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Connecting university methods courses and teacher daily practice is a persistent challenge in teacher education. Another challenge is preparing teachers to enact equitable instruction that meets the needs of an increasingly diverse student population. We take on these challenges by supporting practicing elementary teachers to design case-based teaching scenarios for preservice teachers that engage them with enacting culturally grounded mathematics and science instruction. We draw on data from workshops with teachers to illustrate how the design process elevates teachers’ voices while also supporting their own learning. Workshop features that proved powerful for teachers included collaborating with colleagues, offering and receiving peer feedback, and working with a table describing key features of culturally grounded pedagogy in mathematics and science. 

Iteration is pervasive in current perspectives of student reasoning, but it is also often assumed, backgrounded, or minimized in favor of other empirical interests and results, despite being foundational to reasoning processes and inquiry. This paper forefronts iterative practice while examining student reasoning in a reform-based undergraduate physics lab course. We present an instrumental case study analysis of a single student group, documenting how they engaged in micro- and macro-levels of iterative practice at the nexus of experimental activity and sensemaking throughout their experimentation. These results illustrate the nuance in students’ iterative practice at different levels and prompt new questions about how different forms of iterative practice may impact student learning. 

Three-dimensional learning (3DL) is an approach to science instruction that was developed for K-12 science education and that can provide guidance for improving undergraduate physics laboratories. In this paper, we describe efforts to comprehensively integrate 3DL into a sequence of undergraduate introductory physics for life sciences (IPLS) laboratory courses. This paper is tailored for introductory physics faculty interested in advancing their course's learning goals by simultaneously engaging students in experimental practices, scientific reasoning, and conceptual knowledge. We first review how several well-known laboratory curricula are already implicitly aligned with 3DL. We then describe our IPLS course sequence and show how each 3DL dimension—science and engineering practices, disciplinary core ideas, and crosscutting concepts—is integrated throughout the curriculum. To support implementation, we provide samples of our course documentation, a detailed account of our 3DL integration efforts, a guide to training and supporting teaching and learning assistants in a 3DL course, and a sample set of activities to guide students in participating in 3DL instruction in the supplementary material. 

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.”