When varsity outreach programmes bring students to STEM and teaching careers

There is need to prepare STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics) and STEAM teachers to better withstand the situation in schools today, Jan DeWaters, Associate Professor, Coulter School of Engineering and Applied Sciences, Clarkson University, New York, has said.

She was speaking on ‘Addressing the need for STEM teachers in U.S. high-needs schools’ at the State Institute of Educational Technology (SIET)’s fourth international conference on ‘Educational technology in STEAM education’ here on Saturday.

High-needs schools were underprivileged schools. The problem, she explained, was that students emerging from teaching programmes did not want to take jobs in these schools for they were located in areas that experienced high poverty. The pay was less and the schools had less financial resources and equipment. They had unfilled teaching positions, particularly in STEM. Many students lived in poverty, and this affected their ability to focus in school or do homework. Students had little or no parental support. They were not geared to go to college, let alone study STEM or STEAM. As a result, these schools had a problem recruiting teachers and retaining them.

Another issue was that many students in STEM disciplines considered a career in teaching, but also mistakenly believed that teachers did not make a good living.

To encourage more students to enter teaching and stay there, university faculty and advisers tried to remove students’ misconceptions. Clarkson university provided programmes to prepare students in STEM to go into teaching and stay on. One such was a pre-teaching minor which had students taking some classes and do a field study. Competitions to engage students in STEM, targeted courses in outreach, and scholarship programme for pre-teaching students were also implemented. For instance, Clarkson University’s Institute for Stem Education challenged students to work in teams to think about what inspired them to study STEM and pitch their idea in a 90-second video. The students also had to create a lesson plan. This led students to think about education and come up with ideas and lessons used in outreach programmes and classrooms.

The outcomes of such initiatives were great, Ms. DeWaters said, with many school students gaining exposure to resources and novel experiences, becoming more self-confident, and developing an interest in STEM studies and careers. Some people on STEM career paths even switched to teaching after getting teaching opportunity in college and realising it excited them more, she said.

A message from Minister for General Education V. Sivankutty inaugurating the conference was read out on the occasion.

B. Aburaj, director, SIET, said the takeaway from the conference, particularly the keynote address by Ms. DeWaters, was the need for continuous follow-up of programmes and students who are beneficiaries of SIET’s STEM and STEAM-related initiatives through higher education and further into the start of their careers. Programmes should be designed for the long-term in order to return dividends. Similarly, students who had taken part in various SIET initiatives should be tracked consistently to see how they have benefited.