ERIC EJ914281: Characterization of a Unique Undergraduate Multidisciplinary STEM K-5 Teacher Preparation Program

2010·0.33 MB·English

by  ERIC

JournalofTechnologyEducation Vol.21No.2,Spring2010
Characterization of a Unique
Undergraduate Multidisciplinary STEM K-5
Teacher Preparation Program
SteveO’Brien
Introduction
TheK-5schoolyearsarecrucial,settingtheframeworkforallsubjectsas
wellascriticalthinkingskills.Thesinglemostimportantcomponentina
classroomistheteacher.However,inaformativetimeframeforelementary-
schoolagedchildren,thenumberofK-5teachersthatareeducatedwitha
Science,Technology,EngineeringorMathspecialization(“STEM”)is
substantiallyunderrepresented.AlackofSTEMsubjectmatterexpertiseand
experiences,coupledwithhighanxietyandlowself-efficacycanleadtolow
teachereffectiveness.
AtTheCollegeofNewJersey(TCNJ)itwasfeltthattheDepartmentof
TechnologicalStudieswaswellpositionedtoprovideauniqueacademicmajor
bycombiningtheT&EwiththeM&ScomponentsofSTEM,resultingina
programbreadththatmatchesthebreadthofskillsneededbyahighlyskilledK-
5teacher.Additionally,itwasthoughtthatthefieldoftechnologyeducation
(TE)shouldbesubstantiallymoreinvolvedattheK-5level,anagerangethat
historicallyhaslittlepresenceinTEintheUSA.Suchaprogramwasestablished
atTCNJandisformallyreferredtoastheMath-Science-TechnologyorMST
program.
Twokeymotivationsfortheprogramweretoachieveahighernumberof
STEM-trainedK-5teachersandtobringvaluablecontextualexperiencesto
futureteachers,andsubsequentlytheirK-5students,throughsubstantialand
relevantT&Econtent.Ifthesegoalsareachievable,thentheMSTprogram
couldhaveimportantimplicationsforK-5teacherpreparation,potentially
havingalong-termandbeneficialimpactonstudentoutcomesinSTEM,and
non-STEM,subjectsingradesK-5,andeventually6-20andbeyond.
In1998TheCollegeofNewJersey(TCNJ)approvedtheMST
multidisciplinarymajorforelementaryeducationstudents.Theprogramhas
substantialrequirementsinallSTEMareasandtakesatrulyintegrated-STEM
approach.Totheauthors’knowledge,thisistheonlyundergraduateSTEM
majorforK-5
____________________
SteveO’Brien([email protected])isanAssistantProfessorintheDepartmentofTechnological
StudiesatTheCollegeofNewJersey,Ewing
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teacherpreparationintheUSAthathassubstantialT&EaswellasM&S
components.Currently,thereareabout150MSTmajorsintheprogram.All
studentsinelementary,earlychildhood,specialeducation,anddeafandhardof
hearingeducationcanelecttheMSTmajorastheirrequiredsecondmajor.
Aconcernwithmultidisciplinaryprogramsisthattheirbreadthadversely
affectsthedepthofthecontentlearned.Thepurposeoftheresearchreported
hereinwastoquantitativelyinvestigatethedepthofcontentknowledgeinthe
MSTprograminboththeSTEMelementsaswellaskeynon-STEMsubjects.
Thegrowthoftheprogramwasalsoinvestigated.Thispaperalsodiscusseshow
co-existingMSTandTEprogramsimpacteachother.Technologyeducation
departmentsareinauniquepositiontoinitiatesimilarprogramssincetheyhave
enablingcapabilitiesintheboththetechnologyandtheengineeringcomponents
ofSTEM,componentsthathavecriticalhands-on,integrative,andcontextual
attributes.
Therearemanyfactorsthatconstrainoreliminatetheabilitytogeneralize
theresultsofthisstudytootherprogramsandinstitutions.Amongthemare
politicalandadministrativeclimate,stateandinstitutionalrequirementsforthe
preparationofteachers,admissionrequirements,andprogramphilosophy.
