As orientation for its initial class of Design Fellows—prospective teachers, co-designers, and test pilots—draws closer, the WW Academy has made a second faculty hire.

Andrew Wild will begin full-time work with the Academy team in June as a faculty mentor in science. “I’ve been describing it as the dream job that I never dreamed of,” says Dr. Wild. “I read the description for the job and I jumped out of the chair, I was so excited. It sounded like such an exciting project that coincided with a number of my interests and aspects of my professional background, including curriculum design and teaching and mentoring teachers.”

Dr. Wild is a former high school teacher and school leader and, most recently, a research associate and senior fellow at the Knowles Science Teaching Foundation where he leads a research project investigating teacher agency. He has designed, facilitated, and researched science-learning experiences and mentored hundreds of teachers through in-school relationships and professional development workshops. He earned his Ph.D. in science education from Stanford in 2017 and graduated from the Stanford Teacher Education Program in 2007.

“There’s a piece around assessment and thinking creatively about teacher learning and supporting teachers in developing competencies that really excites me,” says Dr. Wild.

While at Stanford, in collaboration with the Stanford Center for Assessment, Learning, and Equity, Dr. Wild designed and researched, a project-based STEM curriculum for middle school students, then supported teachers in implementing it. He also used a social norms perspective to understand science teaching and designed and researched assessments of students’ ability to engage in scientific argumentation.

As students and classrooms change to adapt to technological advancements, The WW Academy hopes to create a teacher preparation program that addresses those changes. Dr. Wild hopes to use his faculty position “to prepare teachers to support the learning of all students in equitable ways.”

The first group of prospective teachers, called Design Fellows, will begin at the Academy this fall. They will collaborate with the staff at the WW Academy and the design team at MIT to test curriculum and shape the Academy learning experience.

“There’s a great opportunity for the Academy to have a broad and deep impact on the field,” says Dr. Wild. “I’m really excited to be a part of some of the initial conversations as they lay the groundwork for the school.”

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