Second Annual Scholarship of STEM Teaching and Learning Conference
With sponsorship from the University System of Georgia (USG) Board of Regents, Georgia Southern University will host a one-day conference for educators, students, industry professionals, and research institutions with interests in the Scholarship of STEM Teaching and Learning. Participants are invited from all USG colleges and universities, private higher education institutions within the state, industry, research institutions, and local area K-12 schools. The conference will be held on Friday March 8, 2013 at the Nessmith-Lane Conference Center on Georgia Southern’s campus.
“The conference will attract interest from throughout the state, particularly given not only Georgia Southern’s focus on science, technology, engineering and math, but the entire University System of Georgia,” said Tom Koballa, dean of the College of Education at Georgia Southern.
The conference complements the University System of Georgia’s STEM Initiative whose goals include: promoting K-12 student preparation for and interest in majoring in STEM fields in college; increasing the success of STEM majors in college; and producing more and better science and mathematics teachers for K-12 schools, which in turn will lead to increased preparation of students in science and mathematics.
“Our hope is that this conference will bring attention to the importance of learning support and remediation to student success in STEM courses across Georgia’s institutions of higher education,” says Koballa. “This conference will provide space for showcasing and discussing the work that is happening to advance STEM teaching and learning across the state of Georgia.” Koballa also said that he hopes it will serve as a channel for extended learning opportunities accessible through Web-based resources.
Dr. Joy Darley serves as the conference coordinator and will bring together resources from Georgia Southern University’s College of Education, the Allen E. Paulson College of Science and Technology and the Division of Continuing Education to make the conference a statewide success.
Featured STEM Presentation
Building, Refining & Defining STEM Learning Outcomes – K-16 Implications
Richard A. Duschl, Penn State University and National Science Foundation
The July 2012 release of the National Research Council Framework for K-12 Science Education: Practices, Crosscutting Concepts and Core Ideas heralds ‘a new vision of science in education.’ The Framework sets out a comprehensive agenda for the reform of science and engineering education. Duschl provides an overview of these sweeping developments and examines the implications in terms of teacher professional development and designing undergraduate STEM courses.