Nonetheless,itishopedthatthearticlewillinspireideasinhowtoincreasethe
learningexperiencesthatyoungpeoplehaveinschoolbyproperlypreparingthe
teacherswhowillprovidetheseexperiences.
ProgramHistory
FollowingtheadoptionofthefirstNewJerseyDepartmentofEducation
(NJDOE)CoreContentStandardsin1996,theDepartmentofTechnological
Studies,undertheleadershipofDr.JohnKarsnitz,wasaskedtoconvenechairs
fromthedepartmentsofelementaryeducation,mathematics,biology,chemistry,
physicsandthecoordinatorofTCNJ’s“NJStatewideSystemicInitiativeto
ImproveMath,ScienceandTechnologyEducationinK-12”(Dr.RobertWeber)
toconsiderdesigninganewmultidisciplinarymajortofulfillarecognizedneed
formoreK-5teacherswithstrengthenedSTEMskills.Therewasconcernover
thetrade-offbetweendisciplinary“depth”andinterdisciplinary“breadth.”
However,thisconcernwasovercomebycreatingamajorwithabroad“core”
andarequiredin-depth“specialization”inoneofthethreedisciplinesof
mathematics,science(biology,chemistryorphysics),ortechnology.Themajor
wasapprovedbyTCNJ’sBoardofTrusteesin1998andsubsequentlybythe
NJDOEin2000.
TheMSTmajorisoneofseveralprogramofferingsintheDepartmentof
TechnologicalStudiesintheSchoolofEngineering.Otherprogramsincludea
Technology/Pre-engineeringeducationmajorandaMastersintheArtof
Teaching(MAT).AllmajorsarefullyaccreditedbytheNationalCouncilfor
AccreditationofTeacherEducation(NCATE).Alladvising,recruiting,and
requirementsfortheMSTprogramarecoordinatedbytheDepartmentwhileall
educationrequirementsarecoordinatedbytheSchoolofEducation.
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TherearefourworksthatsetimportantcontexttoTCNJ’sDepartmentof
TechnologyStudiescurriculumandthedesignoftheMSTprogram:(1)
BenchmarksforScienceLiteracy(“Project2061”)(AmericanAssociationfor
theAdvancementofScience,1993),(2)TechnologicalLiteracyCounts
(Sechrist,Anagnostopoulos,Lewis,andCoburn,1998),(3)Standardsfor
TechnologicalLiteracy(InternationalTechnologyEducationAssociation
[ITEA],2000),and(4)TechnicallySpeaking:WhyAllAmericansNeedtoKnow
MoreaboutTechnology(NationalAcademyofEngineering,2002).These
documentsdiscusstheimportantroleofteacherpreparationinmeeting
educationalgoalsinmath,science,andtechnology.InTechnologyLiteracy
Counts,(Sechristetal,1998,p.3)representativesfromSchoolsofEducation
andEngineeringgatheredtodialogueonhowthesetwodiversegroupscould
worktogethertoeffectchange.Oneoftherecommendationswastoplana
meetingofDeanswiththepurposeof“…open[ing]upchannelsof
communicationandpromoteteachertrainingthatbetterprepareseducatorsto
teachtechnologyandfostertechnologicalliteracy.”TheMSTprogramwas
designedtodothiswiththerecognizedimportanceofmath,science,and
technologicalliteracyinK-5.
