This project develops an instrument to measure the content knowledge that teachers need to teach about energy in high school classroom instruction that focuses on mechanical energy. There is significant research that indicates that teacher content knowledge differs from what people in other professions need to know about particular domains such as mathematics, and the development of a Content Knowledge of Teaching Energy in mechanics is an extension of those research and development efforts. The project embeds the development of the instrument in a program of measuring effective teaching of physics in the classroom and develops a strong validity argument for the resulting assessment based on its use as a measure in a professional development project that intends to improve teachers' understanding of energy in physics. The research team consists of experts in physics, assessment and classroom teaching of physics. The collaborative project includes researchers at Rutgers, University of Maine, Seattle Pacific University, Facets Innovation, and the Educational Testing Service.

The project uses a framework for effective teaching developed in the Measures of Effective Teaching project funded by the Gates Foundation to construct a theoretical framework for the teaching of mechanical energy. That framework includes items and tasks based on instructional practices in the classroom that can identify the extent to which the teacher understands both the disciplinary knowledge and the appropriate teaching processes that support student learning. A strong framework of validation based on multiple lines of evidence of the relationship between the items developed for the study and observations, analysis of video, and artifacts from the classroom is one element of the study. Another element of the study examines multiple psychometric lines of evidence to determine the reliability of the instruments and the validity of the inferences drawn from them. The resulting instruments will be used in the measurement of changes of teacher content knowledge for teaching in professional development programs as another source of validation.

The improvement of teachers' content knowledge for teaching is an important intermediary goal of professional development of teachers. Without adequate understanding of the gaps in teacher knowledge and precise evidence of the improvement through professional development, the efficacy of different professional development projects is not possible. This project develops a model of teacher assessment instrument development that addresses a cross-cutting theme in the Next Generation Science Standards and contributes an important tool to the research and evaluation processes that are needed to make those standards a reality in the classroom. Findings from the use of the instruments across multiple projects inform policy decisions on local, state and federal levels.

Boston University, Education Development Center, Inc., and St. Olaf College are collaborating on Assessing Secondary Teachers' Algebraic Habits of Mind (ASTAHM) to develop instruments to assess secondary teachers' Mathematical Habits of Mind (MHoM). These habits bring parsimony, focus, and coherence to teachers' mathematical thinking and, in turn, to their work with students. MHoM is a critical component of mathematical knowledge for teaching at the secondary level. Recognizing the need for a scientific approach to investigate the ways in which MHoM is an indicator of teacher effectiveness, the partnership is researching the following questions:

1. How do teachers who engage MHoM when doing mathematics for themselves also bring MHoM to their teaching practice?

2. How are teachers' engagement with MHoM and their use of these habits in teaching related to student understanding and achievement?

To investigate these questions, ASTAHM is developing two instruments: a paper and pencil (P&P) assessment and an observation protocol that measure teachers' knowledge and classroom use, respectively, of MHoM.

The work is being conducted in two phases: (1) an instrument-refinement and learning phase, and (2) an instrument-testing and research phase. Objectives of Phase 1 are to gather data to refine the project's existing instruments and to learn about the bridge factors that impact the relationship between teachers' knowledge and classroom use of MHoM. Specific research activities include: administering the pilot P&P assessment to 40 teachers, videotaping Algebra instructions of 8 teachers, performing initial testing and refinement of the instruments, and using the data to analyze the bridge factors. Phase 2 is a large-scale study involving field-testing the P&P assessment with 200 teachers, videotaping 20 teachers and studying them using the observation protocol, collecting achievement data from 3000 students, and checking P&P content validity with 200 mathematicians. With these validated instruments in hand, the project will then conduct an investigation into the above research questions. Lesley University's Program Evaluation and Research Group (PERG) is the external evaluator. PERG is assessing ASTAHM's overall success in developing valid and reliable instruments to investigate the extent to which a relationship exists between teachers' MHoM and their classroom practice, as well as student achievement. Evaluators are also investigating whether users' coding guides for both instruments enable field-testers to effectively use and adequately score them.

