The influence of informal science education professional development on teacher job satisfaction and self-efficacy

The purpose of this case study was to determine if there is an increase in third through eighth grade teacher job satisfaction and self-efficacy following participation in the informal science education STEM Science Teacher Residency (STaR) program held at a science center. Through this study, cohorts of third – eighth grade educators in Arizona’s Title I schools participated in focus groups with questions related to their self-efficacy and job satisfaction after completing modules in the STaR program at Arizona Science Center. Research Question 1 addressed teacher job satisfaction following participation in an informal science education professional development science teacher residency program. Participants identified several themes such as materials and resources, misconception based teaching strategies, and gaining confidence to implement as well as significant factors to increased job satisfaction. Through these themes, confidence surfaced in the focus group discussions indicating participants had higher job satisfaction after participating in STaR. Research Question 2 addressed specific components of an informal science education professional development science teacher residency program that led to increased job satisfaction. Educators shared that having the resources and coaching support from expert trainers made the content understandable and easier to implement. They felt more likely that with the ongoing support from the expert trainers and the opportunity to wear their “student hat” throughout the module they could navigate any questions students might have which in turn made them feel more satisfied in their teaching role. Through coaching support, educators were able to take the baseline strategies and competencies from the module(s) and use the tools provided to extend learning beyond the module topics by implementing best teaching practices in other courses in their classroom. Research Question 3 addressed teacher self-efficacy following participation in an informal science education professional development science teacher residency program. By participating in STaR, their self-efficacy increased because of the confidence educators gained to do their job more effectively. Research Question 4 addressed specific components of an informal science education professional development science teacher residency program that led to increased self-efficacy. Participants shared that being able to see how professional development could be hands-on and engaging influenced how they will seek out other learning opportunities. Although many could identify components they would seek out in future professional development, they were not confident they would find anything as comparable to their hands-on experiences in the Arizona Science Center STaR program that provided follow up coaching support as well as materials to implement lessons in their classroom right away. The findings of this study suggest that educators participating in an informal science education institution’s residency professional development program show an increase in their self-efficacy and job satisfaction. However, what appears to be unique about the findings is that it was not one component of the residency at the Arizona Science Center in isolation that contributed to the increase of job satisfaction or self-efficacy, but the components of the professional learning, the resources provided, networking, as well as the follow up support