Overall Description 2014-15

The RET Teachers are all secondary teachers from both math and science classrooms mostly from both public suburban districts and private schools around Greater Cincinnati. The 12 RET Teachers, having spent the summer of 2014 engaged in conducting research, taking the first week of a two week course in Engineering Foundations and attending professional development workshops and seminars will now return to the classroom with a twofold purpose. First, they will implement the Units they have created based on content that reflects their research topics and in which they utilize both Challenge Based Learning (CBL) and Engineering Design Process (EDP) pedagogies. Second, they will look for professional leadership opportunities to share their RET experiences with other educators using various venues including their own departments, schools, districts, and the greater educational community. They are encouraged to conduct workshops, write journal articles and present at regional and national conferences. All 12 of the RET Teachers will be presenting posters at the STEM Conference 2016 in May 2016; they will also be encouraged to lead an interactive session at the conference. Additional classroom support will be provided to the 12 RET Teachers by the COFSP Fellows.

The Cincinnati Engineering Enhanced Mathematics and Science Program (CEEMS) NSF Math and Science Partnership (MSP) Program is a 5 year initiative led by the University of Cincinnati as the higher education Core Partner in Partnership with 14 Core Partner school districts: Cincinnati Public Schools, Oak Hills, Princeton, Norwood, Winton Woods, and the Rural Clermont STEM Consortium of 9 school districts. CEEMS works to meet the growing need for engineering educated teachers who are equipped to provide learners with opportunities to achieve recently revised Ohio State Science Standards and the Common Core Math Standards juxtaposed with Universal Skills (21st Century Learning Skills). These standards are centered in real world application: connections to engineering. Each year about twenty (20) middle and high school math and science teachers are recruited from the 14 Core Partner CEEMS school districts. As participants in CEEMS they undergo a two year professional development experience during the summer which also, like RET, consists of coursework in Engineering Foundations. In addition, CEEMS Teachers take other courses at UC in math and science disciplines (3 courses/summer) and participate in workshops and seminars that support Challenge Based Learning (CBL) and Engineering Design Process (EDP) pedagogies. Unlike RET, the CEEMS Teachers did not conduct research, however they are charged with the same twofold purpose as they return to their classrooms. First, they will implement the 2-3 Units they have created in which they utilize both Challenge Based Learning (CBL) and Engineering Design Process (EDP) pedagogies. Second, they will look for professional leadership opportunities to share their CEEMS experiences with other educators using various venues including their own departments, schools, districts, and the greater educational community.

In late spring of 2014, the twelve CEEMS Teachers who formed Cohort 1, graduated from the program, after completing two summers of course work and two academic years developing, teaching and documenting CEEMS units. In the summer of 2014, twenty CEEMS Teachers, who formed Cohort 2, returned for a second year experience, and were joined by the newest set of fourteen CEEMS Teachers, who became Cohort 3. Likewise in the summer of 2015, the newest cohort, Cohort 4 was formed. Twelve teachers composed Cohort 4. Two CEEMS teachers will be selected from the previous cohorts to conduct the Professional Development for the COFSP Fellows on CBL and EDP.

The 2015-2016 CEEMS Fellows are 4 doctoral engineering students who have been hired to assist CEEMS Cohort 4 Teachers in their classrooms. One of their duties is to provide another level of support to the classroom teachers and in addition, gain skills and preparation to become educators at the college level. The CEEMS Fellows are well versed in using Engineering Design Process and they will also have a leadership role in mentoring the COFSP Fellows. Starting in January, the CEEMS Fellows will participate in the Bi- Weekly Seminars together with the COFSP Fellows. During Bi-Weekly Seminars, they will share responsibilities for leading group discussions based on assigned readings. They will also review the deliverables prepared by the COFSP Fellows.

Following a rigorous application process for a tuition scholarship, 6 undergraduate senior engineering students will be identified as Choose Ohio First Scholarship Program Fellows (COFSP Fellows.) The COFSP Fellows will come on board in the September of 2015 and undergo training in methods of teaching and assessing student learning, and in particular the CBL and EDP pedagogical methods. After completing this training, they will begin assisting in 1 -2, RET Teachers classrooms to which they are assigned, for a total of 6 classroom hours per week. In addition, the COFSP Fellows will attend Bi-Weekly Seminars from October through April during which they will do readings, keep a journal and discuss effective teaching strategies and techniques. Responsibilities for the COFSP Fellows will begin in September of 2015 with an orientation and 2 professional development sessions; in October they begin reporting to the RET Teachers classrooms. A final culmination event, the Presentation Program will take place in March 2016. At the Presentation Program, the COFSP Fellows will deliver both a Power Point and poster presentation describing the Activity they will have taught related to their Senior Capstone Design Projects.

RET 2015 officially began on June 15th, 2015 and will continue through 2016 until the STEM 2016 Conference in May of 2016 when the RET Teachers make their final presentations. The COFSP Fellows will begin in September of 2015 with Orientation and 2 professional development sessions and end at the Presentation Program planned before the end of 2016 Spring Semester at the University of Cincinnati. COFSP Fellows will be encouraged, if available, to present a poster at the STEM 2016 Conference.