TheT&Ecomponentsareauniqueandpotentiallyverybeneficialaspectof
theMSTprogrambecausetheyincludeskillssuchasproblem-solving,design
andmodeling,andmaking.Asdiscussedinpreviousarticles(Brophy,Klein,
Portsmore, &Rogers,2008;Lachapelle&Cunningham,2007;Zubrowski,
2002),theT-andE-componentscanbekeyinconnectingmathandscience
skillstotherealworldofthestudent,providingvaluablecontextsandincreasing
learningeffectiveness.T&Ecomponentscaneffectivelyanswerthecommon
studentcomplaint,“I’llneverneedtoknowthis.Ofwhatgoodisthis?”Design
skillsarealsoimportantforhighlytalentedteacherssincetheyconstantlydesign
lessonplans,design(manage)theirtime,anddesigncurricula.T&Eactivities
arealsoeffectiveinhelpingstudentslearnnon-STEMsubjects(Koch&
Feingold,2006).
TheSTL(StandardsforTechnologicalLiteracy,ITEA,2000)statesthat
technologicalliteracyiscriticallyimportantforthegeneralpopulation,notjust
forSTEM-orientedpersons.ASTEMteacherpreparationprogramisconsistent
withthisphilosophy,bringingSTEMskillstoanimportantgroup—teachersof
impressionableK-5(8)students(Michaels,Shouse,andSchweingruber,2008).
Thefocuswastoestablishapre-serviceprogram,providingasystemicsolution
totheK-5“STEM-teachervoid.”Teachers,afterall,arethelargestsingle
influenceonastudent’seducation(Carey,K.,2004;NationalCommissionon
Teaching&America’sFuture,2000;TheTeachingCommission,2004).
ProgramDescription
AllMSTmajorshavethesamecorerequirementsbuteverystudentmust
alsocompleteaspecialization.Throughananalysisofthespecializationschosen
overafour-yearperiod(2009-2012),totaling125students,itwasfoundthatthe
technologyandmathspecializationswerechosenmostoften,eachcomprising
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about35%ofthetotal.Sciencespecializationswerechosenbyabout16%ofthe
students,while12%wereundecided.Pastexperienceindicatesthatthemajority
oftheundecidedwillchooseatechnologyspecialization.PriortotheMST
program,theonlySTEMmajorschosenbyK-5studentsweremathematicsand
biology.
TheMSTmajorisa32unit(128credits)baccalaureatedegreewith
requirementsgenerallydividedintothreeareas:LiberalStudies,MSTCore
Studies,andProfessionalStudies.
LiberalStudies[10units]
TCNJhasextensiveliberallearningrequirementsthatincludehistory,arts&
humanities,globalstudies,gender,race&ethnicity,community-
engagement,afreshmenseminarexperience,mid-andsenior-writing
experiences,aswellasrequirementsinscienceandquantitativereasoning.
Calculus-IandCreativeDesignarerequiredofallMSTmajors.
MSTCore[12units]
TheMSTacademiccoreconsistsof8unitsincludingMultimediaDesign,
StructuresandMechanisms,twoadditionalscienceoptions,oneadditional
math,twoMSTelectives(fulfilledbytakingM,SorT),andacoursetitled
“IntegratedMSTforYoungLearners.”Thefinalfourunitsarereservedfor
specializationcourses.
ProfessionalCourses[10units]
MSTeducationmajorsatTCNJmeettheNewJerseyStateCertification
requirementsforaK-5“highlyqualifiedteacher.”Coursesincludeseveral
literacy/literaturecourses,psychology,mathandsciencemethodsanda
seriesofstudentteachingexperiences.
InNewJersey,MSTmajorscanalsoobtainmiddle-schoolendorsementsin
mathorscience,withbothoftenbeingcompleted.Amiddleschoolendorsement
hastworequirements:completing15creditsofappropriatecourseworkinthe
disciplineandpassingtheappropriatecontentknowledgePraxisTMtest.AK-12
certificationinTechnologyEducationisalsopossibleforanMSTmajorby
possessingatleast30specifiedcreditsintechnologyandpassingthePraxisTM
technologyeducationtest.
