Adoption Revisited: Decision-making and School District Policy

This chapter shares a brief history of the STEM to STEAM movement, shares two case descriptions drawn from the perspectives of leaders in two school districts in which schools adopted a STEAM focus, describes challenges and opportunities associated with implementation of a STEAM initiative, and proposes five features to consider when implementing models to becoming a STEAM-focused school or school district. The five features drawn from analysis of the two cases are intentional efforts by school districts to gain buy-in; adequate time for teacher learning and planning through authentic and relevant professional development; community connections, real-world and problem-based or project-based; mutual decision-making and support between teachers and administrators; and budget planning and allocation.

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“I Don’t Want to Come Off as Pushing an Agenda”: How Contexts Shaped Teachers’ Pedagogy in the Days After the 2016 U.S. Presidential Election

American Educational Research Journal ◽

10.3102/0002831218794892 ◽

2018 ◽

Vol 56 (2) ◽

pp. 444-476 ◽

Cited By ~ 10

Author(s):

Alyssa Hadley Dunn ◽

Beth Sondel ◽

Hannah Carson Baggett

Keyword(s):

Decision Making ◽

Teacher Education ◽

School District ◽

Presidential Election ◽

Curriculum And Instruction ◽

Education Practice ◽

The Public ◽

Current Climate ◽

To Come

Guided by perspectives on the sociopolitical contexts of schooling, control of teachers’ curriculum and instruction, and teaching of elections, we use findings from a national questionnaire to explore the contexts that shaped teachers’ pedagogical decision making following the 2016 U.S. presidential election. Our findings reveal that classroom, school, district, state, and national contexts often manifested in pressure from colleagues, parents, the administration, the district, and the public. This pressure is reflective of the lack of trust, autonomy, and professionalism for teachers in our current climate. The days immediately following the election revealed new understandings about teachers’ views on neutrality, opportunities for agency within control of teachers’ work, and a call for justice-oriented pedagogy. Implications for teacher education, practice, and research are discussed.

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