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PRISM
PRISM is an initiative of the Board of Regents of the University System of Georgia in partnership with the Georgia Department of Education, four core public universities (two research institutions, one regional, and one state university) and additional supporting higher education partners, and thirteen school districts involving cities (Atlanta and Savannah), small urban regions and rural areas.

PRISM Phase II is conducting research on strategies that lead to changes in the culture of science and mathematics education where dimensions of culture include policies, practices, partnerships, and resources. Research studies in PRISM Phase II are producing further evidence of how and to what extent distinctive PRISM Phase I strategies - K-16 Professional Learning Communities, Culture of Higher Education and a Public Awareness Campaign - give rise to these four key elements of holistic cultural change.

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Project Contributions

Effects of Implementing Projects in an Elementary Statistics Class
"In hopes of reducing the percent of students receiving non-passing grades in elementary statistics classes, interactive hands-on projects were implemented in the classes. These projects gave students the opportunity to…
Contextual Teaching and Learning of Science in Elementary Schools
"Contextual Teaching and Learning (CTL) integrates inquiry, problem- and project- based learning, cooperative learning, and authentic assessment. Case studies were carried out on 21 teachers who used CTL to teach…
Earth Core: Enhancing Delivery of Geoscience Content in a Diverse School System During Times of Changing State Standards
"The Earth Core program provided a one week earth science content workshop to urban public school sixth grade teachers who lacked geoscience training with the goal of increasing participants' pedagogical…
Science Conference Presenters' Images of Inquiry
"Inquiry-focused professional development and conceptions of inquiry held by eight professional development leaders were investigated within the context of a state science teacher conference. The prominent session format involved session…
What do Teacher Leaders Need from Professional Teacher Leader Programs?
This paper addresses the following claim(s): "A targeted program to prepare teacher leaders can lead to greater levels of comfort and expertise in the critical roles and responsibilities of teacher…
Transforming Higher Education Culture to Support Faculty Engagement in K-16 STEM Education Reform
This paper addresses the following claim(s): "Evidence collected to date in PRISM's ongoing research study supports the claim that the long-term success of the MSP program requires the deep and…
PRISM Impact Report - October 2008
Posted by: Sheila Jones . Update on PRISM's impact in its partner districts and institutions of higher education. Inside this Report: 2007 Data Comparisons Governor Proclaims September 2008 Math + Science = Success Month in...
Georgia PRISM Presents Best Practices to Educators, Business Leaders
Posted by: Sheila Jones . Press release concerning the PRISM sponsored Accepting the STEM Challenge Conference which brought together educators, business leaders, and policy makers to create an open dialogue about mathematics,...
Video Ad Campaign: "Thank You"
PRISM broadcast this 30-second public service announcement across Georgia as part of its "math + science = success" campaign.
Video Ad Campaign: "I Can Do Anything"
PRISM broadcast this 30-second public service announcement across Georgia as part of its "math + science = success" campaign.
The Effectiveness of a Summer Program to Attract Minority Students into Mathematics and Science Teaching, their Attitudes towards Science, Mathematics and Teaching, and their Decision to Attend College
Posted by: Sheila Jones . This paper describes the effectiveness of a summer program to attract urban minority high school students into science and mathematics teaching. The Advanced Academy for Future Teachers (AAFT) is a...
Tools for Managing Large Scale Projects
PRISM MSP shares a set of documents and tools useful for managing large scale partnership projects: Definition Documents Rubrics Management Tools
PRISM Impact Report - September 2007
Posted by: Sheila Jones . A look at available data from PRISM K-12 districts and IHE institutions.
PRISM Impact Report
A short report showing improvements made up to year 3 for PRISM districts and institutions.
Partnership Rubric
Posted by: Sheila Jones . PRISM MSP shares a tool that the project has found useful "for rating aspects of a strategy or partnership where numeric tabulations do not always apply, but where there are...
Summary of the Development and Use of the Inventory for Teaching and Learning (ITAL) in the External Evaluation of the Georgia Partnership for Reform in Science and Mathematics (PRISM)
"This document provides a brief description of the Inventory of Teaching and Learning (ITAL) developed and currently being implemented as one component of an external evaluation of the Georgia Partnership...
Engaging Higher Education Faculty in K-16 Learning Communities to Improve Teaching and Learning in Science and Mathematics in the K-12 Schools
"The Partnership for Reform in Science and Mathematics (PRISM) is a comprehensive MSP project with state and regional partners. The state partners include the University System of Georgia, the public...
Using the DIO Framework to Improve Professional Development for Science and Mathematics Educators, K-16
Sheila Jones and Judy Monsaas gave this presentation at the US DOE MSP meeting as a follow-up to Jim Hamos' talk about using DIO for evaluation. They presented their learning...
Higher Education Faculty Roles and Rewards
Presentation given at the 2007 MSP Learning Network Conference. Provides overview of the PRISM project and the roles of Higher Education Faculty within the project.
The P-5 Mathematics Endorsement: Impacts and Lessons Learned
Posted by: Sheila Jones . This study supported the hypothesis that elementary-school teachers who earned the P-5 mathematics endorsement (a) increased their knowledge and understanding of important mathematics required to effectively...
Developing a Reward Structure for Higher Education Faculty Involvement in K-12 Schools
"PRISM Strategy 10: All PRISM higher education core partners have K-12 teacher education programs, and until now their major focus was on graduating, certifying, and placing highly qualified teachers....
Georgia Students Rank Parents as Primary Influencers in School Success
Posted by: Sheila Jones . Description of the findings of market research completed in Georgia to determine the messages for PRISM's public awareness campaign. "Students in Georgia who participated in a recent survey overwhelmingly...
New Public Awareness Campaign Aims to Increase Student Achievement
Posted by: Sheila Jones . This describes Georgia's campaign to inform parents, students and the greater community about the importance of taking rigorous science and mathematics courses. "A simple equation may be just what's needed...
Building Sustainable Partnerships
The presentation by the Georgia Partnership for Reform in Science and Mathematics (PRISM) examined the elements of building effective partnerships that include state government, K-12 schools, and higher...