Event

Presenters: Jill Zande, MATE ROV Competitions, Sarah Stein: Scaling up STEM Learning with the VCL; Jeff Weld/Jason Lang, Real World Externships for Teachers of Math and Science; Cathlyn Stylinski/Carrie Parker, Promoting STEM Career Interest in the Classroom

Summary: ITEST projects incorporate various strategies in their educator professional development, such as intensive summer workshops, internships, out-of-school experiences with students, afterschool meetings, and online discussions. Additionally, some of these professional development projects focus on content, while others center on pedagogy. This webinar explored these different strategies and consider their effectiveness. Webinar topics included:

• Theories of change in professional development
• Balancing content and pedagogy
• Successes and challenges

The webinar began with presentations from current ITEST PIs about their professional development practices. The webinar closed with an overview of findings from an ITEST research study, "Linking Professional Development to Changes in Teaching Practices," which looked at more than 50 ITEST professional development projects funded from 2003 through 2008 and identified the key practices used by PIs.