Clearinghouse on Mathematics, Engineering, Technology and Science (COMETS):
A Comprehensive Resource in the Education of Deaf Students

About COMETS

There is an urgent need for a centralized information dissemination project providing a wide range of resources for professionals and parents responsible for the education of deaf students in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM). Despite rapidly advancing technologies and expanding opportunities for deaf people to enter the workforce in STEM careers, the quality of science and mathematics education for deaf students has not improved substantially over the past 30 years. Today, the professionals who educate deaf students are in need of quality informational resources.

This website was developed with funding support received from the National Science Foundation. The Principal Investigator (Harry Lang) has been at the forefront in identifying and addressing the needs of professionals and students in the education of deaf people in STEM for more than 35 years. Because of the PI's leadership in the field and his knowledge of the best practices in STEM education for deaf students, he has received a constant flow of queries for assistance on a daily basis from a variety of educators, parents, and students. These contacts range from requests for assistance in planning professional development workshops in school districts to queries from deaf students asking for such information as the names of deaf scientists in veterinary medicine, for example, as part of career exploration. Interpreters frequently contact the PI in search of information about technical sign language. Such queries have led to the development of this website, a clearinghouse of information assembled to effect positive change in the education of students who are deaf.

COMETS is, in effect, a continuation and expansion of a prototype resource developed during another NSF-funded project, the “Access to English and Science Outreach Project (AESOP)”, a successful, three-year teacher preparation project funded between 1995 and 1998. AESOP not only met its goals of providing eight regional workshops, but two educational research studies based on the project's emphases were conducted by the PI, a scientist and educational researcher, and the co-PI, a linguist and educational researcher. In both studies, a positive impact was observed on student learning, and teachers learned to value action research as a means for discovering effective instructional strategies. During that grant period, it was realized that a much more extensive information dissemination program was needed.

The COMETS website has also served international audiences and has led to numerous interactions with professionals and students in such countries as Germany, England, Sweden, Korea, Norway, Australia, Canada, New Zealand, Egypt, Israel, and Hong Kong.

K-12 Teachers and Their Deaf Students

Three of the most serious challenges in providing quality science and mathematics education to deaf students on the K-12 level relate to teacher content knowledge, training in the use of best practices with deaf learners, and the high turnover rate. The problem of underqualified teachers is a serious one in public schools across the country. Education Week's annual study, titled Quality Counts 2000, reported that "millions of students sit down every day before instructors who do not meet the minimum requirements their states say they should have to teach in a public school. And far too many teachers who have acquired basic credentials are not receiving the training, support, and encouragement they need to remain-and grow-in their profession" (NSTA Reports, 2000a). In Teaching and California's Future: The Status of the Teaching Profession, it was stated that more than 1 million of California's 5.7 million students attend schools with "so many underqualified teachers as to make these schools dysfunctional" (NSTA Reports, 2000c, p. 22).

Around the country, increased attention is being given to the issue of certifying teachers in addressing this dilemma. Many states are responding with ambitious plans, but lack appropriate resources. The New York State Education Department, for example, has established a plan to provide sufficient numbers of certified teachers well prepared to assist students in achieving standards and to assure that the teachers remain current. After February 1, 2004, teachers receiving professional certificates must complete 175 hours of professional development related to student learning needs every five years. Certification requirements will be rigorous with teachers completing approved programs and passing three state exams. Such plans emphasize the urgent need for resources accessible any time and any place on a national basis.

Research has also shown that not only do deaf adolescents, like their hearing peers, identify content knowledge as the most important characteristic of an effective teacher (Lang, McKee, & Conner, 1993), but some research has shown that the academic achievement of deaf students in mathematics may be influenced by their teachers' knowledge of the content (Kluwin and Moores, 1985). In addressing this issue of teacher content knowledge in public education for hearing students, Ingersoll (1999) writes that the effects of being taught by a teacher without a strong background in a field may be just the kind of outcome not captured in student scores on standardized examinations. This problem may be even more serious in the education of students who are deaf.

In particular, whether in residential or mainstream school programs, teachers responsible for instructing deaf learners are often isolated and poorly trained in mathematics and science. Of the 196 teachers from both types of academic environments who responded to a 1996 survey conducted by the PI, only 21 percent had bachelor's degrees in a field of science, a mere 7 percent had master's degrees in science, and fewer than 36 percent had certification in science teaching. These data are comparable to a 1982 study of 490 teachers by Lang and Propp (1982), indicating that little has changed over the years. Consequently, there is a strong need to assist these teachers directly through in-service professional development and to assist those responsible for pre-service teacher preparation programs in providing appropriate knowledge and skills. No survey has been conducted since 1996 to see if these conditions have changed.

