Brainstorming a Science "Road Map" by Abbey Filiault
Summer 2021 has looked quite different for TRRE without a new cohort of residents entering the program. Instead of placing incoming residents in their community internships and beginning coursework, TRRE turned its focus to enhance frameworks of support for graduates and partner schools. Two new initiatives for school district partners further TRRE’s goals: the Rural Teacher Mentor Network will promote cross-district professional collaboration in teacher leadership and the Collaborative for Equitable and Inclusive Practices in Schools aims to integrate equitable and inclusive practices centered around Universal Design for Learning and Collaborative Proactive Solutions. TRRE also planted seeds to further develop several activities that benefit program graduates focused on curriculum coaching, classroom climate and culture, and networking opportunities to support TRRE graduates as new teachers.
TRRE graduates will have opportunity to participate in monthly special interest group meetings remotely with topics determined by personal conversations and surveys conducted over the summer. Three topics requested included: mathematics curriculum implementation, classroom climate and culture and STEM curriculum development. The mathematics curriculum implementation network support will be led by a NH school district math specialist in collaboration with TRRE faculty. A focus on supporting classroom, climate and culture will continue. TRRE engaged the expertise of educational consultant, Mike Anderson, to support teachers with tools to establish a positive classroom climate, methods to boost student learning, motivation and achievement, and coaching TRRE graduates to pace themselves in ways that maintain energy and enthusiasm for teaching. The third special interest group, STEM curriculum development, will meet as a subset of activities planned within a larger TRRE-WMSI initiative.
The TRRE-WMSI science initiative began this summer cultivating an innovative and ongoing network of educators and resources dedicated to supporting and sharing approaches for STEM curriculum design and instruction. As a complement to the STEM Inquiry course offered by UNH Extension to TRRE graduates, the WMSI-TRRE science initiative will offer personalized network support and coaching. The initiative arose out of a desire to create professional development experiences for TRRE graduates and colleagues, and to provide resources designed to develop meaningful inquiry based/project-based science lessons for students at all grade levels. WMSI will facilitate ways for participants to share and learn from colleagues, content area experts, community-based coaches, WMSI staff, and TRRE faculty.
On Tuesday, July 13th, TRRE graduates and several teachers from our partner schools, gathered at the Mountain View Grand Resort & Spa in Whitefield, NH, for a kickoff event. Working with WMSI and TRRE faculty and advisors, attendees from across the state shared goals and needs from their districts to begin planning next steps for a sustained structure of STEM support and networking throughout the school year. Educators left energized and reinvigorated, with the knowledge that they could lean on each other for inspiration and growth. Subsequent follow up with interested participants, demonstrates the need for collegial support across districts and the potential of networking.
TRRE’s continued work with community partners such as White Mountain Science Institute Inc. (WMSI), North Country Education Services (NCES), Lives in the Balance, educational consultants and rural school district partners combines resources and expertise with the intent to build sustainable networks for teacher support across districts, provide ongoing professional development for educators in the region and to foster teacher leadership in rural New Hampshire.
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