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This book presents an overview of the methodological innovations and developments present in the field of STEM education research as well as providing a practically orientated resource on research method design more broadly. Featuring a range of international contributors in the field, the book provides a compendium of exemplary innovative methodological designs, implementations, and analyses that answer a variety of research questions relating to STEM education disciplines. Charting the thinking behind the design and implementation of successful research investigations, the book's two parts present an accessible and pragmatically framed set of chapters that cover a range of important methodological areas presented by active researchers in the field. Ultimately, this book presents a comprehensive resource that explores the act of educational research as related to STEM. By showcasing key methodological principles with guidance on practical approaches underpinned by theory, the book offers scholarly research-informed suggestions for practice. It will be of great interest to researchers, academics, and students in the fields of STEM education and education research methods, as well as educational research more broadly.

In the face of complex local and global problems, there is a critical need to prepare PK-12 students to be innovative, resilient problem-solvers and well-equipped STEM-literate citizens. With focus upon integrated content, college and career readiness, authentic problems, and action-oriented pedagogies, integrative STEM education provides a promising approach to address this challenge.Integrative STEM programming with its fusion of science, mathematics, engineering, and technology content and practices may manifest in a variety of ways: Teachers co-plan an engineering design experience within a social studies class. A community business partner offers a job-shadowing experience. Students engage in an after-school program at a makerspace.Educators collaboratively re-envision and interweave STEM across the curriculum.And more... Current and future educational leaders striving to improve STEM programming will find this book to be a useful resource. Its introduction offers an orientation to the fundamental goals, principles, and practices of integrative STEM education. While later chapters delve into the facets of STEM programming and the competencies of STEM leadership which form the foundation of a coherent program. These evidence-based strategies, examples, and resources may provide inspiration to leaders as they initiate and enhance an equitable integrative STEM culture within their school.

Bridging a gap in the literature by offering a comprehensive look at how STEM teacher education programs evolve over time, this book explores teachHOUSTON, a designer teacher education program created to respond to the lack of adequately prepared STEM teachers in Houston and the emerging urban school districts that surround it. Providing a systematic investigation of how prospective STEM educators are cultivated to be subject matter specialists and culturally relevant teachers, the authors of this volume delve into the academic, professional and personal perspectives of teacher experiences to emphasise the impact on prospective and unfurling teaching careers. The topics include the influence of parents, teachers and professors on educator development and how internships function as a form of professional development, in addition to the influence of National Science Foundation-funded STEM scholarships on the careers and lives of the teachHOUSTON graduates. Because STEM education is vital to human and economic prosperity, this volume is of interest to both national and international readers.

In an age where we are inundated with information, the ability to discern verifiable information to make proper decisions and solve problems is ever more critical. Modern science, which espouses a systematic approach to making “inferences,” requires a certain mindset that allows for a degree of comfort with uncertainty. This book offers inspirations and ideas for cultivating the proper mindset for the studying, teaching, and practicing of science that will be useful for those new to as well as familiar with the field. Although a paradigm shift from traditional instruction is suggested in the National Framework for K-12 science, this volume is intended to help educators develop a personal mental framework in which to transition from a teacher-centered, didactical approach to a student-centered, evidence-guided curriculum. While the topics of the book derive from currently published literature on STEM education as they relate to the National Framework for K-12 Science and the Three-Dimensional science instruction embedded in the Next Generation Science Standards, this book also examines these topics in the context of a new societal age posited as the “Age of Inference” and addresses how to make sense of the ever-increasing deluge of information that we are experiencing by having a scientific and properly discerning mindset. ENDORSEMENTS:'This volume takes on one of the thorniest existential problems of our time, the contradiction between the exponentially growing amount of information that individuals have access to, and the diminished capacity of those individuals to understand it. Its chapters provide the reader with an introduction to the relationship between knowledge, science, and inference; needed new approaches to learning science in our new data rich world; and a discussion of what we can and must do to reduce or eliminate the growing gap between the inference have's and have nots. It is not too much to say that how we resolve the issues outlined in this volume will determine the future of our species on this planet.'— Joseph L. Graves Jr., Professor of Biological Sciences North Carolina A&T State University, Fellow, American Association for the Advancement of Science: Biological Sciences, Author of: The Emperor's New Clothes: Biological Theories of Race at the Millennium'Big data is not enough for addressing dangers to the environment or tackling threats to democracy; we need the ability to draw sound inferences from the data. Cultivating a scientific mindset requires fundamental changes to the way we teach and learn. This important and well -written volume shows how.'— Ashok Goel, Professor of Computer Science and Human Centered Computing, Georgia Institute of Technology. Editor of AI Magazine Founding Editor of AAAI's Interactive AI Magazine'If you are a science teacher concerned about the implications of information overload, analysis paralysis, and intellectual complacency on our health, economic future, and democracy, then I recommend this book.'— Michael Svec, Professor for Physics and Astronomy Education, Furman University, Fulbright Scholar to Czech Republic

