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The need for high-quality professional development programs in mathematics and sdence has become increasingly important in the current climate of educational reform.1 According to Blank, Alas, and Smith, the success of standards-based reforms in education "requires teachers to have deep knowledge of their subject and the pedagogy that is most effective for teaching the subject."1 The Western Wisconsin STEM (science, technology, engineering, and mathematics) Consortia project - SySTEMically Improving Student Academic Achievement in Mathematics and Science - provided professional development for 60 K-12 teachers from nine different school districts in western Wisconsin. The project was funded by a Math and Science Partnership Grant from the Wisconsin Department of Public Instruction.
The purpose of the Western Wisconsin STEM Consortia project (Figure 1) was to improve student academic achievement in mathematics and science by:
* Providing professional development in mathematics and science content knowledge.
* Providing professional development in evidencebased pedagogical practices.
* Developing integrated STEM curriculum projects related to career clusters.
* Aligning STEM curriculum projects with mathematics and science standards.
* Building strong, collaborative relationships among K-12, higher education, and business partners.
The 2010 Summer STEM Academy focused on ecosystems and the interdependence of organisms (Wisconsin Model Academic Standards E 12.7 and F.12.8), scientific inquiry (Wisconsin Model Academic Standard C), and statistics and probability (Common Core Standards S-CP and S-MD).2 It also addressed effective pedagogical strategies in mathematics and science, including contextual teaching, problem-based learning, project-based learning, and inquiry-based learning.
The teachers who participated in this professional development project included 20 elementary teachers (33.3 percent), 16 secondary math teachers (26.6 percent), 11 secondary science teachers (18.3 percent), 11 secondary career and technical education teachers (18.3 percent), one secondary math and science teacher (1.6 percent), and one special education teacher (1.6 percent). The sample of teachers was predominately female (66.6 percent) and Caucasian (100 percent), which reflects the teaching force in the state of Wisconsin. The ages varied, with 10 teachers ages 20 to 29 (16.6 percent), 16 teachers ages 30 to 39 (26.6 percent), 24 teachers ages 40 to 49 (40 percent), and 10 teachers ages 50 or above (16.6 percent). Likewise, the number of years of teaching experience varied, including two teachers with zero to two years (3.3 percent), eight teachers with three to...