In this paper we present our rationale for using an active learning constructivist approach to teach sustainability-related topics in a higher education. To push the boundaries of ecological literacy, we also develop a theoretical model for sustainability knowledge co-creation. Drawing on the experiences of faculty at a major Southeastern University in the United States, we present case studies in architecture, engineering, geography, and marketing. Four Sustainability Faculty Fellows describe their discipline-specific case studies, all of which are project-based learning experiences, and include details regarding teaching and assessment. Easily replicated in other educational contexts, these case studies contribute to the advancement of sustainability education.

Research frameworks outline key aspects of STEM (science, technology, engineering, mathematics) integration for teachers, but translating this research into productive changes in teachers' classroom practices remains a challenge, particularly in schools without an emphasis on STEM integration. In this article, we detail how a STEM education descriptive framework was used to design and enact a year-long professional development with eight middle and secondary teachers at non-STEM focused schools in Southeast USA. We examined the professional development impact on teacher content knowledge, self-efficacy, and practice using pre- and post-test scores on a content exam, pre- and post-test scores on a self-efficacy instrument, and self-reported STEM integration efforts. We found teachers improved in their self-efficacy and made productive changes in their classroom practices, though no significant gains in content knowledge was detected. We conclude with how this STEM education descriptive framework can be helpful in designing effective professional development for teachers at non-STEM focused schools.

Differentiated instruction (DI) is a teaching approach in which learning experiences are designed and adapted to meet students’ individual and diverse needs in order to facilitate student success. This approach has been advocated in K-12 classes, but has not been used extensively in college courses and STEM/Engineering courses in particular. When one considers that significant student diversity still exists beyond high school graduation, a strong argument can be made for the benefit of implementing DI strategies in a college course environment. This paper presents the findings of an initial implementation of DI for a module of a circuit analysis course. This implementation involved diversifying course content and the learning process based on formative assessments of student readiness. The effectiveness of this approach was evaluated using a student survey and test scores. The student survey indicates that the majority of students had a positive assessment of their learning experience using the DI approach. The test results of the DI group were compared to the test results of a non-DI group using an independent samples t-test. T-test results did not indicate a statistical improvement in test results for the treatment group over the control group. The instructor evaluation of DI is that it has the potential to improve student performance based on the more individualized nature of the teaching approach, but a potential impediment to the successful implementation of this approach is the data acquisition and analysis tasks associated with formative assessment, which may become prohibitively burdensome with large class sizes and few contact hours. One way to overcome this impediment is to devise ways to provide feedback on a larger scale than on an individual basis and devise methods to automate the differentiation process.

This chapter reports features of a professional development (PD) initiative and results from its underpinning qualitative inquiry. The researchers designed this initiative using the integrated science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) education framework to help teachers adapt integrated teaching practices and to make connections. Middle and secondary teachers completed 50 hours of training to enhance their content knowledge, to gain understanding of integrated STEM education, to identify and use resources and manipulatives of integrate STEM lessons, and to create lessons for implementation with their students. Data were collected through interviews, audio-visual recordings, and documents from participants. The findings were (1) framing the PD with the integrated STEM education model supports changes to teaching practices; (2) tasks integrating mathematics with EE are compatible integrations that help teachers adapt integrative teaching approaches; and (3) teachers' EE dispositions towards integration improved after the PD, especially as a component of social justice.