IDEAS
By Kate Hahn MBA ’11 Noyce Scholars trained in math and science education
It’s a big year for the St. Edward’s Robert Noyce Teacher Scholarship Program — a National Science Foundation grant program with a local partnership among St. Edward’s, Austin Community College and the Austin Independent School District. In addition to selecting Kim Abbott ’10, Kaila Pavelka ’12 and Erica Valdez ’12 as its first three scholars, the program recently received $147,479 in additional funding for a total National Science Foundation grant of $885,044. The program seeks to encourage talented science, technology, engineering and mathematics students to become grade 6–12 math and science teachers. Noyce Scholars receive up to $30,000 of scholarship money, guaranteed job placement in a high-need AISD classroom and mentoring from teaching professionals. Math and science majors at ACC and St. Edward’s are eligible to apply. Additional funds are used for conference funding, equipment and field guides. The program now also includes a one-week camp for graduates between their student teaching and their first job to get help building curriculum. And Assistant Professor of Education Steven Fletcher, project director, is conducting a grant-funded five-year study on the development of good math and science teachers. This summer, Fletcher and ACC faculty members took Noyce Scholars to a wilderness preserve for practical field experience. They taught Crockett High School students about water quality, getting a taste of what it’s like to teach experiential lessons outdoors and on the move. The scholars will get further in-the-field experience as part of their regular curriculum. Since last year, secondary education majors have completed their teacher prep coursework and their student teaching fieldwork all in one place: on-site at Austin-area schools. Fletcher says this innovative blending of classroom learning and firsthand experience reinforces their development as teachers. “Our students spend quality time applying newly formed ideas of how to teach in middle and high school classrooms early and often so that they’re prepared for that first day of their career,” he says.
This summer, Noyce Scholar Program Director Steven Fletcher and ACC faculty members took Noyce Scholars to a wilderness preserve to get firsthand experience teaching high schoolers.
Courtesy of Steven Fletcher
8 St. Edward’s University
Scholar Snapshots
The first Noyce Scholars, left to right: Kim Abbott, Erica Valdez and Kaila Pavelka
Kim Abbott ’10 Major: Math Teaching aspiration: High school math “My Noyce experiences have given me the confidence to stand in front of a class in silence and allow time for everyone to work on problems and participate.” Kaila Pavelka ’12 Major: Biochemistry Teaching aspiration: High school chemistry “Being a Noyce Scholar is easing me into the classroom. I’m learning how to get students to think through hands-on, tactile learning.” Erica Valdez ’12 Major: Biology Teaching aspiration: Middle school science “I never wanted to be a teacher, but being a Noyce Scholar is opening my eyes to an opportunity I had never thought about before.”
“This program will place highly qualified teachers in high-need classrooms.” — Assistant Professor of Education Steven Fletcher