This project addresses the issue of the relative decline of American students' academic achievement compared to the rest of the industrial world as they enter the middle school years. Hence, goals for the MiddleData project include facilitating standards-driven reform of North Carolina State University's middle-grades teacher preparation program, improved technology and data-driven decision-making skills, improved integration of technology in core curricula, and increased exposure to diverse classrooms and master teachers. Activities in the project will include course redesign and subsequent faculty modeling of data driven decision-making and integration of advanced technologies. Also included will be teaching portfolio development and proficiency certification. Preservice teachers will receive robust and diverse field experience including interactive observations via real-time videoconferencing technologies. An empirical evaluation of the approach will document its efficacy. View the Project Abstract here.

The NC State University MiddleData project, with support from PT3 , part of Preparing Tomorrow's Teachers to Use Technology (US Department of Education grant P342A030035), will build upon its established, respected middle grades teacher preparation program. The goals are to: