University of Wyoming College of Education Spring 2019

strong STEM backgrounds as a result of their prior military
experience or baccalaureate degrees in a STEM discipline.
Scholarships fund up to 18 credit hours each semester
during an undergraduate student’s senior year. When the
undergraduate students transition into the post-baccalaureate
program, the scholarships cover the entire cost of tuition
and fees. Graduates who hold STEM degrees move directly
into the post-baccalaureate program and are offered the same
scholarship support.
“STEM college students bring content knowledge,
dedication and perseverance with them when they begin to
learn about and then teach STEM subjects in the K-12 arena.
STEM students who are coming back to UW to earn a teaching
certification in the post-baccalaureate graduate certificate
program usually have lab or industry experience as well, and
this is easily transferable to K-12 classrooms,” says Burrows.
In addition to providing funding for students, SWARMS
and WITS are working to create better strategies to recruit
these highly trained STEM experts into teaching careers,
making the path for them to attain teacher certification more
efficient, and building a sense of community and support
among their student cohorts.
After gaining their teaching certification, participants in
both programs are required to teach in high-need schools
for a duration of time. The educators also participate in
a mentorship program throughout the first few years of
teaching when it is critical to provide support to retain these
highly trained STEM professionals in teaching careers.
Both programs have seen success. SWARMS has had 40
participants to date and has past scholars teaching across the
Educators from Natrona County School District
participate in a professional development activity
offered by Associate Professor Ana Houseal and
Research Scientist Martha Inouye. Provided Photo.
K-12 teachers who
participated in
RAMPED have the
skills required
to promote
computer science
and computational
thinking...
– Andrea Burrows
country with many in Colorado, Wisconsin and Wyoming.
In all, 21 WITS scholars are on track to becoming highly
qualified elementary teachers with several currently teaching
in Colorado, Montana and Wyoming.
New Skills for Current Teachers
Two College of Education faculty have been leading efforts
to offer professional development to Wyoming’s educators
so they can enhance their science knowledge and teaching
abilities to incorporate the new state science standards into
their classrooms.
Ana Houseal, associate professor in the College of
Education and Martha Inouye, a research scientist at UW,
have been traveling around Wyoming with two graduate
students to train over 300 elementary and secondary
educators over the past year. The professional development
helps the teachers improve their science knowledge and
introduces pedagogical strategies and best practices that help
them incorporate the standards in their classrooms.
“The new standards require a new way of thinking about
science teaching and learning. Through ongoing, responsive
facilitation regarding the understanding and implementation
of the standards and their accompanying shifts in teaching,
the teachers we are working with will be well-equipped to
implement these standards,” says Houseal.
First, Houseal and Inouye meet with curriculum
coordinators, superintendents, principals and pK-12 teachers
to identify initial needs and learn where the district is at in
the process of implementing the standards. They then modify
the training to meet the needs of each district.
The team hosts workshops for the teachers and
administrators at partner districts throughout the state. These
workshops take place at facilities within the district and target
specific groups of educators, usually K-5 and middle and high
school science teachers in the district.
Additionally, Houseal and Inouye hold open-enrollment
workshops that any Wyoming educator can join. Those
workshops were held on the UW campus this year in addition
to a workshop on the Kelly Campus of Teton Science Schools.
They plan to hold more of these workshops throughout the state
with one already scheduled for Douglas in the next school year.
During these workshops the cohort discusses how science
can be integrated into other content areas or expanded
to include other scientific disciplines. They also work to
increase each teacher’s science knowledge base and provide
new pedagogical strategies that encourage a student’s active
engagement with science lessons.
“We model best practice in all that we do, from the
organization of the workshops to the evaluation, modification
and development of curricular pieces and assessments. We
often develop and implement model lessons with them to
experience as students and evaluate as teachers,” says Houseal.
The work Houseal and Inouye conduct with each partner
school can vary greatly and goes much deeper than presenting
workshops. The team spent six years working with the
Campbell County School District in partnership with the
curriculum coordinators and teachers to completely revamp
the K-12 science curriculum, a process they are currently
working toward in several other districts.
The professional development leaders may also visit the
participants in their classrooms several times throughout
the year to provide further input and coaching. Teachers can
also send in videos of their teaching for Houseal and Inouye
evaluate. This sustained intervention gives educators a deep
understanding and allows them to constantly evolve their
methods and best practices.
Another College of Education faculty-led professional
development opportunity was initiated by Burrows and
Mike Borowczak, an assistant professor in the College of
Engineering and Applied Science. A three-year funded grant
— Robotics, Applied Mathematics, Physics and Engineering
Design (RAMPED) focuses on computer science. Over
100 educators have benefited from the cross-disciplinary
professional development program since 2016.
RAMPED is supported by a U.S. Department of Education
grant that is administered by a Wyoming Department of
Education Math and Science Partnerships grant. The program
began its second iteration in summer 2018.
RAMPED allows Wyoming teachers, regardless of the
grade level or content area in which they teach, to work with
experts at UW to gain new ideas and abilities to incorporate
concepts of computer science, computational thinking and
cybersecurity into their classrooms.
“K-12 teachers who participated in RAMPED have
the skills required to promote computer science and
computational thinking to their students and dispel the myth
that computer science is just coding, creating video games or
robotics,” says Burrows.
The training comes at a time when Wyoming is developing
computer science standards for the state in addition to
incorporating the new state science standards. These standards
mandate that computer science and computational thinking
be incorporated into the state educational program by the
start of the 2022-23 school year.
The program includes a two-week summer camp that
occurs on the UW campus, as well as follow-up participant
collaboration days that take place during the school year. The
camp showcases ways that teacher participants can integrate
computer science and computational thinking principles
into their existing classrooms. This approach will help school
districts meet the new requirements without additional
financial burden.
Although the focus is on teachers’ understanding
and use of computer science and STEM content during
RAMPED, Wyoming students are the real beneficiaries of the
professional development.
“With well-prepared teachers, Wyoming’s K-12 students
have the opportunity to explore STEM and computer science
in meaningful experiences that can help them pursue careers
in new industries that assist in diversifying the state’s economy.
These experiences can also allow them to apply their computer
science knowledge to solve problems in the industries that have
driven Wyoming’s economic engine for decades,” says Burrows.
read part two in our winter e-newsletter!
The scattering of light is explored in this activity presented by Associate
Professor Ana Houseal and Research Scientist Martha Inouye during a
professional development opportunity. Provided Photo.
8 • Education@UWYO Spring 2019 Education@UWYO Spring 2019 • 9