Clare Gartland & Anna Paczuska

Connecting STEM Teachers Summary Report Year 2: 2012-13 Clare Gartland & Anna Paczuska

Connecting STEM Teachers Year 2 Evaluation report Executive Summary Introduction The Connecting STEM Teachers programme started in September 2011 and aims to develop a national network to inspire and support STEM teachers. The programme is based on a train the trainer approach where regional teacher coordinators (TCs) initially attend Continuing Professional Development (CPD) sessions developed by the Royal Academy of Engineering (RAEng) and in turn disseminate these to teachers in the regions. TCs also disseminate STEM teaching and learning resources developed by the Academy along with associated training. The overall objectives of the programme are to promote a passion for STEM amongst teachers, to develop a greater awareness of STEM, to widen teachers knowledge and experience of STEM and to enable teachers to gain STEM skills. This evaluation study considers these objectives and specifically aims to: Explore the effects of forming regional networks of teachers and the extent of sharing of expertise Explore any shifts in attitudes to, understanding of and engagement with STEM subjects amongst senior management, teachers and their pupils and any differences between perspectives Explore teachers perception of their knowledge and confidence Explore teachers experience of using resources and training in their teaching practice/ where and how resources are being used Explore extent to which project impacts on teaching approaches Explore project impact on teaching of engineering and raising awareness of careers opportunities This evaluation follows on from Connecting STEM Teachers (Gartland 2012), a baseline study, and Athlete or Machine (Gartland 2013), an evaluation of programme resources for the EEnP. Evaluation Framework As the Connecting STEM teachers project is initiating engagement with STEM in many schools within the network, the development of STEM activity is in its infancy in these schools and so evaluation focusing on the impact of the project on pupils would be inappropriate at this stage. It was decided that a longitudinal strategy, providing detailed information about the progress of networks in three regions would best support the evaluation aims. The ambition for this at this formative stage of the evaluation is to provide insights into developmental processes, to record successes and developmental issues, and to identify points for further development based on the perceptions and views of programme participants gained from observations, conversations and one to one interviews with TCs and teachers in the regions. The approach draws on ethnography; participant observation was undertaken of network meetings in each area. Case study schools for the evaluation in each region were selected by TCs and so are likely to be those where teachers are most committed to the regional network. Teachers at these schools were interviewed in the summer term and where possible these teachers and schools were the same as those contributing to the evaluation at the end of the previous academic year for the baseline report. A loosely structured approach was taken to all conversations with the aim of enabling participants to relate and explore their own understandings, knowledge and experiences as freely as possible (Kvale 1996). Interviews were recorded and transcribed in full. These transcripts were coded and analysed drawing on grounded theory (Chramaz, 2003). 2

Findings The findings are presented in two parts. Part 1 deals with network meetings and teacher coordinator (TC) accounts. Part 2 deals with teachers experiences. These findings are brought together in the final summary section. This indicates a range of successful initial outcomes and also identifies points for consideration in relation to the future development and sustainability of the project. What emerges most strongly from the data is the enthusiasm and commitment of the participants along with a strong bottom up loyalty to the aims of the project. The reasons for engagement with STEM appear different for teachers from different subject areas. For D&T teachers the STEM focus of the project seems to invest their work with a certain gravitas that they perceive as missing in traditional D&T, while for science and maths teachers STEM appears to invigorate and bring a fresh relevance to their subject areas. Programme work is currently sustained through the support provided by the networks along with the programme resources. The main issue for future sustainability is how these may be maintained. Part 1: Network Meetings and Teacher Coordinators (TCs) Perspectives Developing networks Network meetings observed in both the NE and Lincolnshire were well attended and supported by related organisations including STEMNET, local EBP partnerships, representatives from the CITB, representatives from DATA, local universities, STEM ambassadors and a representative from the Arkwright Scholarship Trust. TCs also used meetings to highlight local STEM activities for schools to be involved with. During interviews TCs all reported positively about the development of teacher networks. They described how they had made use of a variety of existing networks to set up their teacher networks as well as using their own personal contacts and contacting schools directly. However, TCs accounts suggested it was difficult to get into schools where they had no pre-existing contacts. Network meetings had been variously set up around demonstrating the use of programme resources and TCs had used a number of different approaches to the training. One had attempted to incorporate the notion of a virtual learning environment though this had not been developed. One TC had used his contacts to identify venues for meetings and saw this as a way to consolidate links with other organizations. School engagement The number of schools engaged in networks varied between eight and twenty. The active involvement of individual schools changed over time with fluctuating numbers at network meetings. Reasons for these fluctuations included school pressures like OFSTED inspections and also the movement of staff within schools and into other schools. The TCs had all experienced very different degrees of senior management support. Management support for STEM was seen to depend on the attitude of individual heads and there was a feeling that school heads with a STEM background might be more supportive. TC Role TCs said they saw their roles as providing access to training and resources and also in supporting staff and encouraging commitment to the idea of developing STEM. One TC had arranged additional training sessions around resources in individual schools to maintain contact and commitment from teachers, some of whom had difficulty in attending network meetings. This had meant engaging with teachers separately or in small groups and had positive results in that it had facilitated collaborative working across STEM subject areas in schools. Developing networks across STEM Subject areas & the collaborative project Networks involved a range of subject specialists. In the 2012 baseline report it was reported that networks largely reflected the subject specialisms of the TCs organising them. While the subject specialisms of TCs is still significant there are indications in this study that the focus is changing and that a wider range of specialisms is becoming involved. 3