TheMSTprogramwasdesignedtobestructurallyconsistentwiththeTE
program.TCNJ’sTEprogramhasitsrootsinindustrialeducation,datingback
tothe1930’s.AmajorrevisionoftheTEmajorwascompletedin1985withan
emphasisonstudyingthehuman-designedworld.Theprogramwasrevisedagain
in2005witha“pre-engineering”emphasis,integratingmoremathandscience
(Sullivan,Karsnitz,O’Brien,2007).Someofthecurricularaspectsofthe
modifiedTEprogramarerepresentedinarecenthighschoolleveltextbook
(Karsnitz,O’Brien,andHutchinson,2009).
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ProgramGrowthandGender
TheMSTprogramhasexperiencedsubstantialgrowth.TheMSTprogram
grewfrom2toover25graduatesfrom2002to2009.Currentclasssizespredict
graduatingclasssizesinexcessof40inthenextfewyears.Ahighgrowthrateis
asignofahealthyprogrambutalsoproducesmoreSTEM-trainedteachers,an
importantandunder-representedpopulationforK-5(NationalResearchCouncil,
2007).PrevioustotheMSTprogram,non-STEMmajors(Psychology,English,
History…etc.)madeupapproximately90%ofthetotal,leavinghistorically5-
13%fortheSTEMmajorsofmathematicsandbiology.
ThegrowthoftheMSTprogram,measuredasapercentageofthetotalK-5
graduates,isshowninFigure1.AlsoincludedinFigure1arethepercentages
fortheothertwoSTEMmajorsofmathandbiology.Forthemostrecent4years,
mathandbiologygraduateshavecomprisedapproximately6%and2%ofthe
total,respectively.From2004to2009theMSTprogramgrewfrom5%to20%.
CurrentclasssizespredictthattheMSTmajorwillgrowtoabout30%inthe
nextfewyears,resultinginatotalSTEMpercentageofabout38%afteradding
inthehistoricnumbersformathandbiologymajors.
STEM K-5 Graduatesby Major
25.0%
al
t 20.0%
o
T
f 15.0% BIO
o
t MATH
n 10.0%
e MST
c
r 5.0%
e
P
0.0%
2002 2004 2006 2008 2010
Year
Figure1. ThenumberofMST,mathandbiologyK-5programgraduatesby
yearasapercentageofthetotalnumberofK-5graduates.
ThislevelofSTEM-trainedK-5teachersis4-to-5timeshigherthanthe
previousaverageofabout8%atTCNJ.AcomparisonofTCNJ’slevelof
STEM-trainedteacherstoaNationalaveragewouldbeinterestingbuttheauthor
couldnotfindthesedata.Somestatesdonotrequireasecondmajorandinstates
thatdothetypeofmajorschosenisnottracked.
Aninterestinggendereffectwasdiscoveredintheanalysis.Fornon-MST
K-5majorsthefractionthataremalehasbeenabout6%(seeFigure2).The
numberofmalemathandsciencegraduatesoverthelastfiveyearshasaveraged
4%.ThenationalaverageofmaleK-5teachersin2001wasabout9%,down
fromabout18%in1981(Scelfo,2007;NationalEducationAssociation,2003p.
91).Incontrast,thefractionofmaleMSTgraduateshasbeenaconsistent20-
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25%,a4-to-6timesincreaseovertheTCNJaveragesandalmostthree-fold
higherthanthe2001nationalaverage.Investigationsintothereasonsforthe
highermalefractionhavenotbeenundertaken.However,itmaybethatmales
areattractedtotheT&Ecomponents,adominanteffectinengineeringschools
acrosstheUSA.
MaleElem.Ed.Graduates
35.0%
non-MST
30.0% MST
25.0%
20.0%
15.0%
10.0%
5.0%
0.0%
2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 Ave
Year
Figure2. ComparisonofmaleMSTandnon-MSTprogramgraduates.
CompetenciesinSTEMandNon-STEMComponents
Inthissectionadescriptionofcompetenciesinscience,mathematics,and
technology/engineeringarepresented,asarethetwonon-STEMsubjectsof
languageartsandsocialstudies.
