E.N.V.I.S.I.O.N.S. Educational Network Venture into Science/Math Instruction, Outreach, and North Carolina Standards Ken Reddic, Grant Director Michael Elder, Teacher-Coach NC State University --- Onslow County Public Schools East Main Educational Consulting --- NC Department of Public Instruction

ENVISIONS History Conducted Needs’ Assessments –Used school and district data as well as surveys of individual teachers –Specific Items noted: In grades 5-8, twenty math and science teachers were not “highly qualified.” These teachers were charged with teaching over 1100 students. The majority of teachers did not feel comfortable teaching any science strand and they have not updated their content training in some time. 30% of teachers felt the least comfortable teaching physical science. 67% reported science equipment availability as “Poor.” 77% of teachers indicated that there was no science safety plan in place. 89% had not attended a science lab safety workshop in the past 5 years and 78% indicated a lack of basic safety equipment. –ENVISIONS is a 3-Year, $1.1 million grant

ENVISIONS Key Features Courses with NC State Faculty –Face-to-face and On-line sessions Partnerships –Between and among teachers, county level personnel, and NC State University faculty Teacher led Educator Inquiry Groups (EIGs) –Groups that evaluate instructional needs and build content knowledge –Creating professional learning communities –An atmosphere of collaborative learning and planning

Partnership Coursework Face to Face and On-Line Formats 2007: Physical Science 2008: Earth/Environmental Science 2009: Possible Life Science University Partner – The Science House at North Carolina State University Evaluation Partner – East Main Educational Consulting Quarterly Meetings Include all partners Evaluation Team NC State Central Office Administration Coach and Director Kick-Off Sessions and Sharing Sessions Partners help in planning and sharing information

University Partnership Variety of viewpoints Key to planning Sharing of resources –Personnel resources- faculty –Material resources- Science House technology (Vernier)

Course Feedback Most valuable aspect of the course Discuss and Teach Physical Science (including forces, motion, light, and sound) I am now better prepared to… Now I plan to… Best part of the course… The content and deeper thinking Learning the content and increased knowledge Use more activities that are hands-on; Do more learning labs

Self-Efficacy Reporting Face to Face Delivery On-Line Delivery The course stimulated my thinking about the content in Physical Science Interaction with classmates assisted my learning I was encouraged to take responsibility for my own learning

Teacher Content Knowledge Growth Physical Science

Teacher Content Growth: Notebooks

Student Growth State Science Test Scores Documenting Student Growth TEXT Observation sReformed Observation Teaching Protocol (RTOP) Teacher Reports of Student Performanc e

PLCs (EIGs) Educator Inquiry Groups Self Efficacy Survey Data (most agreed upon statements from Likert Scale survey) “Efforts were made to combine 5 th grade teachers with middle school teachers in your EIG.” “The ENVISIONS coach modeled how to conduct an Educator Inquiry Session in the first meeting, teaching our EIG how to run sessions in the future.” “Combining 5 th grade teachers with middle school teachers helped in my understanding of K-12 mathematics and science curriculum.” Open-ended responses indicated that respondents planned to continue with ENVISIONS due to the project’s ability to: improve teaching styles and knowledge generate student interest in science encourage professional growth and networking

Contact Information Ken Reddic, Grant Director Michael Elder, Teacher-Coach Sharon Schulze, Director- NC State Science House Shawn Reintjes, Outreach Coordinator, NC State Science House Barbara Heath and Aaron Perlmutter East Main Educational Consulting Betty Brummett, Educational Consultant NC Department of Public Instruction

Disclaimer The instructional practices and assessments discussed or shown in this presentation are not intended as an endorsement by the U.S. Department of Education.