SPARK-STEM – Sparking a Sense of Wonder in Mathematics and Science

The project goals for SPARK STEM are to develop and deliver an integrated STEM PBL Professional development for upper elementary/middle grades (4-6).

"Ambitious teaching" describes "teaching that aims to teach all kinds of students to not only know academic subjects, but also to be able to use what they know in working on authentic problems in academic domains" (Lampert, Boerst, Graziani 2011, p. 1).

Yet, this type of teaching is quite challenging because it is not the norm in our schools and requires extensive integrative STEM knowledge for teaching. Similarly, learning to teach math and science has additional demands due to the conceptual and procedural difficulties that math and science presents, particularly for teachers who usually have less than positive experiences and attitudes towards these subjects.

By designing a summer institute that has a SPARK STEM lab, teachers will be able to have some "pictures of practice" of what we mean by ambitious teaching. In addition, the SPARK STEM summer labs will be videotaped to serve as exemplars of ambitious teaching using STEM PBL.

Andrew Gilbert, George Mason University
Jenn Suh, George Mason University