Curriculum

Integrating Chemistry and Earth Science

Principal Investigator:

Integrating Chemistry and Earth science (ICE) has developed innovative units bringing Earth science concepts and practices into the high school chemistry curriculum to address NGSS expectations in the absence of high school Earth science courses. ICE features 3D teaching about local phenomena with student-designed investigations in the schoolyard and labs, exploration of BES datasets and conceptual modeling. ICE built a community of practice with teachers, school leaders, education researchers and scientists supporting rigorous, responsive teaching.

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Target Audience:

Design and Development of Transmedia Narrative-based Curricula to Engage Children in Scientific Thinking and Engineering Design (Collaborative Research: Ellis and McGinnis-Cavanaugh)

Principal Investigator:
Transforming Engineering Education in Middle Schools (TEEMS) is an NGSS-aligned middle school curriculum that utilizes heroic stories to engage students in learning engineering and science concepts.
 
Our curriculum consists of multiweek units covering Principles of Engineering Design and Materials, Tools, and Manufacturing,  as well as six shorter integrated engineering/science lessons.
 
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Target Audience:

Design and Development of Transmedia Narrative-based Curricula to Engage Children in Scientific Thinking and Engineering Design (Collaborative Research: Ellis and McGinnis-Cavanaugh)

Principal Investigator:
Transforming Engineering Education in Middle Schools (TEEMS) is an NGSS-aligned middle school curriculum that utilizes heroic stories to engage students in learning engineering and science concepts.
 
Our curriculum consists of multiweek units covering Principles of Engineering Design and Materials, Tools, and Manufacturing,  as well as six shorter integrated engineering/science lessons.
 
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Target Audience:

STEM Sea, Air, and Land Remotely Operated Vehicle Design Challenges for Rural, Middle School Youth

Principal Investigator:
STEM SEALs builds collaborative partnerships between North Florida College and local middle schools to bolster STEM pathways for students in this region. It involves the development of inexpensive, rigorous, and versatile design challenges to expose rural middle school students to high quality STEM experiences. Researchers study the feasibility and efficacy of these experiences to promote greater awareness of STEM pathways, increase readiness for STEM study; and generate student identity as STEM-able, STEM-skilled, and STEM-belonging.
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Target Audience:

Developing a Modeling Orientation to Science: Teaching and Learning Variability and Change in Ecosystems (Collaborative Research: Lehrer, Miller, and Peake)

Principal Investigator:

We are investigating the development of middle-schoolers' understandings and practices of modeling in the context of investigations of variability and change in ecosystems. We are studying how and to what extent students' participation in distinct forms of modeling informs their classroom-based citizen science investigations.

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Target Audience:

Developing a Modeling Orientation to Science: Teaching and Learning Variability and Change in Ecosystems (Collaborative Research: Lehrer, Miller, and Peake)

Principal Investigator:

We are investigating the development of middle-schoolers' understandings and practices of modeling in the context of investigations of variability and change in ecosystems. We are studying how and to what extent students' participation in distinct forms of modeling informs their classroom-based citizen science investigations.

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Target Audience:

Developing a Modeling Orientation to Science: Teaching and Learning Variability and Change in Ecosystems (Collaborative Research: Lehrer, Miller, and Peake)

Principal Investigator:

We are investigating the development of middle-schoolers' understandings and practices of modeling in the context of investigations of variability and change in ecosystems. We are studying how and to what extent students' participation in distinct forms of modeling informs their classroom-based citizen science investigations.

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Target Audience:

Reasoning Language for Teaching Secondary Algebra

Principal Investigator:

Reasoning Language for Teaching Secondary Algebra (ReLaTe-SA) is working in partnership with the San Antonio Independent School District to investigate the algebraic reasoning and discourse tools that secondary mathematics teachers use to make algebra concepts accessible for students and orchestrate and respond to student work on mathematics tasks. We are investigating teachers' algebraic discourse through written surveys, interviews, and a year-long professional development program focused on enhancing students' opportunities for algebraic reasoning in the classroom.

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Target Audience:

Professional Development Supports for Teaching Bioinformatics through Mobile Learning

Principal Investigator:
Bioinformatics is an emerging area of research that develops new knowledge through computational analysis of vast biological data. This project investigates the professional development (PD) supports needed for teaching bioinformatics at the high school. Building from a robust literature in PD design research, project team worked with science teachers to co-design instructional modules to engage students with core bioinformatics concepts and data literacies, by focusing on local community health issues supported through mobile learning activities.
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Target Audience: