
Education Development Center (EDC)
acuoco@edc.org
617-618-2563
There are many algebras — algebra the course, algebra the discipline, algebraic ideas, algebraic language, early algebra, “patterns, functions, and...” — and lots of different takes on the learning and teaching of any of these. We will convene SIG-Algebra with a long-term aim of building more collaboration among projects. We think of that as “long term” partly because, in the short term, projects are already underway, have their own agendas that are not necessarily coordinated with those of other projects, and have more than enough work to do without adding what would, in the short term, feel like more meetings, unplanned for collaboration, and so on. But good advance planning could help us all have more impact without more work, by dividing and conquering, so three of the short-term aims of SIG-Algebra might be:
- taking stock of where we already are in research and development on algebra — an ongoing effort of the entire DRK-12 program and the CADRE network;
- beginning advance planning by starting a preliminary map of a future research agenda (that might be divided and conquered); and
- establishing an ongoing and growing association of PIs to remain in communication (perhaps via the CADRE web tools) to help grow our field.
Instead of predetermining the structure and content of this meeting — or even the agenda, which we’ve taken the liberty of proposing—what we are hoping to do is talk with interested participants before the November meeting to build a structure and agenda that you would find genuinely interesting and productive. The agenda listed here is, therefore, tentative.
Designed Curriculum in the 21st Century
Facilitator/Contact:
Jacqueline Miller
Senior Scientist
Center for Science Education
Education Development Center, Inc.
55 Chapel Street
Newton, MA 02458
jsmiller@edc.org
Phone: 617-618-2438
Fax: 617-630-8439
Description: This group will be a continuation of last year’s presentation and discussion of “Designed Curriculum in the Cyber-Age” in which we considered the implications of new technologies on curriculum development and implementation. A year later, we will revisit the following questions raised during that session and address what we have learned: What does cyberlearning mean for the kinds of curricula funded by the NSF in the past two decades? Can these curricula, which have largely been designed for print and publication by traditional publishers, be adapted to this new learning environment? What innovative educational approaches could be brought to these curricula in a cyberspace learning environment? How would schools who want to use these innovative, research-based instructional materials access and distribute them? The discussion will be informal and should be of interest to curriculum developers and anyone working with schools and their curricula.
Discourse and Language
Facilitators/Contacts:
Betina Andrea Zolkower, Ph.D.
Assistant Professor
Middle Childhood Mathematics Program
School of Education
Brooklyn College, City University of New York
2900 Bedford Avenue
Brooklyn, NY, 11210
BetinaZ@brooklyn.cuny.edu
Phone: 718-951-5000 ext. 3954
Elizabeth de Freitas
defreitas@adelphi.edu
Adelphi University, NY
The Language Question in Mathematics Education: Over the past three decades, research on interaction, communication, and discourse has become central in mathematics education. The purpose of this working group is to tackle issues related to this linguistic turn in the field. Most specifically, this group is envisioned as a space for participants to discuss questions about communication, discourse, language, interaction, and text in relation to research on teaching/learning, teacher preparation and training, and instructional design.
Among the perspectives on language that may be included in this working group, depending on who responds to this call for participation, are: hermeneutics; micro-sociology (symbolic interactionism, frame theory, and ethno-methodology); systemic functional linguistics; genre theory; socio-linguistics; structuralism/post-structuralism; critical discourse analysis; cognitive psychology; socio-cognitive theory; anthropology/cultural psychology; cultural historical activity theory; language games; dialogism; speech act theory; and Peirce’s logic/semiotics.
The central aim of this encounter is to open up a conversation space among the above frameworks, find possible points of intersection, make explicit underlying assumptions and uncover hidden assumptions, identify blind spots, and, last but not least, address pressing matters in the field (matters of research, matters of teacher education, instructional design matters). Prospective participants are asked to bring data from their own research projects in a format that will allow for analysis, interpretation, and discussion.
Early Childhood Education
Facilitator/Contact:
Karen Worth
Senior Scientist
Center for Science Education
Education Development Center, Inc.
55 Chapel Street
Newton, MA 02458
kworth@edc.org
Phone: 617-618-2428
Fax: 617-630-8439
Description: There is a great deal of talk about the importance of early childhood education (pre-K-2), however there are relatively few opportunities for the community of early childhood researchers and developers in science and mathematics to share ideas and develop research and development agendas. This meeting will provide an opportunity to talk about our work and to think about strategies for on-going networking and possible working meetings/conferences. The discussion will be an informal one and open to the interests and concerns of the group. Issues we might discuss include written and verbal scientific and mathematical communication and ways to assess students on investigation and problem solving skills and scientific and mathematical reasoning.
Gaming
Facilitator:
Douglas Clark
Associate Professor of Science Education
Vanderbilt University
Box 230
230 Appleton Place
Nashville, TN 37203
doug.clark@vanderbilt.edu
Phone: 615-322-5865
Description: Digital games provide a rich foundation in support of STEM learning. Research on games for STEM learning, however, is conducted across an almost unparalleled breadth of fields and contexts, spanning a wide range of academic disciplines, commercial enterprises, and government and military organizations. Connecting researchers across disciplines and contexts in terms of compiling and sharing pragmatic design principles, research, and lessons learned will greatly facilitate advances in our field. This SIG will initially focus on giving the group members a chance to learn more about each other’s research. The group might hopefully grow to support sharing findings, ideas, and planning for new research on digital games for STEM learning (potentially including a broader swath of NSF-funded digital games researchers).
