MOSART HS PS developed assessment tools based on both NRC Standards and NGSS for high school chemistry and physics. The 500 new test items were combined into instruments and validated by content experts. Comprehensive data from a nationally representative sample of 12,000 high school students and their teachers measures the content knowledge of both groups and allows the estimation of item characteristics. Pre- and post-tests associate yearly knowledge gains with teacher characteristics and pedagogies used.

The Building on MOSTs project focuses on improving the teaching of secondary school mathematics by exploring the teaching practice of building on MOSTs (Mathematical Opportunities in Student Thinking). We cyclically work with teachers to enact the practice, analyze those enactments, and refine our understanding of the practice. Building consists of four elements: (1) Establish, (2) Grapple Toss, (3) Conduct, and (4) Make Explicit.
PI: Keith Leatham, Brigham Young University

With operating title Researching Order of Teaching (ROOT), this project brings together 100 middle grades mathematics teachers in a teacher-researcher alliance to articulate effective instructional practices for promoting modeling and problem-solving achievement. Strategies center around Explicit Attention to Concepts and Student Opportunities to Struggle, culminating in a randomized cluster crossover trial. The poster includes results from the first two years, featuring professional development materials, a video observation tool, and findings from classroom studies.

Our vision is to make computational modeling a sustained practice in middle school science classrooms. We are working closely with teachers to design a tool and curricula that integrate computational modeling with data practices and enables students to move towards unpacking models and their underlying assumptions. Our research questions involve investigating 1. students modeling trajectories in this environment; 2. how classrooms norms develop over time; and, 3. the interplay between computational modeling and data practices.

This poster provides a methodological overview of the Parents Promoting Early Learning Study's online approach to direct assessment of toddler's math skills during the COVID-19 pandemic. Preliminary data will be presented about the reliability and validity of our measures of children's numeracy and spatial skills. Additionally, we will highlight some of the challenges in conducting online assessments with a socioeconomically diverse sample of families during the pandemic.

Co-PI(s): Leanne Elliott and Portia Miller, University of Pittsburgh