MathandScience
AllK-5teachercandidatesinNewJerseyarerequiredtotakethe
ElementaryEducationContentKnowledgetest(test#0014),maintainedand
monitoredbyEducationalTestingService(ETS).ETSpublishedanational
summaryfor2008-09(EducationalTestingService,2008)andaportionofthe
summaryisreproducedinTable1underthecolumnNationalAverages.
PraxisTMscoresweremanuallycollectedfromTCNJstudentsstartinginApril-
2002.Thecollectionoftheseindividualscoresenablesamoredetailedstatistical
analysisthanispossiblebylookingatthegeneralstatisticalparametersprovided
byETS.
EachcategoryofTCNJstudentsperformedwellcomparedtothenational
averages.Forexample,themedianPraxisTMscoreforTCNJstudentswas
approximately16%abovethenationalaverage.(Note:theminimumpossible
scoreis100.)Moreover,themiddle50%distributionofscoresissubstantially
narrowerfortheTCNJpopulations.Forexample,the50%-widthofthenational
distributionis25whiletheTCNJdistributionsare15forthenon-MSTstudents
and13fortheMSTstudents.
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Table1
ElementaryEducationContentKnowledgePraxisTMtestscorecomparisonby
majortonationalaverages
National TCNJ TCNJ
Parameter Averages Non-MST MST
PossibleScoreRange 100-200 100-200 100-200
No.ofExaminees 92910 346 59
MedianScore 164 179 181
RangeofAveragePerformers
(middle50%) 151-176 169-184 174-187
ThetotalpopulationsfortheTCNJdatawere346non-MSTmajorsand59
MSTmajors.TheMSTpopulationscoredontheaverageof180.3onthe
PraxisTMwithastandarddeviationof9.3comparedtothenon-MSTpopulation
thatexhibitedanaveragescoreof176.3witha15%largerstandarddeviationof
11.0.At-testwascompletedusingMicrosoftExcelandindicatedthatthe
differencebetweentheMSTandnon-MSTpopulationswassignificantatthe
95%confidencelevel(p=0.003).
Overthesametimeframe,thesubject-specificsubscoresinmath,science,
languagearts,andsocialstudiesforthePraxisTMtest(#0014)werealso
collected,enablingadetailedstatisticalanalysis.Theaveragetestscoresare
showninTable2forfoursubgroups:non-MST,MST,Math,andScience.
Figure3showsasummaryoftheaveragePraxisTMsubscoretestsforMST
graduatesasapercentage,apercentagerelativetothenon-MSTstudents.
Table2
SubjectmatterspecificsubtestresultsforNon-MSTmajors,MSTmajors,Math
majorsandSciencemajorsontheElementaryEducationContentKnowledge
PraxisTMexamination
Math Science Lang.Arts Soc.Studies
Population M SD M SD M SD M SD
Non-MST 25.5 3.2 21.9 3.2 25.9 2.4 19.1 3.0
MST 26.9 2.7 23.6 3.0 26.2 2.4 18.9 3.2
Math 28.3 1.0 23.0 3.5 27.2 1.8 19.8 3.9
Sci.(Bio.) 27.5 1.7 23.5 2.4 26.5 1.7 19.8 3.3
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ComparisonofMSTtoNon-MSTGraduatesonPraxisTMSubtests
10.0%
8.0%
6.0%
4.0%
2.0%
0.0%
MATH SCIENCE LANGUAGE
-2.0% ARTS SOCIAL
-4.0% STUDIES
-6.0%
-8.0%
-10.0%
Figure3. RelativepercentcomparisonofsubtestscoresofMSTgraduatesto
non-MSTgraduatesontheContentKnowledgePraxisTMexamination.
(i.e.,theMSTpopulationscored5.5%higherthanthenon-MST
populationonthemathsubtest).
