Dissertation Defense: Amber McVey

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Title: Educators’ Beliefs and Interpretations of Productive Failure in STEM Professional Development

Program: Curriculum and Instruction EdD

Committee Chair: Arturo Rodriguez

Committee: Arturo Rodriguez, Daibao Guo, Jennifer Snow

Abstract: Productive failure (PF) is an instructional approach that engages students in challenging problems before receiving instruction. Research has examined its effects on student learning; however, less attention has been given to how educators experience and interpret PF themselves. This qualitative case study explored how participation in a four-day STEM professional development course related to educators' beliefs about teaching through struggle. The study included ten educators and used pre- and post-surveys, daily written reflections, observational field notes, and seven individual interviews. Analysis of the data resulted in four themes: (1) Failure became productive when it provided information for continued learning; (2) educators reconsidered when and how to provide support; (3) experiencing struggle revealed its emotional complexity; and (4) belief development followed different pathways. The study also identified a cross-cutting condition: PS was not automatic. The findings contribute to understanding how educators interpret PF through their own learning experiences and offer insights for designing PD that supports educators in facilitating PF in STEM learning environments.