- Year 2024
- NSF Award #2243461
- Registration Noyce Scholar/Teaching Fellow/Master Teacher
- Role Master Teaching Fellow
- First Name Justin
- Last Name Leonard
- Discipline STEM Education (general)
- Institution Towson University
Abstract
Teacher leaders influence their peers by introducing innovative instructional methods and enhancing teaching quality. They have proven invaluable as they prioritize comprehensive teacher development, bolster teacher effectiveness, and promote teacher retention. Competent STEM teacher leaders of color are critical to building interest in STEM content areas among students from diverse backgrounds. By doing so, we can increase the interest and academic performance of students of color in STEM to obtain diversity in the workforce. STEM teacher leaders of color can be instrumental in developing and retaining STEM teachers of color and developing their colleagues’ cultural responsiveness. However, how to best develop teacher leaders is still being understood. Blondonville-Ford et al. (2023) ascertained the interplay between race, self-efficacy, agency, the teacher leader’s role within the school, and values in forecasting STEM teacher leadership identity. It yielded significant, positive, and meaningful relations between the variables. These findings can enhance various facets of STEM education, including STEM education programs, and teacher training, and support the need for creating a pipeline for Urban STEM teacher leaders. As a Master Teacher Fellow, the themes of teacher leadership, equity, and social justice are woven into the first course. I will reflect on how this first semester of this five-year project impacted my views and beliefs on these themes.
Focus
Developing teacher leaders