This work fits into a larger research agenda with the ultimate goal of understanding the connections between secondary teachers' mathematical knowledge for teaching and secondary students' mathematical understanding and achievement. The MHoM construct is closely aligned with the Common Core State Standards-Mathematics (CCSS-M); especially its Standards for Mathematical Practice. For example, both place importance on seeking and using mathematical structure. Thus the instruments this project produces can act as pre- and post-measures of the effectiveness of professional development programs in preparing teachers to implement the CCSS-M. Mathematics teacher knowledge at the secondary level is an understudied field. Through analyses of the practices and habits of mind that teachers bring to their work, ASTAHM is developing instruments that can be used to shed light on effective secondary teaching.

Boston University, Education Development Center, Inc., and St. Olaf College are collaborating on Assessing Secondary Teachers' Algebraic Habits of Mind (ASTAHM) to develop instruments to assess secondary teachers' Mathematical Habits of Mind (MHoM). These habits bring parsimony, focus, and coherence to teachers' mathematical thinking and, in turn, to their work with students. MHoM is a critical component of mathematical knowledge for teaching at the secondary level. Recognizing the need for a scientific approach to investigate the ways in which MHoM is an indicator of teacher effectiveness, the partnership is researching the following questions:

1. How do teachers who engage MHoM when doing mathematics for themselves also bring MHoM to their teaching practice?

2. How are teachers' engagement with MHoM and their use of these habits in teaching related to student understanding and achievement?

To investigate these questions, ASTAHM is developing two instruments: a paper and pencil (P&P) assessment and an observation protocol that measure teachers' knowledge and classroom use, respectively, of MHoM.

The work is being conducted in two phases: (1) an instrument-refinement and learning phase, and (2) an instrument-testing and research phase. Objectives of Phase 1 are to gather data to refine the project's existing instruments and to learn about the bridge factors that impact the relationship between teachers' knowledge and classroom use of MHoM. Specific research activities include: administering the pilot P&P assessment to 40 teachers, videotaping Algebra instructions of 8 teachers, performing initial testing and refinement of the instruments, and using the data to analyze the bridge factors. Phase 2 is a large-scale study involving field-testing the P&P assessment with 200 teachers, videotaping 20 teachers and studying them using the observation protocol, collecting achievement data from 3000 students, and checking P&P content validity with 200 mathematicians. With these validated instruments in hand, the project will then conduct an investigation into the above research questions. Lesley University's Program Evaluation and Research Group (PERG) is the external evaluator. PERG is assessing ASTAHM's overall success in developing valid and reliable instruments to investigate the extent to which a relationship exists between teachers' MHoM and their classroom practice, as well as student achievement. Evaluators are also investigating whether users' coding guides for both instruments enable field-testers to effectively use and adequately score them.

This work fits into a larger research agenda with the ultimate goal of understanding the connections between secondary teachers' mathematical knowledge for teaching and secondary students' mathematical understanding and achievement. The MHoM construct is closely aligned with the Common Core State Standards-Mathematics (CCSS-M); especially its Standards for Mathematical Practice. For example, both place importance on seeking and using mathematical structure. Thus the instruments this project produces can act as pre- and post-measures of the effectiveness of professional development programs in preparing teachers to implement the CCSS-M. Mathematics teacher knowledge at the secondary level is an understudied field. Through analyses of the practices and habits of mind that teachers bring to their work, ASTAHM is developing instruments that can be used to shed light on effective secondary teaching.

This collaborative work involves Drexel University and Temple University where they are developing an online, professional teaching community that is addressing issues of assessment in mathematics classes. The developers are building on the success of the NSF-supported Math Forum's Problem of the Week program to create a community that is working to increase students' mathematics learning by helping teachers stimulate student thinking, assess that thinking, and provide useful feedback to students. The teachers are working together to create rubrics for assessing the progress of students as they solve challenging mathematics problems. The program is structured so that the teachers are learning mathematics and assessment strategies in addition to establishing a research-based model for online, professional communities.

Researchers are studying how specific activities (e.g., discourse, active participation, use of rubrics, feedback, and reflection) and an online community support teachers' engagement in authentic and generative assessment. Researchers are using ethnographic methods to understand the development of the community, and conducting focus groups and individual interviews to determine the impact of participation in the community on mathematics teachers. In addition, they are collecting data through discourse analysis, student work analysis, and rubric analysis to determine the optimal design of the products. The intentional structure of the online community builds on research findings on creating professional communities and research on assessing mathematics learning.

Online professional teaching communities offer new venues for communication, professional development, and shared work among mathematics teachers. The Math Forum provides an optimal, online context for expanding the popular Problem of the Week into a productive discussion of assessment of problem solving, the building of specific rubrics, and the related reflection on how to encourage student thinking. This collaborative work will offer rubrics for assessing mathematical problem solving, a new model for online professional development, and extensive information on building an online mathematics community.

