Examining the Quality of Technology Implementation in STEM Classrooms: Demonstration of an Evaluative Framework

Abstract

Technology applications aligned with science, technology, engineering, and math (STEM) workplace practices can engage students in real-world pursuits but also present dramatic challenges for classroom implementation. We examined the impact of teacher professional development focused on incorporating these workplace technologies in the classroom. Because existing measures primarily use only presence or type of technology as proxies for implementation quality, we developed an expanded framework that incorporated (a) the type of technology used; (b) the degree of alignment to STEM practices; (c) the use of student-centered pedagogical practices; and (d) the degree of relevance to real-world contexts. While our framework successfully described the variation in technology implementation in our study group, we found no statistically significant difference between teachers with and without extensive training on STEM workplace technologies. Our results provide evidence that the framework captures quality of technology use and point to the need for additional research on effective teacher education around technology applications. (Keywords: teacher professional development, STEM workplace technology, measuring quality of technology implementation, technology in classrooms) T echnology use in the classroom has great potential to transform student learning. This is particularly true for science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) workplace applications of technology, such as robotics, computer modeling and simulations, digital animation, multimedia production, biotechnology, and geospatial technologies. These applications offer opportunities to align classroom activities with real-world STEM practices, while engaging students in authentic investigations and design-based pursuits and promoting student-centered learning and interest in STEM careers (Brophy, Klein,

Indonesian Science, Mathematics, and Engineering Preservice Teachers’ Experiences in STEM-TPACK Design-Based Learning

“…The idea of employing TPACK for the study of STEM education has been proposed and tested in limited contexts. Parker et al investigated science teachers' quality of technology use with reference to the Next Generation Science Standards and found that high-quality use was limited [19]. Yildrim and Sidekli employed the TPACK framework in preservice teacher development by integrating technology in teaching mathematics in the context of STEM education [33].…”

“…Nonetheless, when STEM education is anchored with engineering design challenges, students will encounter authentic engineering problems, which will require them to use ICT as a productive, collaborative, and cognitive tool to help them gather, synthesize, model, and construct the knowledge needed [30]. This could address the problems reported earlier about teachers not using ICT as a cognitive tool to engender 21st century student-centered learning [19,27,28]. In addition, the latest advanced technologies, such as 3D printing, micro-computers, and block-based coding environments afford teachers and students ample opportunities to compute and make functional prototypes [40].…”

“…In addition, TPACK and STEM are both crucial to developing students' 21st century capacities [17,43]. Parker et al associated teachers' TPACK with STEM and argued that these two fields of study need to be integrated [19]. While the blend of the two areas involves five elementary forms of knowledge (STEM subject knowledge plus pedagogical knowledge) that will interact in a complex manner, the foregoing argument shows that the concurrent development could be an outcome.…”

“…It contributes to the current research on STEM education by drawing on the notion of TPACK as a possible framework to map out the knowledge that the preservice teachers need. While the TPACK framework has been employed in the context of STEM education research [1,19], whether and how it may foster preservice teachers' capacity for ICT integration and STEM education has apparently not been reported. Given preservice teachers' crowded curriculum, a study addressing these two teacher capacities may offer new insights into the restructuring of sustainable teacher education.…”

Measuring Quality Technology Integration in Science Classrooms

“…The Protocol builds on a published theoretical framework that consists of four dimensions: technology type, science and engineering practices (SEPs), student-centered teaching, and relevance to students' lives (Parker, Stylinski, Bonney, Schillaci & McAuliffe 2015). These dimensions are critical to highquality technology integration, and their inclusion in our observation protocol supports the instrument's content validity.…”