Growing emphasis on elementary STEM education has pushed elementary teachers to face curriculum changes that focus on standards with which they are largely unfamiliar (Smith, 2020; Trygstad et al., 2013). As a result, elementary students are not always exposed to STEM subjects or integration and miss out on opportunities to access and enjoy the hands-on, inquiry-driven activities that accompany them. This deficit disproportionally impacts high-need, urban districts that serve Black and Brown children and families, thus perpetuating inequities in STEM education and careers (Tate et al., 2012). To address these issues, we designed a Fellowship program that strengthened K-12 STEM teacher leadership in local, high-need, schools. In this paper, we take a closer look at how five elementary teachers took on STEM teacher leader identities and then sustained and strengthened those even as program supports reduced. We asked: How do elementary teachers develop and sustain STEM and leadership identities through participation in a Master Teacher Fellowship? Using positional identity and selfefficacy lenses, we interpreted focus group interviews, coursework, reflections, and Fellowship meeting notes. Findings suggest that elementary teachers developed their identities gradually—first, as they recognized themselves as STEM teachers; next, as they recognized themselves as STEM leaders; and then, as others recognized them as STEM teacher leaders and positioned them to enact change in their schools and to support their colleagues. Implications for teacher educators shed light on how elementary teachers can be best supported in increasing STEM learning for their students across grade levels to effect school change.
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Undergraduates Transitioning from STEM Degrees to Elementary Education Degrees: Driving values and motivating factors
Elementary school teachers who enter the profession with positive STEM attitudes and abilities have increased confidence in teaching math and science which can positively impact their students. Understanding the reasons why STEM majors switch career paths and persist in elementary education could have implications for undergraduate recruitment as well as long-term teacher retention. This paper presents two case studies using interview data involving fourth-year undergraduate elementary teacher candidates, both former STEM majors. In this qualitative analysis, I unpack motivating factors pertinent to their educational choices, in particular why participants switched from STEM fields to education. Results show high value is placed on elements like creative license, enjoyable classrooms, strong relationships, and safe spaces to take risks. Less important are lucrative careers and professional “success.”
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- Award ID(s):
- 1712493
- PAR ID:
- 10096695
- Date Published:
- Journal Name:
- Annual meeting program - American Educational Research Association
- ISSN:
- 0163-9676
- Format(s):
- Medium: X
- Sponsoring Org:
- National Science Foundation
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Abstract Despite critical shortages of secondary science teachers in urban schools, relatively little research has focused on the recruitment of undergraduate science majors to teach in urban contexts. This study utilized a retrospective narrative inquiry methodology to explore the career pathways of 14 undergraduate science majors into secondary science teaching. The primary data source was interviews that were conducted at the beginning of an urban teacher education program. Interviews were analyzed through the framework of social cognitive career theory (SCCT) to identify the characteristics, beliefs, and experiences that featured prominently in their narrativizations of their career pathway into urban science education. Findings highlight a non-linear process of career choice characterized by three themes: rejecting traditional science careers, reevaluating their interests and skills for teaching, and prioritizing socially oriented career goals. Implications for enhancing the recruitment of undergraduate science majors into urban science teaching include transforming undergraduate science majors to value teaching careers and taking a more community-based approach to science teacher recruitment.
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