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In The News

GK-12 in China:
Five GK-12 fellows and five
GK-12 middle school teachers
will spend a week working on
science inquiry with the
Jiangsu Institute of Education
and a local K-12 school. Each
fellow will undertake
collaborative research in a
Chinese university for at
least 2 weeks. Check out
blogs written by a teacher
and a staff member and read
a short synopsis of the trip.

This web site received the
NSF GK-12 Web Site
Award for Promoting and
Disseminating GK-12
at its annual meeting in
Washington, D.C. in
March 2008.

Evaluation for the GK-12 Project

The evaluation of the GK-12 project is based around a logic model, which outlines the project goals and outcomes and what will be done to achieve them. The variables associated with the impact of broad project activities will be evaluated using a quasi-experimental design that will be administered to selected students by pretests and posttests. Qualitative data will be collected in the form of focus group feedback, student projects, and other artifacts. Concept maps will also be used enhance and evaluate students’ learning of STEM content knowledge.

Evaluation and assessment will be based on the four main project goals:

• Enhance the quality of STEM education for middle school students (MSS).
  A quasi-experimental pretest-posttest design will be used to examine the impact of broad project activities on STEM content knowledge and STEM interest for selected students who participate in the GK-12 initiative compared to a matched sample of students who do not receive this program. Qualitative data in the form of interviews, student projects, and other artifacts will supplement the quantitative analysis to provide a deeper understanding of the student experience.
  
• Provide training and mentoring for graduate student fellows.
  Variables of interest are knowledge of pedagogy, understanding of complex learning environments, better understanding of scientific inquiry, and personal confidence in the classroom and ability to ask and answer questions related to STEM learning. These variables will be evaluated using structured interview, online discussion, observation by faculty mentors, and feedback from participating middle school teachers and students. Product evaluation will involve analysis of learning modules and course-related artifacts.
  
• Provide professional development for middle school teachers.
  Variables such as teacher attitudes, STEM content knowledge, and instructional pedagogy will be measured through classroom observations, teacher interviews, teacher surveys, and assessment of teacher content knowledge. Online discussion during the course of the project will also provide an overview of development and impact of various project components.
  
• Foster partnerships between university and school corporations.
  Purdue project management team and the middle school leadership and teachers will respond to an open-ended questionnaire each semester to determine progress toward promoting stronger partnerships. These data will be used for formative purposes to determine a need for project refocusing or readjustments.
  Goals will also be evaluated through activities related to: teacher support, graduate fellow support, access to instructional alternatives, availability of innovative curricular materials, and idea exchange. Data describing frequency of use, perceptions of value of support, and suggestions for further classroom and professional development enhances will be collected.

List of assessment materials:

Graduate Fellow Information Form
Teacher Information Form
Student Information Form
Two Pre/Post Science Concept Maps
Pre/Post Draw-a-scientist activity
Graduate Fellow Pre/Post Program Survey
Teacher Pre/Post Program Survey
Teaching Practice Survey
Post Graduate Fellow Interview
Post Teacher Interview
Classroom Observation


If you would like a copy of the assessment materials please contact us