skip to main content
US FlagAn official website of the United States government
dot gov icon
Official websites use .gov
A .gov website belongs to an official government organization in the United States.
https lock icon
Secure .gov websites use HTTPS
A lock ( lock ) or https:// means you've safely connected to the .gov website. Share sensitive information only on official, secure websites.

Explore Research Products in the PAR
It may take a few hours for recently added research products to appear in PAR search results.


  • NSF Public Access
  • Search Results
  • Designing (and) making teachers: Using design to investigate the impact of maker-based education training on pre-service STEM teachers
Title: Designing (and) making teachers: Using design to investigate the impact of maker-based education training on pre-service STEM teachers
This qualitative study examined how a maker-based education workshop affected 20 pre-service STEM teachers’ views of the lesson planning process. Design is used as both an epistemological link between making and teaching practices as well as an analytical lens through which lesson planning could be interpreted and understood. The findings of this study suggest that pre-service teachers who have been introduced to maker-based principles and practices are able to imagine a lesson planning process that is more student-centered and active than the kind which they normally utilize. While there was a contrast between the content of making-based and traditional lesson planning processes, the pre-service teachers’ designs of these processes were largely the same: linear, verbal, and only occasionally reflective or iterative. These characteristics match those of novice designers.  more » « less
Award ID(s):
2010696
PAR ID:
10214810
Author(s) / Creator(s):
; ;
Date Published:
Journal Name:
IJEE International Journal of Engineering Education
Volume:
36
Issue:
2
ISSN:
2540-9808
Page Range / eLocation ID:
702-711
Format(s):
Medium: X
Sponsoring Org:
National Science Foundation
More Like this
  1. ; ; (, International Journal for Lesson & Learning Studies)
    null (Ed.)
    Purpose The authors developed a lesson study innovation for bridging pre-service teachers' experiences in an early methods course and clinical experiences focusing on the development of technological pedagogical content knowledge (TPACK). The authors analyze one planning meeting by a lesson study team comprised of four pre-service teachers and one cooperating teacher. The purpose of this research was to determine the nature of documentation during the online planning meeting and how the cooperating teacher facilitated the documentation process. Design/methodology/approach The authors used Gueudet and Trouche's (2009) documentation framework to determine the way the lesson study team in our study used all the resources available to plan a lesson. They analyzed the video recordings of the meeting to examine the interplay between material, didactical and mathematical components during the discussions. The material components included the Teacher Desmos Activity Builder and the eTextbook. The didactical components included assessment, scaffolding, multiple representations and problem-solving activities. The mathematical components pertained to systems of linear equations and inequalities with two variables. Findings The authors’ findings show that the cooperating teacher performed an invariant set of actions for improving the research lesson and, also, gave recommendations about how to implement the lesson. In facilitating the planning discussions, the cooperating teacher made explicit the relationship between material, didactical and mathematical components. The authors’ work has implications for supporting the preparation of facilitators of online planning sessions during lesson study. Research limitations/implications The authors did not have access to the planning meeting where the PSTs created the draft of the research lesson. In addition, they are reporting the observations of only one online meeting. Originality/value The authors’ work has implications for supporting the preparation of facilitators of online planning sessions during lesson study. 
    more » « less
  2. (, ASEE annual conference & exposition proceedings)
    Makerspaces, innovation labs, and creativity spaces are gaining traction in K-12 schools and community centers. This exploratory project, Making Inspired by Nature, brings together the art of making, the disciplined practices of design thinking, and the creative practices of biomimicry to engage preservice teachers and children in building innovative solutions to real-world problems. To achieve this, this project is (a) building and evaluating digital resources and hands-on activities for engaging elementary children in innovation through the application of biomimicry and design thinking in a maker context and (b) evaluating models for deepening pre-service teachers’ pedagogical knowledge for supporting student learning in maker-centered classrooms. This NSF IUSE funded project, just ending year 1 of a 2-year project, was in response to an NSF Dear Colleague Letter calling for EAGER proposals to conduct exploratory work with respect to STEM learning and design thinking. 
    more » « less
  3. (, Proceedings of the Society for Information Technology & Teacher Education International Conference 2019)
    The purpose of this paper is to describe findings from a study in which we investigated a gradual increase of responsibility model to scaffold a 1st and a 3rd grade teacher as they integrated interdisciplinary, standards-based Mobile Maker Kits into their classrooms over the course of an academic year. Qualitative discourse and multimodal analysis techniques were used to investigate teacher practices and beliefs related to the integration of the kits, which included lesson plans linking all activities and materials (e.g., picture books, craft materials, tablets, 3D printers, circuits and other electronic materials) to ELA, science, math, and social studies standards. Findings identify the affordances and constraints of a gradual increase of responsibility model for supporting teachers. We conclude by offering implications for supporting the integration of Making practices into P-12 classrooms. 
    more » « less
  4. ; ; (, Note technique Centre scientifique et technique de lindustrie textile belge)
    Ayalon, M; Koichu, B; Leikin, R; Rubel, L; Tabach, M (Ed.)
    Building on student work (SW) in mathematics classroom discussion requires complex decision-making from mathematics teachers. Previous literature on problem-based lessons recommends selecting and sequencing pieces of SW in a way that creates a mathematical storyline, but there is rarely any empirical evidence on how mathematics teachers can master such practices. We use the case of StoryCircles, a lesson-based professional development program, to show how iterative processes in which teachers were engaging with SW assisted them in developing heuristics for a careful selection and sequencing of SW. The results show that these processes involved 1) the teachers’ emerging awareness of features of SW; and 2) an evolving capacity to relate these features to the lesson goal. We discuss design features that fostered these changes. 
    more » « less
  5. ; ; (, Proceedings of the 41st Annual Conference of the North American Chapter of the International Group for the Psychology of Mathematics Education)
    We describe an experience within mathematics teacher preparation that engages pre-service teachers of mathematics (PMTs) in Making and design practices that we hypothesized would inform their conceptual, curricular, and pedagogical thinking. With a focus on the design of new tools that can generate new possibilities for mathematics teaching and learning, this Learning by Design experience has PMTs exploring at the intersection of content, pedagogy, and Making. We describe the forms of knowledge brought to bear on their experiences through a case study analysis of one pair of PMTs’ Making experience. As the advancement of these forms of knowledge is essential to effective mathematics teaching, these findings suggest the promise of a Making experience within mathematics teacher preparation 
    more » « less
  • Citation Formats
  • MLA
  • APA
  • Chicago
  • BibTeX
  • Save / Share this Record
  • Send to Email