With only 11% of the current Science, Technology, Engineering, and Math (STEM) workforce being Black and Latino men and women, there is a crisis of underrepresented individuals in STEM fields. The construction of the Next Generation Science Standards (NGSS), and the mantra “all standards, all students,” represents an attempt to increase access to science for more students, and increase their self-efficacy about STEM subjects, as low self-efficacy is cited as one of the main causes of disinterest in STEM subjects. This study examined the relationship between students’ self-efficacy in STEM fields and their career interests, specifically in a population of Black and Latino youth. The study further analyzed self-efficacy and STEM interest between two groups of middle school students, those engaged with the Next Generation Science Standards (NGSS) and those with traditional instruction. The Student Attitudes Towards STEM survey was distributed to 580 students to collect quantitative data on student self-efficacy in STEM and their attitudes towards varied STEM careers. Statistical analysis (correlation) determined a significant (p < 0.01) moderate correlation between students’ self-efficacy and STEM career interest. Statistical analysis (independent samples t-test) also determined there was no statistical difference between the two student groups. This study offers insights into the implementation of the standards, suggestions for future research around science programs in schools, and a call to action for all schools to offer science courses to all students from kindergarten to 12th grade to increase interest in STEM fields for future careers and life outside the classroom.

Outdoor School is a cherished educational tradition in the Portland, OR region. This program's success is attributed to its presumed ability to positively impact affective and cognitive student outcomes. Residential programs such as Outdoor School are considered to be an important supplement to the classroom model of learning because they offer an authentic, contextually rich learning environment. References to relevant literature support the idea that student gains in affective and cognitive domains occur as a result of the multi-sensory, enjoyable, hands-on nature of outdoor learning. The sample population for this study was 115 sixth graders from a demographically diverse Portland, OR school district. This study used an instrument developed by the Common Measures System that was administered to students as part of Outdoor School's professional and program development project. The affective student outcome data measured by the Common Measures instrument was complemented by a formative assessment probe ascertaining prior knowledge of the definition of plants and field notes detailing Field Study instructor lesson content. This first part of this study examined the changes that take place in students' attitudes toward science as a result of attending Outdoor School. The second part took a look at how Outdoor School instruction in the Plants field study aligned with NGSS MS-LS Disciplinary Core Ideas and Practices. The third section of the study compared how Outdoor School instruction in the Plants Field Study and students' prior knowledge of what defines a plant aligned with NGSS MS-LS DCIs. The intent of the research was to arrive at a more nuanced understanding of how students' attitudes toward science are influenced by participating in an outdoor education program and contribute to the development of a continuum between classroom and outdoor school learning using Next Generation Science Standards Disciplinary Core Ideas and Practices as a framework. Results of this study were intended to inform outdoor education program development, add to the existing body of research, and inform future research projects.

The state of Oregon has adopted the Next Generation Science Standards as well as the English Language Proficiency standards, both of which affect elementary school teachers. These standards adoptions challenge teachers and professional developers to rethink how they approach science conceptual understanding and language acquisition. The Math Science Partnership K-6 Instructional Specialist Grant made the decision to incorporate a Task Analysis process, which asks the participant to analyze the demands of a content-based task in the domains of content knowledge, analytical skills and language, into six eight-week summer courses focused on the Next Generation Science Standards. A pre and post-assessment was created to determine if any growth in teacher understanding of the demands of a science task could be observed as a result of engaging in the Task Analysis process. A four point rubric was created to score participant responses. Two research questions were developed: 1. How well does the ELPA21 Task Analysis tool help participants understand the language demands of a science task when used as part of an NGSS summer professional development course? 2. How effective is a work sample and scoring rubric protocol for measuring the impact of the Task Analysis process? Participants showed statistically significant growth in their analysis of a science task from pre to post-assessment responses, with particularly strong growth demonstrated in the domains of content and language. Further coding of responses revealed that participants frequently discussed vocabulary as both a language and content knowledge demand of a science task.

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