In this two-year exploratory project, science educators at the University of Massachusetts Boston collaborate with those at the University of Arizona to develop and test a learning progression for the study of chemistry. Likely pathways are investigated for how grade 8-13 student's implicit assumptions develop on five major threads of chemical design - chemical identity, structure-property relationships, chemical causality and mechanism, chemical control and cost-benefit-risks. A focus on chemical design - the identification and synthesis of chemical compounds - facilitates the coherent integration of scientific and engineering practices, cross-cutting concepts, and disciplinary core ideas. This approach should make chemistry more engaging to a greater variety of students including those in Career and Technical Education.

The project investigates the core implicit assumptions that can be expected to characterize and constrain novice and sophisticated student reasoning about each of the five major threads of chemical design. It also suggests the hypothetical "stepping stones" that characterize the progression from novice to sophisticated reasoning in chemical design. Existing research literature on student ideas and on related developmental psychology and cognitive science research is reviewed. Project staff together with twelve master high school and middle school science teachers in the Boston Public Schools develop a framework that can be used to compare and contrast more or less sophisticated ways of thinking about foundational ideas for the understanding of chemical design and from them derive hypotheses about "stepping stones" in understanding the implication of chemical design. Questionnaires and interview protocols similar to those employed in previous projects are used with students in grades 8, 10, 12 and college freshmen and their teachers to refine and enrich initial hypotheses about the evolution of core implicit assumptions along the five threads. The research is evaluated by an advisory board of science educators and educational researchers using a written protocol. Content is reviewed by practicing chemists.

A concise and clear summary of the learning progression is produced with an intended audience of teachers, curriculum developers and publishers who are implementing or revising curriculum. The dissemination of this summary includes a brief market research survey of teachers, curriculum developers and publishers of high school chemistry materials. Versions of validated open-response instruments that can be easily implemented by teachers as formative assessments of student understanding in the areas targeted by the study are also published. An understanding is gained of some of the challenges associated with implementing the Next Generation Science Standards in a way that meaningfully integrates science and engineering practice, important content and cross cutting themes in the context of learning about chemical design.

This project develops an instrument to measure the content knowledge that teachers need to teach about energy in high school classroom instruction that focuses on mechanical energy. There is significant research that indicates that teacher content knowledge differs from what people in other professions need to know about particular domains such as mathematics, and the development of a Content Knowledge of Teaching Energy in mechanics is an extension of those research and development efforts. The project embeds the development of the instrument in a program of measuring effective teaching of physics in the classroom and develops a strong validity argument for the resulting assessment based on its use as a measure in a professional development project that intends to improve teachers' understanding of energy in physics. The research team consists of experts in physics, assessment and classroom teaching of physics. The collaborative project includes researchers at Rutgers, University of Maine, Seattle Pacific University, Facets Innovation, and the Educational Testing Service.

The project uses a framework for effective teaching developed in the Measures of Effective Teaching project funded by the Gates Foundation to construct a theoretical framework for the teaching of mechanical energy. That framework includes items and tasks based on instructional practices in the classroom that can identify the extent to which the teacher understands both the disciplinary knowledge and the appropriate teaching processes that support student learning. A strong framework of validation based on multiple lines of evidence of the relationship between the items developed for the study and observations, analysis of video, and artifacts from the classroom is one element of the study. Another element of the study examines multiple psychometric lines of evidence to determine the reliability of the instruments and the validity of the inferences drawn from them. The resulting instruments will be used in the measurement of changes of teacher content knowledge for teaching in professional development programs as another source of validation.

The improvement of teachers' content knowledge for teaching is an important intermediary goal of professional development of teachers. Without adequate understanding of the gaps in teacher knowledge and precise evidence of the improvement through professional development, the efficacy of different professional development projects is not possible. This project develops a model of teacher assessment instrument development that addresses a cross-cutting theme in the Next Generation Science Standards and contributes an important tool to the research and evaluation processes that are needed to make those standards a reality in the classroom. Findings from the use of the instruments across multiple projects inform policy decisions on local, state and federal levels.