The National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) is one of the United States'leading federal science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) agencies and plays an important role in the landscape of STEM education. In 2015, NASA's Science Mission Directorate (SMD) created the Science Activation (SciAct) program to increase the overall coherence of SMD's education efforts, to support more effective, sustainable, and efficient use of SMD science discoveries for education, and to enable NASA scientists and engineers to engage more effectively and efficiently in the STEM learning environment with learners of all ages. SciAct is now transitioning into its second round of funding, and it is beneficial to review the program's portfolio and identify opportunities for improvement. NASA's Science Activation Program: Achievements and Opportunities assesses SciAct's efforts towards meeting its goals. The key objectives of SciAct are to enable STEM education, improve U.S. scientific literacy, advance national education goals, and leverage efforts through partnerships. This report describes and assesses the history, current status, and vision of the program and its projects. It also provides recommendations to enhance NASA's efforts through the SciAct program.

2021 Outstanding Book Award, American Association of Colleges for Teacher Education (AACTE)Science in the City examines how language and culture matter for effective science teaching. Author Bryan A. Brown argues that, given the realities of our multilingual and multicultural society, teachers must truly understand how issues of culture intersect with the fundamental principles of learning. This book links an exploration of contemporary research on urban science teaching to a more generative instructional approach in which students develop mastery by discussing science in culturally meaningful ways.The book starts with a trenchant analysis of the “black tax,” a double standard at work in science language and classrooms that forces students of color to appropriate and express their science knowledge solely in ways that accord with the dominant culture and knowledge regime. Because we are in an interactive, multimedia world, the author also posits the necessity of applying what is known about best practices in science teaching to best practices in technology.The book then turns to instruction, illustrating how science education can flourish if it is connected to students'backgrounds, identities, language, and culture. In this empowered—and inclusive—form of science classroom, the role of narrative is key: educators use stories and anecdotes to induct students into the realm of scientific thinking; introduce big ideas in easy, familiar terms; and prioritize explanation over mastery of symbolic systems. The result is a classroom that showcases how the use of more familiar, culturally relevant modes of communication can pave the way for improved science learning.

Improving STEM (science, technology, engineering, and mathematics) education and strengthening the STEM workforce have long been acknowledged as national priorities. Ceaseless efforts have been made to address these national priorities through educational research, innovative STEM education initiatives, and professional development for teachers. Engaging STEM Students From Rural Areas: Emerging Research and Opportunities is an essential reference source that discusses the potential of rural schools to impact the STEM workforce pipeline, as well as Project Engage, an educational program for preparing rural undergraduate students from the Alabama Black Belt region. Featuring research on topics such as the three-pillar approach for preparing tomorrow's STEM professionals, this book is ideally designed for academicians, STEM educational researchers, STEM educators, and individuals seeking coverage on techniques to improve the undergraduate STEM education framework.

