The issue and trend that interests me the most is society and STEM. One of my goals, and a main driver behind my teaching philosophy, is the lack of females in STEM career fields. As a former Chemist, I think it is really important to ensure that my students, especially female, minority, and persons with disabilities, are exposed to STEM careers. One way that I currently do this is to provide my students with real life examples from my days in the lab. While there are few role models for students falling in these categories, I hope that my experiences can provide them with a role model for the STEM fields. As teachers, we place a lot of our students at a disservice if we do not attempt to bridge the gap between how society views STEM and where STEM needs to go.
For Black History Month, our department created a lesson that focused on minorities in STEM. When creating the lesson, we attempted to find a variety of STEM contributors. We included contributors from long ago and from more current day. We also tried to include people that had similar upbringings to our student population; contributors that lived in poverty and low-income situations. While teaching the lesson, it was interesting to hear feedback from students. They enjoyed the variety of contributors and found interesting facts that they could connect to. This is so important, this personal connection, when attempting to bridge gaps in STEM careers.
Another way I account for this issue in my classroom is asking students what they want to do when they graduate. Even if their plans are not STEM related, I attempt to make connections between the skills they are learning in my classroom to their future plans. Often times, my students will remark that they hadn't thought about it that way and they get a better understanding of the importance of Chemistry class in their overall life plan.
I will continue to provide my personal experiences and will attempt to incorporate those scientists that are considered underrepresented in STEM fields.
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