Learning Science in Informal Environments
Facilitator/Contact:
Sue Allen
Director of Research & Evaluation
Exploratorium
suea@exploratorium.edu
Program Director
Division of Research on Learning in Formal and Informal Settings
National Science Foundation
Phone: 703-292-7546
suallen@nsf.gov
Description: Earlier this year the National Research Council published the first-ever consensus study that synthesizes the research on learning of science in informal (out of school) environments. I will bring a copy of the report to share, and can briefly summarize its main conclusions and recommendations. We can discuss the contributions of learning in informal environments to school STEM education, and ways the two systems might more effectively support each other.
In my current role as an NSF program director, I am also available to talk with participants about the various programs that support informal science education research and activities, and how these might be combined with work in the formal sector.
Recruitment and Retention
Facilitators:
Susan Jansen Varnum and Judith Stull
Contact:
Susan Jansen Varnum
Professor
Temple University
1901 North 13th Street
Philadelphia, PA 19122
suebee@temple.edu
Phone: 215-204-6390
Description: Recruitment and retention of participants is an issue that all projects must confront to varying degrees. On any one occasion enough participants must be recruited to meet statistical minimum needs. In longitudinal projects losing participants compromises the ability to generalize the results. Among the strategies that researchers have used are incentives, mandates, social networking, and testimonials from satisfied participants. While "success stories," which are sometimes based in unique situations, are certainly interesting, they are often the end product of some very interesting and informative discussions. These are the discussions which can provide the stimulus for creative solutions. The goals of this SIG meeting will be to broaden and deepen the participants' understanding of recruitment and retention issues and to forge new collaborative relationships. The SIG facilitators will share their successes and failures. Input from participants and free discussions are encouraged.
Roles of Technology in STEM Teaching and Learning
Facilitator:
Andee Rubin
Contact:
Amy Busey at CADRE
abusey@edc.org
Phone: 617-618-2418
Description: As technology continues to develop, its potential roles in STEM teaching and learning are expanding as well. In the past the role of educational technology has been primarily to support students' learning, including software as diverse as drill and practice software, computer tutors, construction sets and programming environments. More recently, STEM researchers and practitioners have been investigating uses of technology that help teachers analyze and make good use of students' work with educational software. These newer applications have the potential to support teachers in making more informed pedagogical decisions. Looking at teacher learning and teacher quality is incomplete without an examination of the tools that can help them teach more effectively.
This SIG will discuss the growing roles of technology in STEM teaching and learning, with a particular interest in the potential for technology to support teachers in their jobs. Technology projects that currently involve and support teachers as well as those who are considering that direction are encouraged to attend.
Social Networking
Facilitator/Contact:
Kimberly Lightle, PhD
Director of Digital Libraries
College of Education and Human Ecology
School of Teaching and Learning
Ohio State University
1929 Kenny Rd., Suite 400
Columbus, OH 43210
lightle.16@osu.edu
Phone: 614-688-3485
We'll look at the research that has been done on educational social networks and brainstorm some questions that still need to be answered. We'll compare the pluses and minuses of free platforms for building social networks (LearnCentral, NING, Elgg, Facebook, etc.). Participants will share with the group their own social networks and talk about their goals for the network, what has worked, and what hasn't. It would be great if we could get a paper written from the session!
Working in Diverse Contexts
Facilitator/Contact:
Sharon S. Nelson-Barber, Ed.D.
Director
Center for the Study of Culture & Language in Education
WestEd
400 Seaport Court #222
Redwood City, CA 94063
snelson@wested.org
Phone: 650-381-6408
Fax: 650-381-6401
Across diverse contexts quality of curriculum and degree of teacher preparation have been shown to be associated with student learning achievement. However, curriculum quality and teacher preparedness can be judged not only by general criteria but also by criteria related to the particular sociocultural context. My projects work with teachers who have knowledge of students’ communities and cultures and are prepared to link curriculum to local concerns, interests, and cultural knowledge. We strive to understand why certain mathematical/scientific instructional approaches appear to work better in some cultural settings than in others.
At the same time, elements such as languages spoken, life experience, heritage culture, and each student’s own repertoires of practice factor into the interpretive framework with which learners approach schooling. My research suggests that indigenous students do better academically when they have a strong sense of traditional cultural identity.
During this informal session we will discuss issues of this kind. Participants are asked to bring data and/or questions/dilemmas that arise in their contexts work. We can share our experiences and help inform one another about possible solutions. Communication with the session organizer prior to the SIG meeting can help with gathering and circulating a list of issues via email beforehand, as well as organization of the session to address the questions, depending upon the scope and scale of the queries. Though we might not be able to address everything, we would indeed create a network of support that could prove valuable as our work continues.
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