At-testwasconductedforboththemathandsciencesubscoredistributions
betweentheMSTandnon-MSTpopulationsreportedinFigure3.Thisanalysis
indicatedthatfora95%confidencelevelthe5.5%and7.8%differencesfor
math(p=0.004)andscience(p=0.001)weresignificantlydifferent,whereas
thelanguageartsandsocialstudiessubscoreswerenot.Thesedatashowthat,
comparedtonon-MSTmajors,MSTgraduatesscoredsignificantlyhigherin
mathandsciencecompetencies,whilemaintaininghighcompetencyonnon-
STEMsubjects.
Otherusefulcomparisonsarescoresinmathandscienceamongstonlythe
STEMmajors(MST,biologyandmath).AlloftheSTEMmajorsscoredhighon
themathandsciencetests,withinafewpercentofeachother.Perhapsas
expected,themathmajorsscoredhighestonmathbutdidnotperformaswellon
science.TheonlySTEMpopulationsthathadstatisticallysignificantdifferences
weretheMSTandmathmajorpopulationsinthesubjectofmath.
TheaverageGradePointAverages(GPAs)forMSTandnon-MST
populationsoverthesametimeframewere3.41and3.47andthedifferencedid
notreachsignificance.ThesedataindicatethatMSTandnon-MSTmajorsare
generallyperformingidenticallyintheircollegecoursework.Thecombined
ScholasticAptitudeTest(SAT)scoresfortheMSTandnon-MSTpopulations
were1250and1195,respectively.Thedifferenceinthesescoresisdueprimarily
tohigherscoresonthemathportionoftheexam,whichisnotsurprisingdueto
thehigherinterestlevelinmathandsciencefortheMSTpopulation.Finally,
scoresonthemathandsciencemiddleschoolPraxisTMexamsforSpring-2009
alsoverifiedhighcompetenceforMSTmajors,withscoresatorabovethe
nationalmedian.
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Technology&Engineering
TherequiredcourseworkintheT-andE-componentsincludetechnological
literacy,skillsinmodelingandmaking,substantialemphasisondesign
processes,andscienceandmathrequiredforbasicdesign.Keysubjectmatter
includesindustrial,graphicsandarchitecturaldesign,creativedesign,human
factors,structures,mechanisms,materialsbio-technologyandelectrical
technologies.TheoriginalMST-programproposalalsoincludedacourseto
reinforcetheimportanceofintegratedSTEMteaching.Thiscourseiscalled
“Integrated-STEMforYoungLearners”andisrequiredforallMSTandTE
majors(seeforexampleSanders,2009).InthecourseMSTmajorsacquire
experienceandcomfortwithT&Econtentrelatedtoyounglearners,enabling
themtomoreeasily,andmorefrequently,integrateactivity,inquiry,andcontext
intolearningexperiences.AsstatedintheStandardsforTechnologicalLiteracy
(ITEA,2000,p.7),“…thestudyoftechnologyisawaytoapplyandintegrate
knowledgefrommanyothersubjects-notjustmathematics,science,and
computerscienceclasses,butalsotheliberalandfinearts.”
AnotherpotentiallyvaluableaspectoftheT&Ecoursesisthatsignificant
timeisspentoninvestigatinghowtoeffectivelyteachSTEMandnon-STEM,
conceptsthroughT&E-basedactivities.T&Eprofessorsareacutelyawarethat
theyarepreparingfutureteachers,notengineersorscientists.Thisadditional
educationalelementisnotpartofteacherpreparationprogramsinothersubject
areas.Thoughthiselementissimilartothefamiliar“methods”classes,thathave
beneficialeffects(Hiebert,Morris,Berk,&Janson,2007),thereareunique
differencesaswell.
