The Texas high school initiative aims at STEM education reform: Texas Tech University T-STEM Center—Putting the “E” in K-12 STEM education

The Texas High School Initiative aims at producing a leading innovative technical workforce in Texas by aligning the education efforts of high school, postsecondary, and economic development entities. The Texas Education Agency (TEA) with the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, Micheal and Susan Dell Foundation, and other government and private sector partners have committed $180 million to STEM education reform in Texas. Texas Tech University was awarded funding to create one of five T-STEM Centers to develop innovative curriculum, professional development for teachers, classroom support, and other research-based educational resources in STEM areas. The Centers will identify, document, and disseminate best practices that demonstrate improved teaching and learning in STEM subjects as part of the Texas Innovation Network, which also includes 35 high school T-STEM Academies, and programs to train high school principals and administrators in STEM best practice. The special emphasis of the Texas Tech T-STEM Center is to research, create, and disseminate best practices for innovative teaching and learning using the engineering- design process as an instructional framework for engaging students in rigorous inquiry and project-based learning that emphasizes high level application of mathematics, science, and technology and develop problem solving, critical thinking, teamwork, communication, and other skills needed to succeed in higher education and the workforce. The TTU T-STEM Center will also provide pedagogical training, professional development, and recruitment opportunities for K-12 teachers in STEM fields. With engineering design as its focus, the Texas Tech University T-STEM Center will train teachers to use engineering design in teaching applied math, science and technology. The center's design team, drawn from three successful programs at Texas Tech-the Center for Engineering Outreach, Howard Hughes Medical Institute/Center for the Integration of Science andEducation Research (CISER), and the Outdoor Learning Center-is in the process of developing curriculum and professional development that integrates a wide range of expertise and resources at Texas Tech and incorporates national and state STEM standards. This paper will discuss the design, development, and planned implementation of the Texas Tech T-STEM Center.