Second, both teachers currently instructing in classrooms and prospective teachers in undergraduate and graduate pre-service programs need information about best practices based on the most recent educational research with deaf learners. As an illustration, research has shown that active, interactive, and participative approaches to teaching deaf students lead to significantly better academic achievement (see, for example, Lang, Stinson, Basile, Kavanagh and Liu, 1998; Dowaliby & Lang, 1999; Boyd & George, 1973). Such research findings, however, are often published in journals not read by classroom teachers or those preparing to teach. The implications of educational research need to be provided in the context of teaching and curriculum development practices. Professionals responsible for pre-service teacher preparation especially need support and resources to design cutting-edge/intellectually current "Methods Courses" for undergraduate and graduate students planning to teach in science and mathematics.

Third, teacher turnover is an alarming problem in science and mathematics education (NSTA, May/June 2000b). Education Weekly's annual study reported that nearly one in five college graduates who begin teaching leaves after three years. Those who leave are the brightest graduates, as measured by college admissions tests. The reasons cited for leaving include poor working conditions, student discipline problems, and lack of support. Thirty-two percent of science teachers with 1-3 years of experience consider abandoning their chosen career, while 37 percent of those with 4-6 years and 33 percent of those with 7-9 years give thought to leaving. One of the primary reasons is "poor administrative support," with 31 percent of middle level teachers and 24 percent of the high school teachers reporting that their principals have asked them to teach "out of field" (teaching a subject in which they are not certified or have not achieved at least a college minor) over the past three years. Out-of-field teaching is a common problem in science education for deaf students and these teachers are desperate for help.

These three problems of inadequate content knowledge, lack of familiarity with best practices, and constant turnover present a precarious situation in the classroom. Teachers who are not well trained in science content often resort to lectures over which they have more control. There is less embarrassment for the untrained teacher in a lecture format--the questions can be controlled more readily and directed toward the student rather than toward the teacher. When effective strategies and rationales for their use with deaf learners have not been well presented in teacher preparation programs, the teachers are not aware of the value of enhancing learning through activity-based instruction. Activity-based learning strategies require teachers to be continuously ready to answer questions. Teachers expected to teach out-of-field also have difficulty finding time to prepare both activities and materials.

In-service Professional Development for K-12 Teachers

The COMETS website addresses the informational needs of K-12 teachers and serves as a change agent aiming for significant improvements in curriculum and teaching practices by providing information and links to help prepare lesson plans for specific topics; information on resource books related to deaf professionals in STEM careers and books related to the contributions of deaf people in the history of science, engineering, mathematics, medicine, and invention; information on developing curricula appropriate for deaf learners and on best teaching practices for deaf learners; suggestions for using national standards for curriculum and teaching; basic career education strategies; demonstrations and information pertaining to the use of technical signs in classroom instruction; summaries of research studies with deaf science/math/engineering students on characteristics of effective teachers, learning and teaching styles, use of hands-on activities, adjunct instructional aids with reading materials, and other relevant topics.

Professionals Responsible for In-service Teacher Professional Development in K-12 Programs have available on the COMETS website a rationale for ongoing professional development of classroom teachers in science and mathematics; suggested emphases for in-service professional development for science and mathematics teachers; links, and other resources for providing in-service professional development workshops; strategies for working with deaf learners, at appropriate grade levels; and strategies for obtaining and working with other professionals who support deaf learners in the classroom (such as interpreters, notetakers and tutors).

Pre-service Teacher Preparation Programs

Professionals Responsible for Pre-service Teacher Education Programs in universities. COMETS promotes systemic reform through effective pre-service teacher education programs by encouraging inclusion of the most recent educational research and the use of different pedagogical approaches, technologies, and adaptation of materials to most appropriately address the needs of deaf learners by providing a suggested syllabus for "Methods Courses" for pre-service teacher education in science and mathematics, along with activities, discussion topics, and readings for the methods course.

Undergraduate and Graduate Students. COMETS encourages pre-service teachers to become familiar with all aspects of this comprehensive resource as part of their education. In addition to the general information, particular needs of these undergraduate and graduate students will be addressed by providing a comprehensive annotated bibliography of several hundred published articles on theories and practices of teaching science and mathematics to deaf learners; and suggested topics in need of investigation (for master's theses, doctoral dissertation studies, and empirical research by trained professionals).

Postsecondary Educators and Their Deaf Students

With estimates of more than 30,000 deaf students in postsecondary programs and with colleges and universities facing serious problems with retention and academic success of students, resources are needed to help STEM educators identify and incorporate instructional practices and support services which will optimize the educational opportunities for deaf learners. Faculty development program coordinators need assistance in planning meaningful workshops to acquaint university and college faculty with the special learning needs of deaf students. Deaf postsecondary students in STEM also need information on what is available in terms of support, and how to obtain such support for their education. In addition to the pre-service training needs mentioned above, many deaf and hearing undergraduate and graduate students aspiring to become teachers have independently contacted the PI with queries about strategies, materials, references, and other issues related to educating deaf students in STEM.

The abbreviation "COMETS" presents an appropriate metaphor. As with the astronomical bodies, Project COMETS has left a trail of material and energy which will be available for a long time to come, currently in the form of this website, but later also to be summarized as a textbook for Methods courses used for preparing teachers.