This book presents 13 ready-to-use lessons in physical science, life science, and Earth and space science that help educators embed engineering, technology, and science applications into their lesson plans.

In this book, the authors examine a series of key science identity-based research models with the goal of discussing the interplay between individual agency and social interaction through the lens of transformative learning. Current identity-based models are critiqued based on the importance given to either social structures and/or agency separately. Following this, a synthesis report on the development strategies of technology education carried out at basic schools in Slovakia (lower secondary education – ISCED 2) is presented. Additionally, the authors discuss the results of a survey done with the goal of finding out the reality of technology teaching at these schools. As the research results show, despite the good intentions of the different strategies, programs and reforms, the technology education at basic schools is on the decline. The next article discusses gender-based segregation and falling recruitment for scientific and technological studies in Nordic countries. This study traced and interviewed students who achieved the best results in the measurement of technological competence twenty years ago in order to examine their progress. In the final study, the book proposes a new vision for science education in the era of sustainable development. The authors discuss how sustainable development goals (SDGs) identify new roles for science and technology to address global and local challenges such as climate change, energy innovation, and biodiversity. These areas of sustainability reveal new horizons for science education by enabling us to approach science learning as a more community-based practice and collaborative way of thinking, beyond classroom-based learning.

Undergraduate research has a rich history, and many practicing researchers point to undergraduate research experiences (UREs) as crucial to their own career success. There are many ongoing efforts to improve undergraduate science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) education that focus on increasing the active engagement of students and decreasing traditional lecture-based teaching, and UREs have been proposed as a solution to these efforts and may be a key strategy for broadening participation in STEM. In light of the proposals questions have been asked about what is known about student participation in UREs, best practices in UREs design, and evidence of beneficial outcomes from UREs. Undergraduate Research Experiences for STEM Students provides a comprehensive overview of and insights about the current and rapidly evolving types of UREs, in an effort to improve understanding of the complexity of UREs in terms of their content, their surrounding context, the diversity of the student participants, and the opportunities for learning provided by a research experience. This study analyzes UREs by considering them as part of a learning system that is shaped by forces related to national policy, institutional leadership, and departmental culture, as well as by the interactions among faculty, other mentors, and students. The report provides a set of questions to be considered by those implementing UREs as well as an agenda for future research that can help answer questions about how UREs work and which aspects of the experiences are most powerful.

Educational strategies have evolved over the years, due to research breakthroughs and the application of technology. By using the latest learning innovations, curriculum and instructional design can be enhanced and strengthened. The Handbook of Research on Driving STEM Learning With Educational Technologies is an authoritative reference source for the latest scholarly research on the implementation and use of different techniques of instruction in modern classroom settings. Featuring exhaustive coverage on a variety of topics including data literacy, student motivation, and computer-aided assessment, this resource is an essential reference publication ideally designed for academicians, researchers, and professionals seeking current research on emerging uses of technology for STEM education.

All you need to make the shift to STEM a reality! Now more than ever, educational leaders are encouraged to implement STEM as the foundation for preparing students with the 21st century skills required for college and career readiness. This resource makes the process of shifting to a comprehensive, integrated STEM school or district within reach! Invaluable case studies featuring current STEM pioneers from across the country model how successful, STEM-centered learning takes place. You'll find process-specific best practices and strategies to help you: Understand, create, and lead the STEM change process Transform existing school programs Prepare the school community for STEM and plan for STEM integration Integrate 21st Century Skills, the arts, and humanities Create essential partnerships with business and higher education Includes step-by-step checklists and visual mapping guides for successfully navigating the STEM change process. Use this groundbreaking resource to systematically implement coherent and integrated STEM instruction that transforms learning and prepares students for the global economy! Video and web content also available at http://bit.ly/TheSTEMShift.'Finally! A great book that clearly explains what STEM education is, why we need it, and how to do it well. A must-read for all educators, parents, and policymakers.'Tony Wagner, author of The Global Achievement Gap and Creating Innovators'Reading Jill and Ann′s column in Education Week has been a critical part of my weekly reading since they′ve begun writing it. I′ve learned a lot from those short snippets, and now it′s exciting to see their expanded thoughts in The Stem Shift. You can′t go wrong by reading anything they write!'Larry Ferlazzo, High school teacher and Ed Week columnist