One TC reported that the project had been the driver for setting up STEM Clubs in schools. Two TCs described the collaborative project as a significant event enabling participants from different schools to meet and work together. Cross curricular working in schools TCs reported some progress round cross curricular initiatives, although this was limited. Network teachers were however, generally supportive of the idea and believed there was a general willingness to work across departments. One TC reported that teachers found the practicalities of implementing STEM ideas difficult and that initiatives were most likely to find success in schools where there were flexible timetables or challenge days. Another TC described how at their own school there was willingness on the part of the maths department but other departments tended to run events in isolation from the rest but thought it would be possible to win them over. Sustainability The sustainability of STEM activity was discussed during network meetings and it was clear from discussions that there was reliance amongst some teachers on the resources provided through the network. The need for a series of activities to support clubs and other STEM activities was identified on several occasions. One TC saw the development of collaborative projects as a way of promoting sustainability of the network as they offer the possibility of more than one off activities. STEM Careers: IAG While TCs saw the importance of bringing careers information to STEM activities in schools, and this was discussed during network meetings, they felt this to be an area where little progress had been made (careers advice in schools is currently seen to be particularly problematic (House of Commons Education Committee, 2013)). One TC felt that teachers generally were poor at providing careers advice. This TC suggested network meetings and resources could help support careers information and that teachers had expressed an interest in meeting real engineers. Supporting careers advice in STEM was not seen by this TC as a primary project aim. Another TC said that pupils at their school only get limited careers advice and the message about careers needed to get beyond the committed teachers in the network and into schemes of work, which currently rarely deal with careers. This TC also felt project resources might usefully include posters and printed information about STEM careers. Diversity in STEM Getting girls into engineering was taken up and discussed widely during network meetings. This was an issue that teachers appeared keen to respond to, though during network meetings it was clear that other school priorities overtook this focus we want to develop a club to encourage more girls into science and engineering but haven t really started with it yet. Teachers also discussed the difficulty of engaging girls. One TC reported that there were more girls than boys in the STEM club at their school; at this school names of pupils for the club had been suggested by teachers on the basis of attainment in a range of subjects. At another school, a girls grammar, it appeared that the head teacher had accepted that it was difficult to get girls engaged in STEM; this had affected the focus of curriculum development at the school. A third TC reported that at one school, work on a collaborative project had led to the establishment of a girls only STEM Club. Part 2: Teachers Perspectives The teachers interviewed and their school backgrounds Eight teachers were interviewed for the evaluation study. Some had been involved in research for the benchmark report, others were new to the project. Overall there were a number of changes in schools participating in interviews for the evaluation process since work on the baseline report. In both the NE and in Lincolnshire one school had dropped out of the evaluation due to a key member of staff moving schools/ changing roles. The two schools continuing to participate in the NE were a mixed comprehensive and an academy; a science specialist school replaced the community secondary school. Two of these schools are located in Gateshead and one in Tyne and Wear. Two teachers contributed from the new network in the SE, one from a boys grammar school and one from a comprehensive (a sports college). 4

