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1. We Strive: Initial Explorations of STEM Teachers’ Successes and Challenges in Implementing Socioscientific Issues.

   Johnson, J. (October 2022, Pennsylvania teacher educator)

   This study explores the experiences of two teachers participating in professional development workshops focused on supporting implementation of SocioScientific Issues (SSI) and aspects of social justice into STEM classrooms. SSI are ill-defined problems, with a basis in science, but necessarily include moral and ethical decisions that cannot be resolved through science alone. These debatable issues can enhance learning of STEM by engaging students in real-world and authentic problems. The USTRIVE project was developed to foster STEM learning through integrated professional development workshops and the development of professional learning communities to support teachers in the use of SSI and incorporation of aspects of social justice in their STEM classrooms. Two research questions were investigated: (a) To what extent did teachers implement SSI into their lesson planning during the project and (b) In what ways did teachers’ designed lessons change from the beginning of the workshop? 

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2. We Strive: Enhancing Implementation of Socioscientific Issues in STEM Classrooms Through Professional Development

   Johnson, J.; Macalalag, A.; Mathers-Lowery, B; Ialacci, G. (October 2022, Pennsylvania teacher educator)

   This study explores the experiences of two teachers participating in professional development workshops focused on supporting implementation of SocioScientific Issues (SSI) and aspects of social justice into STEM classrooms. SSI are ill-defined problems, with a basis in science, but necessarily include moral and ethical decisions that cannot be resolved through science alone. These debatable issues can enhance learning of STEM by engaging students in real-world and authentic problems. The USTRIVE project was developed to foster STEM learning through integrated professional development workshops and the development of professional learning communities to support teachers in the use of SSI and incorporation of aspects of social justice in their STEM classrooms. Two research questions were investigated: (a) To what extent did teachers implement SSI into their lesson planning during the project and (b) In what ways did teachers’ designed lessons change from the beginning of the workshop? 

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3. On the Development of Cybersecurity and Computing Centric Professional Developments and the Subsequent Implementation of Topics in K12 Lesson Plans (RTP)

   Robins, Andey; Burrows, Andrea C.; Borowczak, Mike (August 2022, ASEE Annual Conference proceedings)

   In recent years, Wyoming has developed Computer Science (CS) standards for adoption and use within K-12 classrooms. These standards, adopted in January of 2022, go into effect for the 2022-2023 school year. The University of Wyoming has offered two different computer science week-long professional developments for teachers. Many K-12 teachers do not have a CS background, so developing CS lessons plans can be a challenge in these PDs.This research study is centered around three central questions: 1) To what extent did K-12 teachers integrate computing topics into their PD created lesson plans; 2) How do the teacher perceptions from the two CS PDs compare to each other; and 3) How was the CS PD translated to classroom activity? The first PD opportunity (n=14), was designed to give hands-on learning with CS topics focused on cybersecurity. The second PD opportunity (n=28), focused on integrating CS into existing curricula. At the end of each of these PDs, teacher K-12 teachers incorporated CS topics into their selected existing lesson plan(s). Additionally, a support network was implemented to support excellence in CS education throughout the state. This research study team evaluated the lesson plans developed during each PD event, by using a rubric on each lesson plan. Researchers collected exit surveys from the teachers. Implementation metrics were also gathered, including, how long each lesson lasted, how many students were involved in the implementation, what grades the student belonged to, the basic demographics of the students, the type of course the lesson plan was housed in, if the K-12 teacher reached their intended purpose, what evidence the K-12 teacher had of the success of their lesson plan, data summaries based on supplied evidence, how the K-12 teachers would change the lesson, the challenges and successes they experienced, and samples of student work. Quantitative analysis was basic descriptive statistics. Findings, based on evaluation of 40+ lessons, taught to over 1500 K-12 students, indicate that when assessed on a three point rubric of struggling, emerging, or excellent - certain components (e.g., organization, objectives, integration, activities & assessment, questions, and catch) of K-12 teacher created lessons plans varied drastically. In particular, lesson plan organization, integration, and questions each had a significant number of submissions which were evaluated as "struggling" [45%, 46%, 41%] through interesting integration, objectives, activities & assessment, and catch all saw submissions which were evaluated as "excellent" [43%, 48%, 43%, 48%]. The relationship between existing K-12 policies and expectations surfaces within these results and in combination with other findings leads to implications for the translation of current research practices into pre-collegiate PDs. 