While the great scientists of the past recognized a need for a multidisciplinary approach, today's schools often treat math and science as subjects separate from the rest. This not only creates a disinterest among students, but also a potential learning gap once students reach college and then graduate into the workforce. Cases on Research-Based Teaching Methods in Science Education addresses the problems currently facing science education in the USA and the UK, and suggests a new hands-on approach to learning. This book is an essential reference source for policymakers, academicians, researchers, educators, curricula developers, and teachers as they strive to improve education at the elementary, secondary, and collegiate levels.

Year after year, technology advances at an increasingly accelerated pace. In order to keep up with the demands of users and businesses alike, a comprehensive understanding of science and technology must be fostered in the next generation of innovators. STEM Education: Concepts, Methodologies, Tools, and Applications brings together an impressive array of research on the development of Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics curricula at all educational levels. This comprehensive reference covers topics of interest for educators and students, as well as industry professionals, computer scientists, and engineering specialists in a wide variety of disciplines.

STEM Integration in K-12 Education examines current efforts to connect the STEM disciplines in K-12 education. This report identifies and characterizes existing approaches to integrated STEM education, both in formal and after- and out-of-school settings. The report reviews the evidence for the impact of integrated approaches on various student outcomes, and it proposes a set of priority research questions to advance the understanding of integrated STEM education. STEM Integration in K-12 Education proposes a framework to provide a common perspective and vocabulary for researchers, practitioners, and others to identify, discuss, and investigate specific integrated STEM initiatives within the K-12 education system of the United States. STEM Integration in K-12 Education makes recommendations for designers of integrated STEM experiences, assessment developers, and researchers to design and document effective integrated STEM education. This report will help to further their work and improve the chances that some forms of integrated STEM education will make a positive difference in student learning and interest and other valued outcomes.

During the past few years, groups like the President's Council of Advisors on Science and Technology, Center for Education have been placing great emphasis on the significance of STEM (science, technology, engineering, and math) education. In brief, the US is seen as falling behind the rest of the world in science and technology education. In response, the curricula have been revised in many educational institutions and school districts across the country. It is clear that for STEM to be successful, other community organizations, most particularly libraries, need to be closely involved in the process. Library staff realize the importance of getting involved in STEM education, but many have difficulty finding comprehensive information that will help them plan and successfully implement STEM direction in their organization. This book is designed to meet that need. It is timely and relevant. How to STEM: Science, Technology, Engineering, and Math Education in Libraries is by and for libraries who are involved in contributing efforts into advancing these subjects. It is organized in 9 parts including funding, grant writing, community partnerships, outreach, research, and examples of specific programming activities. Authors are drawn from the professional staffs of educational institutions, libraries, and non-profit organizations such as science museums. The book contains eight parts, each emphasizing a different aspect of how to succeed with STEM. Part 1 emphasizes how hands-on activities that are both fun and educational can be used to further STEM awareness. Parts 2 and 3 contain chapters on the uniting of STEM with Information Literacy. Innovative collection development ideas are discussed in Part 4 and Part 5 focuses on research and publishing. Outreach is the theme of Part 6 and the programs described in these chapters offer an array of ways to connect with students of all ages. The final section of How to STEM: Science, Technology, Engineering, and Math Education in Libraries addresses the funding of these programs. Librarians of all types will be pleased to discover easy-to-implement suggestions for collaborative efforts, many rich and diverse programming ideas, strategies for improving reference services and library instruction to speakers of English as a second language, marketing and promotional tips designed to welcome multicultural patrons into the library, and much more.