The two schools continuing to participate in Lincolnshire were a boys grammar school in a rural area and a comprehensive. The school new to the evaluation was a secondary modern school located in a rural area. Two of the teachers from the North East were from maths teaching backgrounds and the teacher new to the evaluation was head of biology and had recently taken on a new role as STEM coordinator. One of the teachers from the Lincolnshire network was an assistant head teacher (with a science background), one the head of D&T and the teacher new to the evaluation teachers D&T. One of the two teachers in the SE was director of STEM at the school and one a science teacher (biology specialist). It is worth noting that the changes include teachers from more STEM subject areas and also that whilst STEM appears to be being largely dropped from the agenda at the girls grammar school where one TC had worked, the two boys grammar schools represented in the study are conversely highly engaged and motivated by the STEM agenda. The network meetings attended in Lincolnshire were well supported by an established group of D&T teachers but were also attended by smaller numbers of science and maths teachers. In the NE, the meeting in the autumn term was largely attended by maths teachers but in the summer term the joint hosting of the meeting with STEMNET also drew in a large number of science teachers and D&T was not so well represented. The teacher network Teachers were highly positive and enthusiastic about the network and about network meetings. Some teachers spoken to during the evaluation had only attended one network meeting. Other teachers had a deeper involvement and had attended general network meetings from the onset of the regional networks. In one region teachers spoken to had also attended smaller meetings related to collaborative projects which were described by one teacher as a network within a network What was evident from the network meetings observed was that they provided a forum within which teachers could share experiences and that the many positive experiences of using resources and developing STEM activity relayed during meetings encouraged and engaged participants in developing STEM at their own schools. Making contacts with other organizations Teachers spoke positively about how the network had enabled them to find out about and contact other organizations useful to them in organising STEM activities. One teacher interviewed said that the network had helped in getting visiting speakers into school, which was useful in planning projects and enthusing students. Another explained how the teacher coordinator had helped them identify useful contacts from information on the web. At one school, connections made with a representative of DATA had facilitated a more collaborative approach as D&T had become more involved with STEM activity, which the maths teacher felt had raised the profile of STEM. One teacher said he had found out about Crest Awards and the Arkwright Scholarship scheme through the network. Another said they had found out about STEM Ambassadors and university visits. STEM activities There was a variety of STEM experience among teachers interviewed. Some were just starting out with the project and were largely at the planning stage of STEM activity. Other teachers were able to describe a range of well established STEM initiatives and activities at their schools. These involved different year groups of pupils organized through a variety of arrangements both out of school and within the school curriculum. A few teachers had made significant progress in developing STEM activity since their involvement with the network. Out of school STEM activities involved a range of external partnerships and collaborations and included a Green Power Challenge, physics, programming and maths projects, an Engineering in Education Project, Crest Awards, and a Construction Day event comprising fourteen different activities. Within school, project teachers were involved with STEM days, curriculum days and also in organising STEM input to school trips as well as organising STEM clubs. One teacher had organised STEM input to a humanities trip to Alton Towers. Another teacher had embedded CREST Awards into the technology schemes of work. At one school STEM had been designated as an activity for gifted and talented girls. 5