Utilizing a conference and work group format, project investigators will convene a group of 15 African American science educators, scientists, and doctoral student scholars and assign them to small work groups to design and conduct multi-site micro-research studies on learning activities that promote elementary, middle school, and secondary science learning and teaching. A mentoring network will be established among project participants, as well, partnering experienced educators and scientists with upcoming scholars. Work groups will investigate different learning and teaching approaches used in K-12 rural and urban school settings to identify effects on student science learning using quantitative, qualitative, or mixed design studies.

The project goal is the development of a network of science education faculty members to conduct research on issues related to science learning and teaching of rural and urban students in the United States; to develop and conduct multi-site micro-research studies leading to successful scholarly publications on science learning and teaching effectiveness; to increase numbers of African American science education and science faculty members from traditionally White and Historically Black Colleges and Universities who are prepared to design and conduct rigorous research studies on science teaching and learning and to seek funding for their projects.

The project design includes a summer 2013 mini-symposium that will employ breakout sessions, plenary speakers, and work group time for the design of multi-site micro-research studies and assistance with Institutional Review Board applications. During the 2013-14 academic year, the work groups will stay in contact via electronic media as studies are conducted following the summer mini-symposium. The second symposium will take place during the 2014 National Association for Research in Science Teaching international meeting so that teams can analyze data, prepare ideas for funding projects, and begin to prepare journal articles and other means to disseminate findings. Formative and summative project evaluation will take place at different stages of the project, including one year from project completion, to determine if the project made satisfactory progress in meeting its three goals.

The studies on effective science learning and teaching strategies in different school settings will eventually provide students access to more innovative science instructional materials and science instruction. This access is paramount if students are to understand science concepts and ideas and engage in meaningful scientific data collection, analysis, and interpretation. When students experience effective science activities, especially at the middle school level, there is a greater likelihood they will perform well in science and may consider science-related college majors and careers.

Two critical areas in science education will be positively affected by this project: instructional practices in K-12 schools and the number of African American science educators and scientists conducting research, especially funded projects. Understanding science practices that are most innovative and effective in K-12 rural and urban classrooms will lead to increased student science literacy, achievement, and pursuit of science careers. These practices will be refined and shared across school systems. Collaborative research efforts advanced by the mentoring network will result in a group of science and science education scholars who can continue to build on the work begun during this project as they complete their initial round of conference paper presentations, manuscripts for publication consideration, and grant proposals.

Boston University, Education Development Center, Inc., and St. Olaf College are collaborating on Assessing Secondary Teachers' Algebraic Habits of Mind (ASTAHM) to develop instruments to assess secondary teachers' Mathematical Habits of Mind (MHoM). These habits bring parsimony, focus, and coherence to teachers' mathematical thinking and, in turn, to their work with students. MHoM is a critical component of mathematical knowledge for teaching at the secondary level. Recognizing the need for a scientific approach to investigate the ways in which MHoM is an indicator of teacher effectiveness, the partnership is researching the following questions:

1. How do teachers who engage MHoM when doing mathematics for themselves also bring MHoM to their teaching practice?

2. How are teachers' engagement with MHoM and their use of these habits in teaching related to student understanding and achievement?

To investigate these questions, ASTAHM is developing two instruments: a paper and pencil (P&P) assessment and an observation protocol that measure teachers' knowledge and classroom use, respectively, of MHoM.

The work is being conducted in two phases: (1) an instrument-refinement and learning phase, and (2) an instrument-testing and research phase. Objectives of Phase 1 are to gather data to refine the project's existing instruments and to learn about the bridge factors that impact the relationship between teachers' knowledge and classroom use of MHoM. Specific research activities include: administering the pilot P&P assessment to 40 teachers, videotaping Algebra instructions of 8 teachers, performing initial testing and refinement of the instruments, and using the data to analyze the bridge factors. Phase 2 is a large-scale study involving field-testing the P&P assessment with 200 teachers, videotaping 20 teachers and studying them using the observation protocol, collecting achievement data from 3000 students, and checking P&P content validity with 200 mathematicians. With these validated instruments in hand, the project will then conduct an investigation into the above research questions. Lesley University's Program Evaluation and Research Group (PERG) is the external evaluator. PERG is assessing ASTAHM's overall success in developing valid and reliable instruments to investigate the extent to which a relationship exists between teachers' MHoM and their classroom practice, as well as student achievement. Evaluators are also investigating whether users' coding guides for both instruments enable field-testers to effectively use and adequately score them.

