Meeting Abstract
K-12 teachers have been pushed to adapt to meet changing standards due to the implementation of initiatives such as Common Core. Standardized testing links student mastery of these standards to graduation, school funding, and job security. As teachers focus on meeting content and test goals, they are left little time to try new methodologies such as guided inquiry, despite evidence that these are effective practices. These policy changes spill over to undergraduate education, as students enter their courses with different skills and competencies than what was expected even just a few years ago. To address these challenges, we established a partnership between Allegheny College and Crawford Central School District (CCSD) high school STEM faculty. Four faculty each (2 biology, 2 chemistry) from Allegheny and CCSD were paired together for 10 days in summer 2014 to develop curriculum and pedagogy in line with state standards and inform Allegheny faculty about current issues in our local school system. The partners then ran a teacher in-service day in October for non-partner teachers in their respective departments to share their work. Assessments indicate that all parties were satisfied with the results of the partnership, and are in the process of implementing the developed activities into their classrooms. Biology activities centered on scientific method, meiosis, cellular respiration, and evolution. We found that close reading, quantitative skills, and willingness to fail were areas that students struggled in both high school and college. Success of the partnership was due to careful matching of partners, allowing participants autonomy for choosing meeting dates and setting specific goals, and providing supply funds and equal stipends for professors and teachers.
