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Despite the intent to advance engineering education with NGSS, teachers across all grades lack self-efficacy in engineering pedagogy. Instructional shifts envisioned by NGSS, especially with inclusion of engineering, require substantial learning by teachers. For rural schools, due to geographic location and smaller collegial networks, there are challenges in providing content-specific professional learning. This project gathered researchers from four states to provide PL aligned to NGSS and delivered remotely to 150 rural teachers. In summer 2023, experts led a five-day workshop which modeled shifts called for by NGSS (e.g., equitable, discourse-rich, phenomena-based) and provided opportunities to experience next-generation teaching and learning. Likert scale surveys were collected before and after the workshop to gauge self-efficacy regarding teaching science and engineering. We found that science-focused PL, with engineering embedded rather than as stand-alone component, afforded growth in self-efficacy for teaching engineering. Pre-workshop surveys showed that teachers had higher self-efficacy towards teaching science than teaching engineering (Wilcoxon signed-rank; p<.001). Positive attitudes toward teaching science were leveraged to provide PL and pre-workshop to post-workshop analysis showed growth in self-efficacy towards teaching engineering (p<.001). Results are important for professional learning around teaching engineering, for professional learning with rural teachers, and for remote access to professional learning. 

Our work in progress draws from an ongoing investigation of the needs of elementary teachers in small, rural school districts. Due to geographic location, rural schools often struggle to provide content-specific professional learning (PL). Smaller networks of science in these settings may also be barriers. We are exploring how targeted instructional supports that take rural teachers’ contexts into consideration can be sustained through the implementation of cost-effective modest supports. Our research examines the immediate impacts of PL, sustainability of PL outcomes when coupled with modest supports, specific impacts on engineering instruction, and student learning impacts. The intervention started with an online PL to introduce teachers to the NGSS and provide them with a foothold for three-dimensional teaching. This PL was designed for rural teachers using online platforms and resources. The program’s conceptual framework leverages a suite of modest supports previously identified to sustain PL outcomes. These supports are designed to scaffold teachers’ professional growth, provide steady encouragement, and foster community. Approximately 160 teachers across four states were recruited to participate in a 1-year online program, which started with a 5-day PL focused on NGSS-aligned science and engineering instruction. Some modest supports that have since followed, such as professional learning community (PLC) sessions and dedicated electronic supports (e.g., Google Site, shared resources, etc.). These sessions have been tailored to support teachers in these rural settings. Since the project began, we have collected responses from participating teachers about supports they believe would aid their understanding of science and engineering instructional strategies. We are continuing to collect data as teachers are planning science and engineering learning experiences for their classrooms. Our presentation will share details about teachers’ needs and rural contexts, and findings about the immediate impacts of the intervention.