Designing Professional Development for Teachers of Science and Mathematics

A comprehensive guide to designing staff development tailored specifically to the needs of individual schools or departments. Fifteen strategies are described providing examples, advantages, disadvantages and possible difficulties that can be encountered.

Susan Loucks-Horsley was the lead author of the first edition of Designing Professional Development for Teachers of Science and Mathematics and directed the professional development research for the National Institute for Science Education on which the book is based. At the time of her passing in 2000, Susan was the associate executive director of Biological Sciences and Curriculum Study (BSCS) and senior research associate for science and mathematics at WestEd. She had previously served as director of pro­fessional development and outreach at the National Research Council’s Center for Science, Mathematics, and Engineering Education, where she promoted and monitored standards-based education, especially the National Science Education Standards. Susan was a leading researcher, writer, and professional developer who enjoyed collaborating with others to address education’s toughest problems. She was the lead author of sev­eral books, including Continuing to Learn: A Guidebook for Teacher Develop­ment, An Action Guide for School Improvement, and Elementary School Science for the 90s. In addition, she wrote numerous reports on teacher development for the National Center for Improving Science Education, as well as chap­ters and articles on related topics. While at the University of Texas/Austin Research and Development Center for Teacher Education, she worked on the development team of the Concerns-Based Adoption Model (CBAM), a classic framework for understanding and leading change efforts.

Peter W. Hewson is Professor of Science Education at the University of Wisconsin–Madison. He is also the director of a project to develop collabo­rative research in science and mathematics education between South Africa and the United States. He has been a principal investigator on several other federally funded multiyear projects in science education. As Codirector of the Professional Development Project of the National Institute for Science Education, he coauthored the first edition of Designing Professional Develop­ment for Teachers of Science and Mathematics (1998). He teaches in the under­graduate teacher education and graduate science education programs and coordinates a professional development school in Madison. He has been deeply involved in the development of a conceptual change framework and its application to the learning and teaching of science. He has also studied initial teacher education and the continuing professional development of practicing teachers. He has published numerous articles on these and re­lated topics. He received his D.Phil. in theoretical nuclear physics from Oxford University, and he taught physics and science education in South Africa before moving to the United States.

Nancy Love is Director of Program Development at Research for Better Teaching in Acton, Massachusetts, where she leads this education-consulting group’s research and development. She is the former Director of the Using Data Project, a collaboration between TERC and WestEd, where she led the development of a comprehensive professional development program to improve teaching and learning through effective and collaborative use of school data. This program has produced significant gains in student achievement as well as increased collaboration and data use in schools across the country. Love has authored several books and articles on data use, including A Data Coach’s Guide to Improving Learning for All Students: Unleashing the Power of Collaborative Inquiry (2008, Corwin Press) and Using Data to Improve the Learning for All: A Collaborative Inquiry Approach (2009, Corwin). She is also well known for her work in professional development both as a presenter and author of articles and books, including Designing Professional Development for Teachers of Science and Mathematics (Second Edition) with Susan Loucks-Horsley, Kathy Stiles, Susan Mundry, and Peter Hewson (2003, Corwin Press). In 2006, she was awarded the prestigious Susan Loucks-Horsley Award from the National Staff Development Council in recognition of her significant national contribution to the field of staff development and to the efficacy of others.

Katherine E. Stiles is a Senior Program Associate in the STEM Program at WestEd. Katherine is Co-Director of WestEd’s National Academy for Science and Mathematics Education Leadership, providing professional development and support for education leaders nationwide. The foci of the Leadership Academy–effective leadership, educational change, professional development and communities of learners, facilitation, and using data and evidence to achieve results–are reflected in the book, (2013). She designs and leads science and mathematics education program evaluation projects at the school, district, state, and national level, focusing on assessing the quality of professional development, and the relationship between teachers’ conceptual learning, changes in practice, and student learning. Katherine works with schools and districts to enhance student learning through the development of collaborative inquiry into data among staff as part of her work on the Using Data Project and as co-author of (2008). She was co-director of an NSF-funded project, Building Systems for Quality Teaching and Learning in Science, that resulted in the publication of professional development materials and a simulation board game on science education. The project extended the work of the seminal book on professional development that she co-authored, (2010). Prior to joining WestEd in 1995, Katherine worked at the National Science Resources Center in Washington, D.C., as a science curriculum developer and authored four curriculum units for the program.