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4. Socioscientific issues: promoting science teachers’ pedagogy on social justice

   https://doi.org/10.1186/s43031-024-00118-4  

   Macalalag, Jr., Augusto_Z; Kaufmann, Alan; Van_Meter, Benjamin; Ricketts, Aden; Liao, Erica; Ialacci, Gabrielle (December 2024, Disciplinary and Interdisciplinary Science Education Research)

   Abstract Socioscientific issues (SSI) are problems involving the deliberate use of scientific topics that require students to engage in dialogue, discussion, and debate. The purpose of this project is to utilize issues that are personally meaningful and engaging to students, require the use of evidence-based reasoning, and provide a context for scientific information. Social justice is the pursuit of equity and fairness in society by ensuring that all individuals have opportunities to challenge and address inequalities and injustices to create a more just and equitable society for all (Killen et al. Human Development 65:257–269, 2021). By connecting science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) concepts to personally meaningful contexts, SSI can empower students to consider how STEM-based issues reflect moral principles and elements of virtue in their own lives and the world around them (Zeidler et al. Science Education 89:357–377, 2005). We employed a qualitative research design to answer the following questions: (1) In what ways, if any, did teachers help students grow their knowledge and practices on social justice through socioscientific issues? (2) In teachers’ perceptions, what components of SSI did students learn and what are their challenges? (3) In teachers’ perceptions, what are students’ stances on social justice? After completing the first year and second-year professional development programs, grades 6–12 STEM teachers were asked to complete a reflection on classroom artifacts. Teachers were asked to select student artifacts (e.g. assignments, projects, essays, videos, etc.) that they thought exemplified the students’ learning of SSI and stance on social justice. Based on 21 teacher-submitted examples of exemplar student work, we saw the following example pedagogies to engage their students on social justice: (a) making connections to real-world experiences, (b) developing a community project, (c) examining social injustice, and (d) developing an agency to influence/make changes. According to teachers, the most challenging SSI for students was elucidating their own position/solution, closely followed by employing reflective scientific skepticism. Moreover, the students exemplified reflexivity, metacognition, authentic activity, and dialogic conversation. Using SSI in classrooms allows students to tackle real-world problems, blending science and societal concerns. This approach boosts understanding of scientific concepts and their relevance to society. Identifying methods like real-world connections and examining social injustice helps integrate social justice themes into science education through SSI. Overall, SSI promotes interdisciplinary learning, critical thinking, and informed decision-making, enriching science education socially. This study highlights the value of integrating SSI in science education to engage students with social justice. 

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5. ”What you bring matters”: A Comparative Case Study of Middle School Engineering Teachers’ Pedagogical Content Knowledge (Fundamental)

   Gale, J; Baptiste_Porter, D; Alemdar, M; Newton, S; Rehmat, A; Choi, J (June 2025, American Society for Engineering Education)

   Pre-college engineering teachers bring unique backgrounds to their teaching practice. Many engineering teachers follow a non-traditional route to teaching engineering, often coming to engineering from teaching other subjects or from careers in other fields. Among the many variations influencing engineering teaching practices is pedagogical content knowledge (PCK), defined as the “the knowledge of, reasoning behind, and enactment of the teaching of particular topics in a particular way with particular students for particular reasons for enhanced student outcomes [1]”. This multiple case study explores the PCK of five middle school engineering teachers implementing the same middle school engineering curriculum, STEM-ID. The 18- week STEM-ID curriculum engages students in contextualized challenges that incorporate foundational mathematics and science practices and advanced manufacturing tools such as computer aided design (CAD) and 3D printing, while introducing engineering concepts like pneumatics, aeronautics, and robotics. Drawing on observation and interview data collected over the course of two semester-long implementations of STEM-ID, the study addresses the research question: What variations in PCK are evident among engineering teachers with different professional backgrounds and levels of experience? Five teachers were purposively selected from a larger group of teachers implementing the curriculum because they represent a range of professional backgrounds: one veteran engineering teacher, one former Math teacher, one former Science teacher, one former English/Language Arts teacher, and one novice teacher with a background in the software industry. The study utilizes the Refined Consensus Model of PCK to investigate connections between teacher backgrounds, personal PCK (pPCK), the personalized professional knowledge held by teachers, and enacted PCK (ePCK), the knowledge teachers draw on to engage in pedagogical reasoning while planning, teaching, and reflecting on their practice. Observation, interview, and survey data were triangulated to develop narrative case summaries describing each teacher’s PCK, which were then subjected to cross-case analysis to identify patterns and themes across teachers. Findings describe how teachers’ backgrounds translated into diverse forms of pPCK that informed the pedagogical moves and decisions teachers made as they implemented the curriculum (ePCK). Regardless of the previous subject taught (math, science, or ELA), teachers routinely drew upon their pPCK in other subjects as they facilitated the engineering design process. Teachers with previous experience teaching math or science tended to be more likely than others to foreground the integration of math or science within the curriculum. Comparison of ePCK observed as teachers implemented the curriculum revealed that, in spite of having a more fully developed pPCK in teaching engineering, the veteran engineering teacher did not exhibit more sophisticated ePCK than novice engineering teachers. In addition to contributing to the field’s understanding of engineering teachers’ PCK, these findings hold implications for the recruitment, retention, and professional development of engineering teachers. 

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