Thefieldsofmathandsciencehaveestablishedmethodstomeasurecontent
knowledge(i.e.,PraxisTMtests).However,nosuchassessmentforK-5T&E
contentknowledgeexists.SimplyhavingsubstantialT&Econtentinan
undergraduateK-5programisitselfunique,butthequestionremainsofhowto
assesscompetencyatthislevel.InthispaperitisproposedthatsincetheMST
programisusingthesamecoursesastheongoingNCATEaccredited
TechnologyEducationprogram,ananalysisoftheT&EcoursestakenbyMST
majorsissufficienttoquantifyT&Ecompetence.Correspondinglyitisbelieved
thatcompetenciesinT&Ecanbecharacterizedbylookingatthreeitems:a
mappingoftheT&EcurriculaontotheSTL,ananalysisofgradesofMST
majorscomparedhead-to-headwithTEmajorsinthesamecourses,and
performanceontheTEPraxisTMexam.MappingtheT&Ecurriculaontothe
STLquantifiesthelevelofT&Eexposurewhileanevaluationofgrades
indicatesifT&Econtentisbeinglearned.Lastly,MSTstudentperformanceon
theTEPraxisTMtestgivesanexternalmeasureofT&Econtentknowledge.
MappingT&EcontentontoSTL.
TCNJ’sTEprogramproduces10-15graduatesperyearand,inorderto
teach,theymustpasstheTEPraxisTM.Analysesoftheinstitutionalreports
providedbyETSoverthelastfouryearsindicatethatTCNJ’sTEgraduates
scoreroughly30-40pointsabovethemedian.Moreover,thewidthofthe
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distributionofTCNJTEgraduates,asmeasuredbythetotalrangeofscores,has
beenone-halftoone-thirdthatofthenationalaverage.AssumingthatTCNJ’s
frameworkofT&EcoursesisamajorcontributortothePraxisTMscoresaswell
astotheoverallsuccessofTEgraduatesintechnologyteachingpositions,and
thatthePraxisTMscoresrepresentameasureofT&Ecompetence,thenthelevel
ofexposurethatMSTmajorstotheT&Ecourseworkwouldbeagoodindicator
ofT&Ecompetence.ThislevelofT&EexposuredependsonwhethertheMST
studentspecializesinmath,science,ortechnology.MSTmajorswithamathor
sciencespecializationcompleteaminimumoffiveT&Ecourses(20cr.).MST
majorswithatechnologyspecializationcompleteapproximatelynineT&E
courses(36cr.).CommonadditionalcoursesincludeEngineeringDesign,
AnalogCircuits&Devices,DigitalElectronics,EnvironmentalandBiotechnical
SystemsandArchitectural&CivilEngineeringDesignandFacilitiesDesign&
Management.TEmajorstakeapproximately16T&Ecourses(about64cr.).
Tosummarize,mathandsciencespecializationMSTgraduatestakeabout
32%oftheT&EcourseloadofaTEmajor,whiletechnologyspecialization
studentstakeapproximately56%.Thisnumberofcoursesrepresentsahighlevel
ofT&Econtent,especiallyconsideringthattypicalteacherpreparationprograms
requirenoT&Econtent,no“integrated-STEM”educationalcontent,andonly
minimalmathorscience.StatisticsavailableontheU.S.Departmentof
Education’sInstituteofEducationSciences(IES)websiteforNationalCenter
forEducationStatistics(NCES)showsthataneducationmajorgraduatein
1992-93,themostrecentyearthatdatawasavailable,completedanaverage
numberof6.3,10.4and0.3semestercreditsinmath,scienceandengineering,
respectively.AnMSTmajorexceedsthesefigureswithaminimumof15-20
creditsinmath,15-20creditsinscienceand20creditsinT&E.
ThecontentoftheT&Ecourseloadisbetterdefinedbymappingitontothe
STL.TheSTLconsistoftwentystandardsorganizedintofivecategories.
Benchmarksaregivenforeachofthetwentystandardsforfouragegroups;K-2,
3-5,6-8and9-12.Thereare101benchmarksforgradesK-5andanother85
benchmarksforgrades6-8.KeepinginmindthattherearetwoMSTpopulations
withdifferingamountsofT&Econtent,Figure4showstheresultsofthe
mappingprocessforgradesK-2,3-5and6-8.
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