Two schools described developing whole school approaches to STEM. At one school there was a well established whole school approach. The move towards a STEM focus had been developed over several years and the particular approach to STEM developed by staff centred on the idea of promoting cognitive thinking. Staff had also developed a notion of sustainable STEM which had largely moved away from working on traditional projects based on cars and rockets. At the other school a whole school approach was being developed by asking each department to consider how they would address STEM in their development plans. This initiative came about subsequent to involvement in the network. STEM clubs During network meetings, teachers discussed existing STEM clubs, a few of which were well established. There were also examples of STEM clubs developed as a result of involvement with the network. Other teachers attending network meetings had no experience of running a STEM club and were keen to find out more. The desire to establish a STEM club or other STEM activity had clearly driven attendance amongst several of these participants. How to set up a club and which pupils to include were frequent informal conversations between participants at network meetings. STEM clubs were mainly aimed at Years 7, 8 and 9. One teacher interviewed saw STEM clubs as a way of engaging pupils about STEM careers. Another teacher thought a STEM Club should involve Years 7 to 9 as this would help pupils in choosing STEM options. Some teachers described difficulties in involving staff from other subject areas and in broadening clubs beyond those already associated with individual subject areas. One teacher interviewed described how the evolution of a pre-existing maths club into to a STEM club at her school was wholly due to the impetus provided by network meetings and resources. Another said she aimed to involve maths staff in setting up a STEM Club by persuading them the workload would be shared and resources provided. Another teacher had started a magazine which he hoped would enable staff to see the links. Cross curricular relationships Teachers generally described developing working relationships with staff from other subject areas as a challenge. Network meetings provided participants with an opportunity to discuss ways of working with other subject areas. Teachers described how cross curricular projects had helped them to develop working relationships across subject boundaries. Collaborative working and STEM/ cross curricular days were frequently identified as opportunities to run STEM projects and use RAEng resources. STEM confidence Teachers confidence in running STEM activities varied. Findings appear to resonate with comments in the recent resources report where there was some suggestion that D&T teachers appeared confident to run STEM activities independently while maths teachers appeared to feel a greater need to draw on the subject expertise of other areas and in the process engage other curriculum areas in STEM activity. Teachers new to organising STEM activity described how learning about different applications and resources through the network was helping to build confidence and that working with teachers from other schools was helpful. Understanding of STEM Teachers understanding of STEM also varied. Teachers new to the programme reported that engagement with the project had increased their awareness and understanding of STEM and had also provided an understanding of how to run a cross curricular project. Teachers reported a great variation in their students understanding of STEM. At one school where STEM activity had been established for several years a teacher said that most students both understood the concept and the career routes it offers. At another school with two years experience of STEM activity a teacher said they had been impelled to ensure that pupils understood the meaning of STEM so they could be clear about the discrete nature of different subject options in Year 9. At one school since being involved in the network, a cross curricular strategy had been developed at the school and teachers were using PSHE sessions to promote pupils understanding of STEM. 6

Management support Teachers perception of management support for STEM varied. Teachers accounts at network meetings and during interviews suggested that in some schools, management focus was elsewhere. This appeared to be more the case in schools that were struggling to meet GCSE benchmarks. Some teachers felt that management priorities were focused on the core curriculum and that this was unlikely to change unless STEM work brought in substantial funding. Several teachers appeared to be driving the STEM agenda at their schools despite rather than with the support of management. Some teachers felt managers with STEM related backgrounds were more likely to be sympathetic. Teachers said school commitments often stood in the way of attending meetings. One said she had attended a meeting even though her head was not keen. Another saw this as personal circumstance and explained it was an inability on her part to justify time out of school for the meetings. Budgets and sustainability Budgetary concerns, particularly providing cover for teachers, were repeatedly mentioned by teachers as impacting on developing STEM in schools. One teacher said she felt that so long as resources were provided then STEM activities were not a problem. This teacher said that only the project resources had made the STEM activity possible at her school as there was no school budget for it otherwise. Another teacher explained that his choice of activity was largely governed by whether it was free or not and even if activities were free, cover arrangements for teachers still had financial implications for cost to students. One teacher said he would like the network to explore how to attract funding and industry sponsorship through the network. He suggested that the network might organise the use of industry resources such as lathes as well as set up school visits. Project resources and teaching approaches Teachers spoke at length about the project resources, praised their usefulness and in particular how the provision of resources by the project had been useful in drawing other teachers into activities and had also enabled forward planning of STEM activities. The fact that resources were accessible and in ready made packs was repeatedly identified as beneficial and indeed there was a sense that without free project resources it would have been difficult to draw other people into STEM activity. A TC who is a D&T specialist said the current network resources were useful for club activities lasting for one or two hour sessions. He felt that the development of schemes of work for projects lasting six to eight weeks might be useful. It was evident that in general, resources have been used in a variety of ways according to what teachers they felt could achieve, adapting resources to circumstances within school contexts. There was a resonance with findings in the resource report where there was a suggestion that different subject areas took different approaches to STEM (Gartland 2013). Within D&T it appeared that developing a STEM approach and building STEM activities into the D&T curriculum was seen positively and in some instances as a way of raising the profile of the subject. There were fewer suggestions from Maths teachers that they were integrating activities into schemes of work though one teacher discussed plans to do this. Maths teachers expressed concern about giving up teaching time to practical activity and pressure to meet benchmarks appeared to contribute to this. In one case where a maths teacher had successfully drawn on other subject areas to support activities undertaken during a STEM club. Real world applications Teachers felt positive about the benefits of presenting the real life applications of STEM through project work and said meeting people with STEM careers was important for pupils to become aware of the range of jobs that exists. Teachers felt information about vocations and STEM careers was currently generally lacking and one said she would welcome some teaching resources about potential STEM careers. Another described how a visiting speaker s mention of fabulous sums to be earned had caught his pupils interest. This teacher said that project resources could be helpful in enabling pupils to make the connection between maths and real world activity. Some teachers had initiated activities to promote careers awareness including a project to promote careers in physics and another working with a Chamber of Commerce looking at skills and STEM industry and building up closer links between school and local industry. One teacher felt that students should be made aware of the broad nature of engineering and that project resources had to date concentrated on mechanical stuff. 7

