Empowering Principals to Lead Project-Based Learning with Students Historically Underrepresented in STEM

Main Article Content

H. Frank McKay
https://orcid.org/0000-0002-4008-1031

Abstract

Education thought leaders highlight the need to expand access to high-quality STEM learning for students historically underrepresented in STEM fields, and project-based learning (PjBL) is often seen as a key strategy. Introducing PjBL to classrooms typically focuses on building teacher capacity, but principals also play a key role in effective implementation. This paper describes findings from an action research study that investigated ways to help school leaders learn to support PjBL in ten mid-high poverty schools as part of a federally funded grant to increase access to STEM for underrepresented students. Findings highlight the need to (a) help principals understand how PjBL can support learning needs by observing implementation with similar student populations, (b) provide principals with a variety of targeted learning opportunities to learn how to support implementation, (c) consider school context when planning PjBL support, and (d) ensure plans for PjBL implementation are aligned with systemwide goals.

Article Details

Section
2024 Special Issue: Designing for Equity within Problem-Based and Project-Based Learning

References

Anderson, B. N., Coleman-King, C., Wallace, K., & Harper, F. K. (2022). Advancing critical and culturally relevant experiential learning: Preparing future educators in collaboration with cooperating teachers to support STEM engagement in urban schools. Urban Review, 54(5), 649–673. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11256-021-00633-y

Aydeniz, M., & Southerland, S. A. (2012). A national survey of middle and high school science teachers’ responses to standardized testing: Is science being devalued in schools? Journal of Science Teacher Education, 23(3), 233–257.

Baines, A.M., DeBarger, A., De Vivo, K., Warner, N., Santos, S., Brinkman, J., Udall, D., Zuckerbrod, N., Felsen, K., & Urban, R. (2021a). Key principles for project-based learning. Lucas Education Research.

Baines, A.M., De Vivo, K., Warner, N., DeBarger, A., Udall, D., Zuckerbrod, N., & Felsen, K. (2021b). Why social and emotional learning is essential to project-based learning. Lucas Education Research.

Bitter, C., Taylor, J., Zeiser, K., & Rickles, J. (2014). Providing opportunities for deeper learning. American Institutes for Research.

Brown, K. M. (2004). Leadership for social justice and equity: Weaving a transformative framework and pedagogy. Educational Administration Quarterly, 40(1), 77–108.

Capraro, R. M., Capraro, M. M., Scheurich, J. J., Jones, M., Morgan, J., Huggins, K. S., Corlu, M. S., Younes, R., & Han, S. (2016). Impact of sustained professional development in STEM on outcome measures in a diverse urban district. The Journal of Educational Research, 109(2), 181–196.

Cator, K., Lathram, B., Schneider, C., & Vander Ark, T. (2015). Preparing leaders for deeper learning. Getting Smart. https://www.gettingsmart.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/05/Preparing-Leaders-for-Deeper-Learning-FINAL.pdf

Committee on STEM Education of the National Science & Technology Council. (2018, December). Charting a course for success: America’s strategy for STEM education. United States Government. https://trumpwhitehouse.archives.gov/wp-content/uploads/2018/12/STEM-Education-Strategic-Plan-2018.pdf

Condliffe, B., Visher, M. G., Bangser, M. R., Drohojowska, S., & Saco, L. (2017). Project-based learning: A literature review. MDRC.

De Vivo, K. (2022). A new research base for rigorous project-based learning. Phi Delta Kappan, 103(5), 36-41. https://doi.org/10.1177/00317217221079977

Deutscher, R.R., Holthuis, N.C., Maldonado, S.I., Pecheone, R.L., Schultz, S.E., Wei, R.C., & Lucas Education Research. (2021). Project-based learning leads to gains in science and other subjects in middle school and benefits all learners. Lucas Education Research.

Dole, S., Bloom, L., & Kowalske, K. (2016). Transforming pedagogy: Changing perspectives from teacher-centered to learner-centered. Interdisciplinary Journal of Problem-Based Learning, 10(1), 1–14.

Duke, N. D., Halvorsen, A-L., Strachan, S. L., Kim, J., & Konstantopoulos, S. (2020). Putting PBL to the test: The impact of project-based learning on second-grade students’ social studies and literacy learning and motivation. American Educational Research Journal, 58(1), 160–200.

English, M. C. (2013, April). The role of newly prepared PBL teachers’ motivational beliefs and perceptions of school conditions in their PBL implementation. American Educational Research Association 2013 Annual Meeting. Paper presented at the Annual Meeting of the American Educational Research Association, San Francisco.

Grissom, J. A., Egalite, A. J., & Lindsay, C.A. (2021). How principals affect students and schools: A systematic synthesis of two decades of research. The Wallace Foundation. http://www.wallacefoundation.org/principalsynthesis

Haberman, M. (2010). The pedagogy of poverty versus good teaching. Phi Delta Kappan, 92(2), 81–87. 10.1177/003172171009200223 (Reprinted from “The pedagogy of poverty versus good teaching,” 1991, Phi Delta Kappan, 73(4), 290–294, http://ed618.pbworks.com/f/ Habermann,+M.+Pedagogy+of+Poverty.pdf)

Harris, C. J., Penuel, W. R., D'Angelo, C. M., DeBarger, A. H., Gallagher, L. P., Kennedy, C. A., Cheng, B. H., & Krajcik, J. S. (2015). Impact of project‐based curriculum materials on student learning in science: Results of a randomized controlled trial. Journal of Research in Science Teaching, 52(10), 1362-1385. https://doi.org/10.1002/tea.21263

Hammond, Z. (2021). Liberatory education: Integrating the science of learning and culturally responsive practice. American Educator, 45(2), 4–11. www.aft.com/summer2021/hammond

Hanushek, E., Light, J., Peterson, P., Talpey, L., Woessmann, L. (2022). Long-run trends in the U.S. SES-achievement gap. Education Finance and Policy. doi: https://doi.org/10.1162/edfp_a_00383

Herr, K., & Anderson, G. L. (2015). The action research dissertation: A guide for students and faculty. SAGE.

