Summer Research and Collaborative Professional Development Experience for NSF RET Teachers in Advanced Manufacturing and Materials

The current collaborative National Science Foundation Research Experience for Teachers (NSF-RET) site placed seventeen in-service and pre-service teachers with research mentors at one of the three regional universities WSU, CSU, and UD to work on engineering research projects. These research projects were chosen in such a way so that they were relevant to regional strengths in advanced manufacturing and materials. In addition to research, the RET teachers participated in various professional development (PD) activities such as “boot camp” facilitated by ASM Materials Education Foundation prior to the start of their research experience, field trips, seminars given by guest speakers and group work that produced K-12 curriculum related to the teams’ research experience. The teacher groups also presented the developed STEM curriculum and the final laboratory project results, and provided regular guided reflections regarding their efforts during the six-week program. This paper presents a brief overview of the collaborative RET project and details the achievement during the first project year. Emphasis is given to the collaborative PD activities of all seventeen teachers and the research projects performed by the two WSU RET groups comprised of four in-service and two pre-service teachers