Hamilton County Schools joins state network to boost science education

December 26, 2019 at 8:13 p.m. | Updated December 27, 2019 at 4:23 a.m.

by Meghan Mangrum

Staff Photo by Dan Henry / The Chattanooga Times Free Press- 2/21/17. Sy'Taishia Eberhardt assembles a "plant cell" in Susan Dorsa's fourth grade class at Barger Academy last month as they learned about about plant cell structure using the Science Sparks! pilot curriculum which Dorsa helped develop. More than 80 teachers across the district were given nine weeks worth of science lessons and all the supplies they need to make them hands-on. The pilot is one of the ways Hamilton County's school system is working to better engage students and teachers.
Staff Photo by Dan Henry / The Chattanooga Times Free Press- 2/21/17. Sy'Taishia Eberhardt assembles a "plant cell" in Susan Dorsa's fourth grade class at Barger Academy last month as they learned about about plant cell structure using the Science Sparks! pilot curriculum which Dorsa helped develop. More than 80 teachers across the district were given nine weeks worth of science lessons and all the supplies they need to make them hands-on. The pilot is one of the ways Hamilton County's school system is working to better engage students and teachers.

Hamilton County Schools is looking to boost science instruction for students after it was chosen as one of six school districts across the state for the new Tennessee District Science Network.

The network was launched in April 2019 and is meant to help school districts improve science curriculum, lessons and overall learning for students, according to a press release.

"It is a tribute to math and science teachers across the district for Hamilton County Schools to be selected to participate in the Tennessee District Science Network," said Bryan Johnson, superintendent of Hamilton County Schools, in a statement. "Public education is ever-changing, and adapting the curriculum used in the classroom to address changes in state standards and how we teach these standards to children can present challenges for our teachers. We are excited to be a part of this effort to make that transition smoother for teachers and students across the state."

Preparing students for both college and career after high school is a focus of Johnson's goals, as well as Tennessee Education Commissioner Penny Schwinn and Gov. Bill Lee.

photo Jill Landtroop, a Hamilton County Department of Education middle and high school new teacher coach, helps seventh-grader Zalia Green, left, during a science lab at Orchard Knob Middle School on Friday, Oct. 5, 2018 in Chattanooga, Tenn. / Staff photo by C.B. Schmelter


Boosting career and technical education, work-based learning opportunities and STEM (science, technology, engineering and mathematics) education is fundamental to many of these goals.

In 2017, after dismal Tennessee Value-Added Assessment System (TVAAS) results, including a score of 1 out of 5 in science, Hamilton County Schools began bolstering science education in the district.

At the time, Johnson acknowledged there was a need to improve science instruction.

"Looking at the data, we acknowledge science is one area we have struggled in the past," Johnson said at the time. "We are taking steps to correct that through a combination of efforts."

Because of new academic standards, science scores were not evaluated as part of the state's 2018-19 TVAAS scores.

Now, through the Tennessee District Science Network, a team of Hamilton County teachers and instructional coaches will work with educators across the state to create lessons and activities for all grade levels. The team includes Jenn Greever, lead math and science teacher for elementary grades for the district; Adrianne Cowan, teacher at Chattanooga School for the Liberal Arts; LeeAnn Plumlee, curriculum coach at Hixson High; and Stephen Kline, teacher at Soddy-Daisy High.

photo Staff photo by Erin O. Smith / Diego Cortez and Brandon Sanford, students at Tyner, work on Chromebooks in the new Learning Lab at Tyner High Academy Tuesday, August 13, 2019 in Chattanooga, Tennessee. The lab is part of the school's Future Ready Institute, the EPB Institute of Technology and Networking.


One such activity or "task" already developed by the group and piloted in classrooms across the state uses the cell phone signals to teach students the role of waves in communication systems.

"Work for year two of the network will focus on looking at student work samples to see if any revisions of the tasks are needed," said Angie Mullins, math and science lead teacher for Hamilton County Schools, in a statement. "The districts will complete the work in late winter to early spring, and Achieve will hold a launch of the TDSciN task library in May. The complete library of tasks should be publicly available in June."

Hamilton County joins Anderson County Schools, Kingsport City Schools, Knox County Schools, Oak Ridge Schools and Rutherford County Schools in the inaugural group.

"The expertise of our district leaders supports collective strategic planning across the network," said Jenny Sarna, director of district support at Achieve, Inc., in a statement. "We are excited to convene talented educators from across the state of Tennessee to engage in this work, which we know will have a critical impact on successful three-dimensional science learning for students."

Achieve is a bipartisan group of governors and business leaders working to increase college and career readiness and is working in partnership with the Tennessee Department of Education to launch the Tennessee District Science Network.

Contact Meghan Mangrum at mmangrum@timesfreepress.com or 423-757-6592. Follow her on Twitter @memangrum.

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