Holmes, A. (2020). Researcher positionality: A consideration of its influence and place in qualitative research - a new researcher guide. Shanlax International Journal of Education, 8(4), 1-10. doi.org/10.34293/ education.v8i4.3232

Hout, M. S. S. (2012). Do high-stakes tests improve learning? Issues in Science & Technology, 29(1), 33–38.

Jennings, J., & Sohn, H. (2014). Measure for measure: How proficiency-based accountability systems affect inequality in academic achievement. Sociology of Education (2), 125. doi: 10.1177/0038040714525787

Jensen, E. (2009). Teaching with poverty in mind: What being poor does to kids’ brains and what schools can do about it. Association for Supervision and Curriculum Development.

Johnson, A. D., Clegorne, N., Croft, S. J., & Ford, A. Y. (2021). The professional learning needs of school principals. Journal of Research on Leadership Education, 16(4), 305–338. https://doi.org/10.1177/1942775120933933

Knapp, M. S., Shields, P. M., & Turnbull, B. J. (1995). Academic challenge in high-poverty classrooms. Phi Delta Kappan, 76(10), 770–776.

Knecht, D. R. (2019). Coherent schools, powerful learning: When shared beliefs fuse school culture, structures, and instruction. Schools, 16(1), 25–48.

Krajcik, J., Schneider, B., Miller, E., Chen, I.C., Bradford, L., Bartz, K., Baker, Q., Palincsar, A., Peek-Brown, D., Codere, S., & Lucas Education Research. (2021). Projectt-based learning increases science achievement in elementary schools and improves social and emotional learning. Lucas Education Research.

Krajcik, J., Schneider, B., Miller, E. A., Chen, I. C., Bradford, L., Baker, Q., Bartz, K., Miller, C., Li, T., Codere, S., & Peek-Brown, D. (2023). Assessing the effect of project-based learning on science learning in elementary schools. American Educational Research Journal, 60(1), 70-102. https://doi.org/10.3102/00028312221129247

Leithwood, K., Seashore, K., Anderson, S., & Wahlstrom, K. (2004). Review of research: How leadership influences student learning. Wallace Foundation: New York, NY.

Mergendoller, J. (2018). Defining high quality PBL: A look at the research. Buck Institute for Education. https://hqpbl.org/wp-content/uploads/2018/04/Defining-High-Quality-PjBL-A-Look-at-the-Research-.pdf

Miles, M. B., Huberman, A. M., & Saldaña, J. (2020). Qualitative data analysis: A methods sourcebook (4th ed.). SAGE Publications.

Noguera, P., Darling-Hammond, L., & Friedlaender, D. (2015). Equal opportunity for deeper learning. Jobs for the Future. https://edpolicy.stanford.edu/sites/default/files/publications/jff-report-equal-opportunity-deeper-learning.pdf

Noguera, P. (2017) Taking deeper learning to scale. Palo Alto, CA: Learning Policy Institute.

Okilwa, N., & Barnett, B. (2017). Sustaining school improvement in a high-need school. Journal of Educational Administration, 55(3), 297–315.

Odell, M. R., Kennedy, T. J., & Stocks, E. (2019). The impact of PBL as a STEM school reform model. Interdisciplinary Journal of Problem-Based Learning, 13(2).

Reason, P., & Bradbury, H. (Eds.). (2008). Handbook of action research: Participative inquiry and practice. SAGE.

Riordan, M., Klein, E. J., & Gaynor, C. (2019). Teaching for equity and deeper learning: How does professional learning transfer to teachers’ practice and influence students’ experiences? Equity & Excellence in Education, 52(2-3), 327-345. https://doi.org/10.1080/10665684.2019.1647808

Saavedra, A. R., Rapaport, A. (2024). Key lessons from research about project-based teaching and learning. Kappan. DOI: 10.1177/00317217241230780

St. Pierre, E. A., & Jackson, A. Y. (2014). Qualitative data analysis after coding. Qualitative Inquiry, 20(6), 715-719. https://doi.org/10.1177/1077800414532435

Stringer, E. T. (2014). Action research. SAGE.

Zavadsky, H. (2016). Bringing effective instructional practice to scale in American schools: Lessons from the Long Beach Unified School District. Journal of Educational Change, 17(4), 505–527.

Zeiser, K., Taylor, J., Rickles, J., Garet, M. S., & Segeritz, M. (2014). Evidence of deeper learning outcomes. American Institutes for Research.

Zepeda, S., Parylo, O., & Bengston, E. (2014). Analyzing principal professional development practices through the lens of adult learning theory. Professional Development in Education, 40(2), 295–315. doi:10.1080/19415257.2013.821667