STEM Teacher Education and School Strengthening Activity Project (STESSA) Quarterly Report January 1st to March 31st, 2019

The project is implemented by 21PSTEM for the United States Agency for International Development (USAID) review. The project's objectives are to develop graduate-level programs for STEM teachers and instructional leaders, strengthen STEM schools, and improve the capacity of Egyptian universities to deliver high-quality STEM education. During the reporting period from January 1, 2019, to March 31, 2019, significant progress was made towards achieving STESSA's objectives. The STESSA team worked extensively with the selected Egyptian universities to develop a common understanding of STEM education, its requirements, and a plan for the development of the graduate-level programs. The team visited the four Egyptian universities, partnered with STESSA under Component 1, to share information about STEM education and best practices in the realm of teachers' education and preparation in the U.S. The STESSA team delivered two-day orientation workshops in each of the four universities to prepare the deans, administrators, and faculty members of the Faculties of Education, Engineering, and Science to engage in a series of STEM activities. The first activity was the organization of the Design Studio in March 2019 to start developing the graduate-level diploma programs for STEM teachers and instructional leaders. Through the collaboration between STESSA's home and field offices, the U.S. partner universities, and the Egyptian partner universities, a framework for graduate-level STEM diploma programs for teachers and instructional leaders and by-law was drafted. The STESSA team also prepared for the deans of the Faculties of Education, Engineering, and Science to participate in a one-week study tour in April 2019 to visit the U.S. universities and learn about the most effective teacher preparation programs. The study tour aimed to develop the knowledge and understanding of the deans of the Faculties of Education, Engineering, and Science of STEM teacher preparation. In Component 2, STEM Schools Strengthening, the STESSA project supported the implementation of the activities planned to be implemented during the reporting period. The project provided direct support to the implementation of the training of school leaders during the mid-year vacation. This training was followed by weekly exchanges among school leaders and experts through virtual professional learning communities (PLC). The home office technical experts also supported the STEM training of trainers (ToT). The experts observed the training, provided feedback to trainers, and worked with the STEM Unit to review and improve the training manuals. In March 2019, the project conducted a 5-day training to the Fab Lab Managers in all STEM schools. It also conducted another 5-day training on students' assessment to the item writers from the MOETE counselor's office and the STEM Unit to enhance their skills and improve the quality of STEM school exit exams. The project also conducted an assessment of ESSP's e-STEM, currently implemented in preparatory schools, to decide on the required improvement of its design and implementation nationwide. The STESSA team met with the counselor of sciences and STEM Unit to review the status of the science outreach program in preparatory schools and agree on the necessary support needed to improve the design and expand its implementation in all preparatory schools nationwide. The project's activities aimed to strengthen STEM schools, improve the capacity of Egyptian universities, and enhance the quality of STEM education in Egypt.