Research Projects

Fostering Systems Thinking in High School Environmental Engineering through Engagement of Coastal Communities (NSF DRK12 2023 – 2026) – PI: R.Santagata; co-PIs: Hosun Kang (UCI), Jennifer Long (UCI), Sara Ludovise (Orange County Department of Education)

Project CoAST is an innovative research study focused on developing a high school environmental engineering curriculum that addresses the challenges posed by climate change. The curriculum follows a model-validate-iterate design paradigm, where students model dynamic real-world systems, validate their models using data, and create multiple iterations to explore changes in the system over time. The project aims to cultivate a new generation of environmental engineers who possess the necessary skills to analyze complex systems, collaborate with diverse communities, and develop creative solutions. By integrating systems thinking (ST) and critical science agency (CSA), the curriculum will bridge the gap between classroom learning and real-world applications. Through collaborative efforts with students–largely from minoritized backgrounds–, teachers, and community partners, the project will create an engaging and participatory STEM learning experience. The outcomes of this project will contribute to the national interest by preparing students for environmental engineering careers and empowering them to address climate change-related challenges with creativity, effectiveness, equity, and justice.

 

“Equity-Centered Design of Conversational Agents for Inclusive Science Communication Education in High Schools” (NSF ITEST 2023 – 2026) – PI: R. Santagata; co-PIs: Ha Nguyen (Utah State) and Sara Ludovise (Orange County Department of Education)

Science communication, defined as the ability to communicate scientific concepts and discoveries to broad audiences, is an important scientific literacy skill. It can promote public efforts to protect the biodiversity and livelihood of communities around the world. Yet, K-12 students have limited opportunities to engage in inclusive science communication approaches that incorporate their lived experiences and account for the diverse socioeconomic, language, and cultural backgrounds of potential audiences. This project will engage 90 high school students (grades 9-11) from predominantly Latinx, Title I schools in Orange County, California, in an AI-guided science curriculum

for learning and practicing inclusive science communication and marine biodiversity. Students will interact with conversational agents that represent different community perspectives around the local marine ecosystems. They will also collaborate with peers to train and create their own conversational agents to share views on marine conservation. Project activities aim to offer meaningful engagement to deepen students’ understanding of science communication, AI literacy, and interest in careers in AI and broader science fields. This project is funded by the Innovative Technology Experiences for Students and Teachers (ITEST) program, which supports projects that build understandings of practices, program elements, contexts and processes contributing to increasing students’ knowledge and interest in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) and information and communication technology (ICT) careers.

Reducing Inequalities in Opportunities to Learn Mathematics through Adaptive Teacher Professional Development (WT Grant Foundation 2022 – 2025) – PI: R. Santagata; Co-PI: A. Villavicencio

Studies of math instruction in schools serving low-income students of color have repeatedly documented the lack of opportunities for children to engage in rigorous mathematics as sense makers and problem solvers. Math lessons are instead characterized by rote memorization, highly procedural teaching, overly controlling classroom interaction routines, deficit-based assessments, and content that is disconnected from children’s home lives. Research on children’s development of mathematics understanding and on asset-based, culturally responsive mathematics teaching offers promising directions for reducing inequalities in Latinx students’ opportunities to learn. This study will integrate cognitive and cultural aspects of mathematics learning to co-design with teachers and family/community members a teacher professional development (PD) program that is adaptive to school local contexts. Findings related to teacher vision of high-quality instruction, their views of Latinx students’ capabilities, equitable dimensions of their instruction and student experiences and learning will highlight aspects of the PD design as well as interplays with school/district practices and policies that support or hinder program success, thus advancing research on the role of teacher PD on reducing inequalities in Latinx students’ opportunities to learn.

Noticing in Mathematics for Student Success (NIMSS) (NSF IUSE 2021-2024) – PI: R. Santagata; Co-PIs: A. Pantano & R. Pelayo

Large percentages of undergraduate students fail proof-transition courses and, as a consequence, leave the mathematics major. The notable increase in content difficulty, coupled with the transition from computational to proof-based mathematics, turn these courses into juncture points that determine whether students will pursue studies and careers in STEM. This issue affects students from under-represented groups disproportionately. This project draws on extensive research evidence in K-12 mathematics education to design an innovative professional development curriculum centered on teacher noticing. Noticing entails attending to student mathematical thinking and positioning in the classroom, responding strategically and appropriately, and improving both learning and sense of belonging. This project will provide novel and important findings about adaptation of the noticing construct to the higher education setting. Through a design-based research approach, the project interdisciplinary team will engage in three phases of research (exploratory, early implementation, and efficacy study) to design and rigorously test, through multiple cycles of revisions, the curriculum for its impact on instructional teams’ knowledge, noticing competencies, and instructional quality, and on their student learning. Findings will be shared via publications and conference presentations, and the curriculum will be made freely available to other institutions, including those serving large percentages of under-represented students.

 

Learning to Learn from Mathematics Teaching (NSF Career grant, 2010-2016)

Project website: http://faculty.sites.uci.edu/learningfromteaching/

This project investigates through a mixed-methods design (experiment and case studies) the effects of a curriculum targeting pre-service elementary teachers’ knowledge and skills for learning from analysis and reflection on teaching. The study is longitudinal in nature; it follows participants during the credential program and into the first three years of teaching. Measures include ability to productively analyze teaching, teach for understanding, and engage in professional activities devoted to the improvement of instructional practices.

 

Video as a Tool for Teacher Learning and Professional Growth (ongoing)

This research investigates the use of video as a tool for teacher learning and to capture teacher knowledge of mathematics teaching. Specifically, the ability to analyze videotaped classroom lessons is studied in both pre-service and in-service teacher populations. In addition, lesson analysis abilities are studied in conjunction with quality of teaching practices and effects on student learning.

 

Project CRYSTAL (Cultivating and Researching Youth Systems Thinking through Authentic Learning); (Nicholas Endowment, 2014- 2016).

Project Website: http://faculty.sites.uci.edu/informalscience/

In Project CRYSTAL, 4th-6th-grade students from Orange County schools work closely with students and faculty from the University of California, Irvine, as well as the Crystal Cove Alliance, to engage in authentic research experiences at Crystal Cove State ParCrystalk. The elementary-school students investigate the question “How do we restore our park?”, learning about how we can do our parts to restore and protect the environment from the negative impact of people and climate change. The aim is to develop life-long science learners, promoting growth in students’ academic achievement as well as their passion for science, restoration, and learning.

Mistakes as Tools for Learning in U.S. Mathematics Teaching (Spencer Foundation, 2009-2011)

This project investigated ways research knowledge may be translated, through researcher-teacher collaboration, into workable strategies for classroom teaching. The aspect targeted by this project was the fundamental problem of handling students’ mistakes during instruction.

 

 

Algebra Learning for All Project (Funded by the Institute of Education Sciences, 2003-2008)

The Algebra Learning for All study developed and experimentally tested a video-based professional development (PD) program designed to help 6th grade teachers teach critical mathematics concepts that are key to improving student achievement.

 

 

Mathematics Teaching in Italy and the United States

A series of studies investigated mathematics teaching practices in Italian 8th-grade classrooms and compared them with U.S. practices. Strategies used to handle students’ errors were analyzed in the two cultures and ITfirstgradecompared to strategies parents use to respond to their children’s mistakes.

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