STEMworks

The UTeach Institute

Impact

Teachers trained through UTeach programs have a strong impact on student performance in math and science. A study by the nonprofit CALDER Center at the American Institutes for Research (AIR) found that students of UTeach teachers learned more than similar students of other teachers. Researchers found that those differences amounted to the equivalent of between two to more than five months of extra learning each year (Backes, et. al., 2018). UTeach is increasing the number of undergraduate STEM majors who become teachers. During the same period when national teacher production declined by 20%, STEM teacher production at UTeach universities increased by 40%. Eighty-seven percent of STEM majors who participate in UTeach go on to teach and 87% of those teach for at least three years. Sixty-nine percent of graduates teach in high-needs schools (UTeach Institute, 2017). UTeach is further increasing the number of students who have access to high quality STEM instruction through in-service STEM teacher development. UTeach Computer Science, a College Board-endorsed provider, trains teachers to implement the UTeach Computer Science Principles curriculum. Underrepresented students taking the UTeach CS Principles course performed significantly better than national averages in 2017 (Marder, 2017). Backes, B., Goldhaber, D., Cade, W., Sullivan, K., & Dodson, M. (2018). Can UTeach? Assessing the relative effectiveness of STEM teachers. Economics of Education Review, 64, 184-198. Retrieved September 24, 2018 from https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S0272775717306969. UTeach Institute. (2017). UTeach Impact. Retrieved September 24, 2018 from https://institute.uteach.utexas.edu/sites/institute.uteach.utexas.edu/files/impact-report-september-2017.pdf. Marder, M. (2017). UTeach computer science principles and underrepresented students. The UTeach Institute. Retrieved September 24, 2018 from https://uteach.utexas.edu/sites/default/files/uteach-csp-underrepresented-students-tech-note.pdf

  • Target Audience
    • Teachers/Educational Leaders
  • Program Type
    • Curriculum/Instructional Materials
    • Teacher Development/Training
  • Location
    • Nationwide
  • Grade Level
    • K
    • 1
    • 2
    • 3
    • 4
    • 5
    • 6
    • 7
    • 8
    • 9
    • 10
    • 11
    • 12

Contact

Kimberly Hughes
Director

Email ProgramLaunch Website

Accomplished Program has been evaluated and meets the Design Principles for quality.

  • Need Accomplished
  • Evaluation Developing
  • Sustainability Accomplished
  • Replication & Scalability Accomplished
  • Partnerships Accomplished
  • Capacity Accomplished
  • Challenging & Relevant Content Accomplished
  • STEM Practices Accomplished
  • Inspiration Accomplished
  • Under-Represented Groups Accomplished

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The UTeach Institute works to increase the number, diversity, and academic achievement of students pursuing STEM disciplines and careers by increasing the number and diversity of high quality teachers.

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 (accomplished) across all Design Principles, or be Developing (developing) in a maximum of three areas.

Overarching Principles

  • Need Accomplished

    Identify and target a compelling and well-defined need.

  • Evaluation Developing

    Use rigorous evaluation to continuously measure and inform progress towards the compelling need identified.

  • Sustainability Accomplished

    Ensure work is sustainable.

  • Replication & Scalability Accomplished

    Demonstrate replicability and scalability.

  • Partnerships Accomplished

    Create high impact partnerships.

  • Capacity Accomplished

    Ensure organizational capacity to achieve goals.

STEM Principles

  • Challenging & Relevant Content Accomplished

    Offer challenging and relevant STEM content for the target audience.

  • STEM Practices Accomplished

    Incorporate and encourage STEM practices.

  • Inspiration Accomplished

    Inspire interest and engagement in STEM.

  • Under-Represented Groups Accomplished

    Identify and address the needs of under-represented groups.

Program Overview

The UTeach Institute works to prepare more STEM teachers who stay in teaching, effectively engage students in STEM disciplines, and improve academic achievement of students in STEM subjects. We accomplish this through pre-service teacher preparation, in-service teacher professional development, and STEM curriculum development. UTeach STEM teacher development and curricula are focused on research-based, inquiry- and project-based instructional approaches that engage all students in learning. The UTeach secondary STEM teacher preparation program is an innovative, university-based program that attracts and prepares STEM majors to become teachers through advanced, clinically-intensive preparation, and promotes professional retention through induction support and ongoing professional development. The UTeach Academy of Innovative Teaching and Learning provides in-service teacher professional development courses on topics including inquiry, project-based instruction, technology integration and blended learning, and the UTeach CS Principles high school course curriculum. In addition to providing direct STEM teacher development programming, the UTeach Institute serves as the hub for a vibrant national networked improvement community of more than 700 UTeach program faculty and staff and 4300 program alumni.

Funders and Partners

The UTeach Institute partners with the National Math and Science Initiative and the states of Texas, Tennessee, Georgia, Massachusetts, Florida, Maryland and Arkansas to replicate UTeach at universities across the country. A complete list of our strategic partners is available at http://uteach-institute.org/about/detail/partners/. The UTeach Institute is also a College Board-endorsed provider of AP CS Principles curriculum and teacher support.