Boston Energy in Science Teaching (BEST)

波士顿能源科学教学（最佳）

• 批准号: 0928666
• 负责人: Robert Chen
• 金额: $ 210万
• 依托单位: University of Massachusetts Boston
• 依托单位国家: 美国
• 项目类别: Standard Grant
• 财政年份: 2010
• 资助国家: 美国
• 起止时间: 2010-08-01 至 2014-07-31
• 项目状态: 已结题
• 来源: https://www.nsf.gov/awardsearch/showAward?AWD_ID=0928666&HistoricalAwards=false
• 关键词: Boston; Energy; Science; Teaching; BEST

The Boston Energy in Science Teaching (BEST) project is a Phase II MSP that explores the use of one of the organizing principles of science, Energy, as a vehicle to extend and research how teacher in-depth conceptual understanding translates into deeper student engagement, exposition and learning of science. This innovative focus on Energy will allow the Partnership to examine how fundamental organizing principles (e.g., energy, models, scale, systems, and constancy/change) can be used to better teach science at the elementary through the undergraduate level. The BEST Partnership is comprised of the University of Massachusetts-Boston (UMB), the Boston Public Schools (BPS), Northeastern University (NEU), and Roxbury Community College (RCC). The Educational Development Center (EDC) and UMB conduct the BEST educational research and the Program Evaluation Research Group at Lesley University provides the independent project evaluation. The BEST project researches whether and to what extent participation in concept-driven vs. discipline-driven professional development improves grade 3-8 science teachers and university faculty members conceptual understanding, the nature of their instruction, the outcomes of their students, and/or faculty members' interactions with teachers, as well as their thinking about their own research.The BEST theory of action exemplifies the hypothesis that in order to understand how the world works, people require a deep understanding of the fundamental concepts of science, a broad base of scientific observations, and a multi-dimensional and coherent approach to learning. It recognizes, however, that current science curricula, course materials, and university science departments are predominantly organized into single scientific disciplines. Teachers and students, especially at the intermediate level (grades 3-8), are re-teaching and re-learning the same concepts within disciplinary silos. These conceptual disconnects and the segregated way of teaching fail to take advantage of the innate curiosity students bring to learning and the real-world connections that they experience daily. At the same time, huge advances in science and technology have recently resulted from a new emphasis on "interdisciplinary" or "cross-disciplinary" research. Therefore, the BEST Partnership effort hypothesizes that similar advances in science learning can be made for teachers and their students through a new emphasis on the foundational concepts that straddle all science disciplines. The Partnership extends and modifies two of its Phase I successful strategies, Contextualized Content Courses (CCC) and Collaborative Coaching and Learning in Science (CCLS), by using Energy, a theme that integrates the fundamental concepts that pervade science, to develop better teaching of science at elementary through undergraduate levels. The BEST vision is one of a growing community of STEM higher education faculty that works side-by-side with K-12 teachers in science education reform; Boston teachers having a deep sense of the organizing principles of science and their connection to disciplinary curricula; and students from all backgrounds entering and remaining in the STEM pipeline supported by the Boston Science Partnership. The goals of this Partnership are to 1) better understand how increasing teacher knowledge increases student achievement and research why the BEST model is effective, 2) increase teacher understanding of science and therefore teacher efficiency and effectiveness at teaching existing curricula, 3) engage disciplinary higher education faculty in a deep discussion of cross-disciplinary research and science education in order to spark new research directions and center institutional changes in STEM education, and 4) increase student interest and achievement in science in the intermediate grades. The BEST project will result in an innovative instructional approach integrating the theme of Energy, a science education masters degree, a growing community of strong science educators, a highly effective and innovative professional development model for both college faculty and teachers which will be disseminated to other university-school district partnerships, and significant research on teaching and learning.

波士顿能源科学教学 (BEST) 项目是第二阶段 MSP，探索利用科学的组织原则之一能源作为扩展和研究教师深入概念理解如何转化为更深入的学生参与的工具，科学的阐述和学习。 这种对能源的创新关注将使该伙伴关系能够研究如何利用基本组织原则（例如能源、模型、规模、系统和恒定/变化）更好地教授小学至本科阶段的科学。 BEST 合作伙伴由马萨诸塞大学波士顿分校 (UMB)、波士顿公立学校 (BPS)、东北大学 (NEU) 和罗克斯伯里社区学院 (RCC) 组成。 教育发展中心 (EDC) 和 UMB 进行 BEST 教育研究，莱斯利大学的项目评估研究小组提供独立的项目评估。 BEST 项目研究参与概念驱动与学科驱动的专业发展是否以及在多大程度上提高了 3-8 年级科学教师和大学教员的概念理解、他们的教学性质、学生的成果和/或教职员工与教师的互动，以及他们对自己研究的思考。最佳行动理论例证了这样一个假设：为了理解世界是如何运作的，人们需要对科学的基本概念有深刻的理解，有广泛的基础科学观察，以及多维和连贯的学习方法。 然而，它认识到当前的科学课程、课程材料和大学科学部门主要被组织成单一的科学学科。 教师和学生，尤其是中级水平（3-8 年级）的教师和学生，正在学科孤岛内重新教授和重新学习相同的概念。 这些概念上的脱节和隔离的教学方式未能充分利用学生对学习与生俱来的好奇心以及他们每天经历的现实世界的联系。 与此同时，最近科学技术的巨大进步源于对“跨学科”或“跨学科”研究的新重视。 因此，最佳伙伴关系的努力假设，通过重新强调跨越所有科学学科的基本概念，可以为教师和学生在科学学习方面取得类似的进步。 该合作伙伴关系扩展并修改了其第一阶段的两项成功战略，即情境化内容课程（CCC）和科学协作辅导和学习（CCLS），通过使用能源这一主题，整合了普遍科学的基本概念，以开发更好的科学教学小学至本科阶段的科学。 BEST 的愿景之一是建立一个不断壮大的 STEM 高等教育教师群体，与 K-12 教师并肩致力于科学教育改革；波士顿的教师对科学的组织原则及其与学科课程的联系有着深刻的认识；以及来自不同背景的学生进入并留在波士顿科学合作伙伴支持的 STEM 管道中。 该合作伙伴关系的目标是 1) 更好地了解增加教师知识如何提高学生成绩并研究为什么 BEST 模式有效，2) 提高教师对科学的理解，从而提高教师教授现有课程的效率和效果，3) 让学科更高级教育教师对跨学科研究和科学教育进行深入讨论，以激发新的研究方向并集中 STEM 教育的制度变革，4) 提高中级学生对科学的兴趣和成就。 BEST 项目将带来一种创新的教学方法，融合能源主题、科学教育硕士学位、不断壮大的强大科学教育工作者社区、针对大学教职员工和教师的高效和创新的专业发展模式，并将传播到其他领域。大学与学区的合作伙伴关系以及有关教学和学习的重要研究。