IMPROVING ELEMENTARY GEOSCIENCE EDUCATION IN MONTANA: THE BIG SKY SCIENCE PARTNERSHIP TEACHER PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT PROGRAM

The Big Sky Science Partnership (BSSP) is an NSF Math and Science Partnership program that partners K-8 schools, tribal communities and Montana universities in order to strengthen elementary science teaching in Montana. A unique component of the BSSP is its mission to develop and promote Native American cultural competency among science teachers and their classrooms. The BSSP professional learning community consists of teachers and tribal members from the Flathead, Northern Cheyenne, and Crow Reservation and Missoula area K-8 schools, STEM and Science Education faculty from Salish Kootenai College, the University of Montana and Montana State University. The geosciences is one of three STEM focus areas within the 5-year program and each of two cohorts of teachers recruited completes a year-long program of study in the geosciences. The other two core content areas are astronomy and physics. The BSSP, now in year 5 of its funding, has delivered summer institutes in the geosciences for each cohort of teachers (in 2007 and 2010). Teachers also complete an academic year course with 8 days of on-site meetings as well as an online component. The 2010 Missoula area summer institute was led by a team of instructors including IHE faculty, an in-service middle school science teacher, and a former high school Earth Science teacher. The goals of the institute were to improve teachers’ geoscience content knowledge, improve science pedagogy skills, improve their ability to support diverse student populations, and to develop leadership skills. Summer institute topics were aligned with district science education standards. Topics were taught modeling reform-based pedagogical methods. Field trips were an important component of the summer institute and were integrated with the classroom-based activities. Tribal members visited the institute to share the Native American perspective on science topics and place histories. Teachers also completed a 3-day culture camp where they learn about Native American culture and traditions. Missoula area teachers showed a marked improvement on pre- and post-tests covering geoscience content with a ~30% increase in test scores. Through its current and ongoing activities, the BSSP has shown significant and sustainable increases in science pedagogical and content elements in Montana classrooms.