New Jersey Center for Teaching and Learning’s Progressive Science Initiative and Progressive Mathematics Initiative
Impact
The New Jersey Center for Teaching and Learning (NJCTL) started in one school in New Jersey, and has successfully replicated its program model and now works with students, parents, teachers and administrators throughout the United States and around the world. Since launching in 2007: * NJCTL has become the #1 producer of U.S. physics teachers and a growing producer of chemistry, mathematics and computer science teachers. * NJCTL’s free, editable materials are used in New Jersey, across the United States, and in 186 countries. In 2019, more than 613,000 files were downloaded by 252,000 unique visitors to www.njctl.org. These materials are continuously improved and updated and consist of more than 270,000 SMART Notebook slides and 13,000 Word documents. * NJCTL has helped 381 teachers add a new endorsement over the last ten years, including 280 physics teachers, 87 chemistry teachers, 10 K-12 math teachers and 4 middle school math teachers. * Over 92% of teachers in NJCTL endorsement programs have passed the Praxis. * 95% of teachers completing an NJCTL online course or program reported that they would recommend it to another teacher. * Since NJCTL started producing physics teachers, NJ * Bergen County Technical High School – the school where PSI/PMI was initially developed — is ranked the #1 STEM high school in New Jersey and #13 out of over 14,000 high schools nationwide, while earning Newsweek’s distinction of “Overcoming the Odds” due to its share of underrepresented minorities and students in poverty.
Accomplished
- Need Accomplished
- Evaluation Accomplished
- Sustainability Developing
- Replication & Scalability Accomplished
- Partnerships Accomplished
- Capacity Accomplished
- Challenging & Relevant Content Accomplished
- STEM Practices Developing
- Inspiration Developing
- Under-Represented Groups Accomplished
My students love PSI. It challenges them and is appropriately scaffolded to their level. PSI is constructive in that it goes to the theory that ALL students can learn higher order subjects. Plus, it is easier for the teacher in that I don’t have to be a total content expert to successfully teach it.
Chemistry Teacher, Germantown High School, Germantown, TN
Design Principles
The programs in this database clear a high bar. STEMworks reviewed each program against the Design Principles for Effective STEM Philanthropy. Programs must be Accomplished (
) across all Design Principles, or be Developing (
) in a maximum of three areas.
Overarching Principles
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Need Accomplished
Identify and target a compelling and well-defined need.
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Evaluation Accomplished
Use rigorous evaluation to continuously measure and inform progress towards the compelling need identified.
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Sustainability Developing
Ensure work is sustainable.
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Replication & Scalability Accomplished
Demonstrate replicability and scalability.
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Partnerships Accomplished
Create high impact partnerships.
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Capacity Accomplished
Ensure organizational capacity to achieve goals.
STEM Principles
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Challenging & Relevant Content Accomplished
Offer challenging and relevant STEM content for the target audience.
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STEM Practices Developing
Incorporate and encourage STEM practices.
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Inspiration Developing
Inspire interest and engagement in STEM.
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Under-Represented Groups Accomplished
Identify and address the needs of under-represented groups.
Program Overview
The New Jersey Center for Teaching and Learning (NJCTL) is an independent, nonprofit charitable organization founded in 2007 by the New Jersey Education Association with the mission of empowering communities of educators and families to lead school improvement so that all children have access to a high-quality education. In 2020, NJCTL was licensed and duly authorized as a New Jersey Institution of Higher Education. Our flagship programs, the Progressive Science Initiative® (PSI®) and the Progressive Mathematics Initiative® (PMI®) utilize a scalable model that effectively integrates teacher training, free comprehensive course materials, and online, asynchronous courses for teachers and students. NJCTL directly addresses some of the most significant educational challenges by offering high-quality course content and pedagogy that transitions seamlessly between classroom and remote settings. It is the #1 producer of new physics teachers and a rapidly growing producer of chemistry, mathematics, and computer science teachers. It is also the leading producer and provider of free, editable K-14 STEM materials. PSI/PMI are aligned with Common Core State Standards (CCSS) mathematics, Next Generation Science Standards (NGSS) and College Board Advanced Placement mathematics and science. They are designed to be effective for all students, regardless of their academic background. PSI/PMI includes all the materials a teacher needs to teach a challenging STEM course including: course curricula; classwork and homework assignments; laboratory assignments; formative assessment questions; and summative assessments. NJCTL directly addresses the STEM teacher shortage by using its PSI/PMI curricula and pedagogy as the foundation of its endorsement/subject certification programs and standalone courses. They provide current teachers of overstaffed subject areas, with the content knowledge and training they need to transfer their teaching skills to much-needed STEM subjects. Filling staffing vacancies in key STEM domains provides more students equitable access to those subject areas. This is crucial preparation for students who wish to pursue STEM career paths.
Funders and Partners
New Jersey Education Association, Adams State University, Trenton Public School District, Egg Harbor City Public Schools, Wood-Ridge Public Schools, Lesotho Ministry of Education, Malawi Ministry of Education, The Ministry of Secondary and Basic Education – The Gambia