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LH01 (1:50 PM to 2:00 PM) | Contributed | The Illinois Physics and Secondary Schools Partnership Program
Presenting Author: Tim Stelzer, University of Illinois
Additional Author | Eric Kuo, University of Illinois
Additional Author | Morten Lundsgaard, University of Illinois
Additional Author | Maggie Mahmood, University of Illinois
Additional Author | Hamideh Talafian, University of Illinois
The Illinois Physics and Secondary Schools (IPaSS) partnership program connects in-service high school physics teachers across the state with the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. IPaSS aims to address disparities in physics instruction by equipping teachers with university physics curricula and equipment adapted to fit the context of their high school classrooms. The program is now in its second year and serves 14 physics teachers from across the state. By the end of year four of the program, it will include 40 teachers. Each year, teachers attend 70 hours of in-person and online professional development in the summer, followed by one hour of online bi-weekly PD throughout the school year. Each teacher has free access to University of Illinois equipment and materials and gets two school visits per semester. In this presentation, we describe the design-based structure of the program and how it responds to physics teachers’ needs.
This work was supported by NSF DRL 20-10188
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LH02 (02:00 to 2:10 PM) | Contributed | Teachers’ Perceptions of a Design Based Research Practice Partnership Program
Presenting Author: Hamideh Talafian, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign
Additional Author | Tim Stelzer, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign
Additional Author | Eric Kuo, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign
Additional Author | Morten Lundsgaard, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign
Additional Author | Maggie Mahmood, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign
IPaSS is a partnership program between the University of Illinois and secondary school physics teachers across the state. The program is designed to be responsive to teachers’ instructional needs by equipping them with research-based, vetted, university-level instructional materials. In this presentation, we share the results of interviewing 14 physics teachers who joined the program over the past two years with varying levels of experience. The teachers have been involved in a design-based professional development program both in-person and online. The analysis of the video data revealed three main findings: 1) the design-based structure of the PDs provided conceptual, social, and emotional support, 2) access to university resources supported immediate implementation into their classroom practices, and 3) the program and colleagues’ perpetual support throughout the year distinguished IPaSS from their experience in other professional development programs.
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LH03 (1:30 to 1:40 AM) | Contributed | Physics Teachers Learning in Professional Development Settings: A Case Study
Presenting Author: Maggie Mahmood, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign
Additional Author | Devyn Shafer, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign
Additional Author | Hamideh Talafian, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign
Additional Author | Eric Kuo, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign
Additional Author | Tim Stelzer, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign
Group content reasoning tasks are necessary within physics teacher professional development (PD) to support teachers’ Pedagogical Content Knowledge (PCK); however, such activities involve social risks to the participants, such as revealing to others one’s gaps in understanding. This descriptive case study examines a veteran and preservice physics teacher pair’s conversational moves while discussing responses to a physics problem in a PD meeting. In the interaction, emerging social risks experienced by the preservice teacher are mitigated by comfort-building moves, allowing her to engage more deeply in the discipline-based conversation. Comfort-building moves at first allow both teachers to get “unstuck” from tense or awkward moments, and later lead them to take greater risks. This case highlights the need for more focus on the affective dimensions of practice-centered activities between teachers in PD contexts, especially as they bring together participants with a variety of skillsets in a Community of Practice.
This work was supported by NSF DRL 20-10188.