This work fits into a larger research agenda with the ultimate goal of understanding the connections between secondary teachers' mathematical knowledge for teaching and secondary students' mathematical understanding and achievement. The MHoM construct is closely aligned with the Common Core State Standards-Mathematics (CCSS-M); especially its Standards for Mathematical Practice. For example, both place importance on seeking and using mathematical structure. Thus the instruments this project produces can act as pre- and post-measures of the effectiveness of professional development programs in preparing teachers to implement the CCSS-M. Mathematics teacher knowledge at the secondary level is an understudied field. Through analyses of the practices and habits of mind that teachers bring to their work, ASTAHM is developing instruments that can be used to shed light on effective secondary teaching.

This project is developing principles for supporting middle school mathematics teachers' capacity to use curriculum resources to design instruction that addresses the Common Core State Standards for Mathematics (CCSSM). These principles are intended for: (1) curriculum developers to help in the design of curriculum materials; (2) professional development designers and local instructional leaders, to help teachers understand and better utilize curriculum materials with respect to the CCSSM; and (3) teachers, so that they can use curriculum resources to design instruction that addresses the CCSSM. The study addresses the following research questions:

1. What design features of materials support effective instructional design?

2. What teacher and district characteristics support effective instructional design?

3. How do teachers use materials to design instruction that addresses the new CCSSM?

4. What design practices lead to instruction that addresses the progressions and practices in the CCSSM?

A sample of teachers across grades 6 - 8 and their instructional leaders will be selected, up to a maximum of 72 teachers. The sample of teachers is purposefully diverse in terms of demographic, geographic, and curriculum contexts. The curricula include NSF-funded programs as well as commercially-developed programs. The ways teachers understand and access curriculum resources in fully digital environments as well as more conventional media will be studied. Partnering institutions include the University of Rochester, Michigan State University, Western Michigan University, and Washington State University Tri-Cities.

The data collection includes surveys, assessments of teachers' mathematical knowledge for teaching, observations of teachers' use and enactment of curriculum materials, analyses of student text and associated teacher resource materials, and teacher logs. These data are used to test conjectures about: (1) how curriculum materials, particularly the teacher resources, can be better designed to help teachers productively design instruction, especially with regard to incorporating the mathematical practices in the CCSSM; and (2) how teachers can be better supported to understand and use curriculum resources. The project evaluation includes formative and summative components, providing information and assistance to ensure that the project addresses its stated goals and employs rigorous methodology. Multiple methods are being used to collect evaluation data, including observations, interviews, and document review.

The deliverables are aimed at audiences who can impact large numbers of teachers and students, such as curriculum developers, designers of professional development, and researchers. The deliverables include: (1) guidelines for curriculum developers that are intended to make curriculum resources more transparent and accessible; (2) guidelines for instructional leaders to support teachers to use curriculum materials to design instruction that addresses the rigorous features of the CCSSM, and (3) refined instruments for studying teachers' curricular practices.

This collaborative work involves Drexel University and Temple University where they are developing an online, professional teaching community that is addressing issues of assessment in mathematics classes. The developers are building on the success of the NSF-supported Math Forum's Problem of the Week program to create a community that is working to increase students' mathematics learning by helping teachers stimulate student thinking, assess that thinking, and provide useful feedback to students. The teachers are working together to create rubrics for assessing the progress of students as they solve challenging mathematics problems. The program is structured so that the teachers are learning mathematics and assessment strategies in addition to establishing a research-based model for online, professional communities.

Researchers are studying how specific activities (e.g., discourse, active participation, use of rubrics, feedback, and reflection) and an online community support teachers' engagement in authentic and generative assessment. Researchers are using ethnographic methods to understand the development of the community, and conducting focus groups and individual interviews to determine the impact of participation in the community on mathematics teachers. In addition, they are collecting data through discourse analysis, student work analysis, and rubric analysis to determine the optimal design of the products. The intentional structure of the online community builds on research findings on creating professional communities and research on assessing mathematics learning.

Online professional teaching communities offer new venues for communication, professional development, and shared work among mathematics teachers. The Math Forum provides an optimal, online context for expanding the popular Problem of the Week into a productive discussion of assessment of problem solving, the building of specific rubrics, and the related reflection on how to encourage student thinking. This collaborative work will offer rubrics for assessing mathematical problem solving, a new model for online professional development, and extensive information on building an online mathematics community.