Points for Consideration While the Connecting STEM Teachers programme is still in its early stages there has clearly been significant progress towards project objectives over the past year. In particular there have been positive developments associated with the teacher networks and a range of STEM activities in schools. There appears to be genuine enthusiasm for the networks and for network activities. Teacher coordinators have clearly expended time and energy and used a range of personal and professional contacts in setting up network meetings and these have been well attended even though teachers sometimes said they experienced difficulties in attending and coordinators said they had encountered difficulties in engaging schools where they had no contacts. Both teachers and coordinators are positive about the benefits of the networks which centre round being able to meet and talk to teachers from other schools and crucially include being able to share experiences with other teachers. This appears particularly important in building up the confidence of people new to STEM and in providing them with an awareness of possibilities. Teachers also value the way network meetings have enabled them to find out about other organizations which are useful to them in organising STEM activities. Since the research for the baseline report there appears to have been a shift in understanding and engagement with STEM among programme participants. In the 2012 baseline report it was reported that networks largely reflected the subject specialisms of the TCs organising them. While this is still significant, there are indications in this study that the focus is changing and that a wider range of specialisms is becoming involved. Teachers contributing to both reports described increased STEM activity in their schools. Teachers new to network meetings feel the project has increased their own awareness and understanding of STEM. The demonstration and use of project resources at network meetings has provided the impetus for many of the STEM activities in schools and some teachers emphasize that project resources are what make STEM activity at all possible at their schools. Ready made resources are seen as central to setting up clubs and getting colleagues from other subjects on board. There has been some progress in developing cross curricular work. Although teachers described developing working relationships with staff from other subject areas as a challenge, some described how cross curricular projects had helped them to develop working relationships across subject boundaries. There are different, possibly subject based, approaches to embedding STEM and working collaboratively across the curriculum. D&T teachers often seem happy to run STEM activities independently while maths and science staff sometimes appear to feel a greater need to draw on the subject expertise of other areas and in the process engage more teachers in STEM activity. A combination of accessible project resources and lack of confidence with running practical activity had encouraged one maths teacher to develop a cross curricular STEM club. While TCs feel that there has been little progress in relation to awareness of STEM careers, some teachers have initiated activities to promote careers awareness. These include a project to promote careers in physics and another working with a Chamber of Commerce looking at skills and STEM industry and building up closer links between school and local industry. Participants agree that teaching resources about potential STEM careers would be a useful addition to the programme. One teacher felt that students should be made more aware of the broad nature of engineering and that project resources so far have concentrated on mechanical stuff. Budgetary concerns, particularly providing cover for teachers, are an issue and there is a major reliance on the provision of free resources in initiating and promoting STEM activity. The study bears out the findings of the resource report which found that the culture of individual schools and priorities set by senior management influence levels of engagement. This can be counter to the development of a STEM culture in schools. In many instances the development of STEM still relies on the enthusiasm and motivation of individuals or small groups of teachers. There is a belief that STEM is more likely to gain management support if senior managers have a STEM background. 8

Ongoing sustainability of the project crucially depends on the maintenance of the teacher networks which provide support for staff in developing STEM in schools even where individual school managements do not view this as a priority. Where senior managers have been persuaded of the importance of STEM, there are examples here of whole school engagement. Work is also heavily reliant on the provision of free project resources. References Charmaz K, 2003. Constructing Grounded Theory. London. Sage. Gartland C, 2012. Connecting STEM Teachers: a baseline report. RAEng. Gartland C, 2013. Evaluation of Engineering Engagement Project: Athlete or Machine? RAEng. House of Commons Education Committee, 2013. Careers guidance for young people: The impact of the new duty on schools. Seventh Report of Session 2012-13. vol 1. Kvale S, 1996. InterViews: An Introduction to Qualitative Research Interviewing. London Sage. 9