Over the past few weeks, I have been really thinking about the bigger picture concerning science education. Although SEM Link has done great work over the years in science education and impacting Metro Atlanta youth, we have to think about how can we increase our impact beyond the kids that we can physically touch.
I have been conducting research and having conversations with educators and parents across the country. What I've found is that there are many school districts, even in large Metropolitan areas, don't have the infrastructure to provide quality science education for its students, especially in elementary school where students get their fundamentals in all subject areas. How can our students achieve academically in science or even pursue those careers if there is not quality instruction going on? They won't be adequately prepared for post-secondary education to major in the science, engineering and mathematics field, let alone garner enough interest to pursue those fields.
We can't place all the blame on the school districts, for it can't be the responsibility of the school system alone to educate our children. I realized that schools work best when they have community partners that provide additional resources to the schools to help them educate their students. It is especially critical now, when many school districts are seeing their budgets drastically reduced due to many of our states having extreme budget deficits due to the recession. There are even districts that have to lay off teachers, so you know they are in bad shape if that have to do that.
There are many community organizations that are getting funding for various educational resources to help teachers. However, although they are developing them somehow not all of the resources are getting to the teachers. I'm not quite sure what the reason for disconnect, but these resources need to get to the teachers. In addition, many organization have grant funding available for teachers to obtain resources but what good teacher has time to write a grant. What teachers are available to attend professional conferences.
We have to do something about the science infrastructure for the survival of our society; for this problem is bigger than test scores. It is the current K-12 students that are our future workforce. What I have noticed about the recession is that we are transitioning from a economy that is heavy on skilled labor to one that requires an educated workforce. Therefore it is important for our children to be educated for their survival as individuals and our survival as a society. It is important for us to have the future science, engineering and mathematics in our society because those fields are what create innovation for improvement of society as a whole. Who will be available to solve the issues that we have with climate change? Who will create the next generation of technological innovations that help improve the quality of our lives? Who will be available to be the next generation of public health professionals and biomedical researchers to cure and treat the disease that plague our society?
Friday, September 25, 2009
Monday, September 21, 2009
Who Can Help and How We Can Help the Generation Behind Us
Over the past few weeks, I've been meaning to blog, but no subject would come to me when I was in a time and a space to blog. Maybe if I can figure out how to blog on my cell phone or get one of those netbook laptops that can fit into my pocket, I can stop and blog at the grocery store, in the doctor's office or when I am sitting in rush hour traffic. These past few days, I have been in conversation with many students at various educational levels as well as researching non profits in various Metropolitan areas around the nation. The conversations I have had with students this week were teachable moments for both me and them because events occurred in their lives, that made them reach out to me or forced me to reach out to them to get them back on the right path. As I was researching non profits, mostly those who serve "inner city" or "at risk" youth, I realized the lack of diversity in their staff. The question that came to my mind was who is most qualified to help the next generation and what is the best way to help them.
One of the things that I loved about growing up in Miami was the diversity. I grew up with classmates, teachers, neighbors and friends that were from various parts of the country and the world. That experience made me who I am today, because being exposed to the various cultures and people who were different from my background allowed me to be the person I am today and be so willing and open to try new things and meet new people. Although, I know that several of my teachers had an impact on my educational experiences, I realize that the two teachers that shaped the decision of choosing my major in college, chemical engineering, because in high school two teachers who allowed me to see the possibilities in me to achieve in math and science as a female student. Mrs. Shy, my 10th grade chemistry teacher an African American woman and Mrs. Schpiliberg, my 11th and 12th grade teacher an Columbian-American Women. These women not only provided a environment for me to develop my academic skills in these subjects, but gave me the confidence and encouragement to know that girls can do science and math and I did it so well by receiving no less than a B in both their classes.
As I look at these non profits that are doing great work to help our youth, I wonder how can they truly help these kids learn more, do more and accomplish more if they never see enough people that look like them accomplishing more. I believe that it takes a village to raise a child and that village has to be diverse,it can't exclude people of your own tribe. In order for us to accomplish what we think we can in life, we have to see people who look like us to help us achieve more. When in school, although I had a lot of great mentors, it wasn't until I meet an African American female chemical engineer, that allowed me to explore all the challenges and rewards of being a chemical engineer.
Tomorrow, we start our work with the Cool Girls after-school program and it isn't any coincidence that I am sending volunteers to work with these girls that look like them to engage them in hands on activities in math and science. Although, I will also send people of difference races and nationalities because children who needs to be exposed to people with different backgrounds, religions and cultures than themselves.
So let me rephrase that old African proverb to say" It takes a diverse village to raise a child" and how can we help them be open to share who we are with them and where we have been. But most importantly provide them with the confidence and skills set to be able to not only make all their dreams come true, but be able to be a part of a child's village that comes behind them.
One of the things that I loved about growing up in Miami was the diversity. I grew up with classmates, teachers, neighbors and friends that were from various parts of the country and the world. That experience made me who I am today, because being exposed to the various cultures and people who were different from my background allowed me to be the person I am today and be so willing and open to try new things and meet new people. Although, I know that several of my teachers had an impact on my educational experiences, I realize that the two teachers that shaped the decision of choosing my major in college, chemical engineering, because in high school two teachers who allowed me to see the possibilities in me to achieve in math and science as a female student. Mrs. Shy, my 10th grade chemistry teacher an African American woman and Mrs. Schpiliberg, my 11th and 12th grade teacher an Columbian-American Women. These women not only provided a environment for me to develop my academic skills in these subjects, but gave me the confidence and encouragement to know that girls can do science and math and I did it so well by receiving no less than a B in both their classes.
As I look at these non profits that are doing great work to help our youth, I wonder how can they truly help these kids learn more, do more and accomplish more if they never see enough people that look like them accomplishing more. I believe that it takes a village to raise a child and that village has to be diverse,it can't exclude people of your own tribe. In order for us to accomplish what we think we can in life, we have to see people who look like us to help us achieve more. When in school, although I had a lot of great mentors, it wasn't until I meet an African American female chemical engineer, that allowed me to explore all the challenges and rewards of being a chemical engineer.
Tomorrow, we start our work with the Cool Girls after-school program and it isn't any coincidence that I am sending volunteers to work with these girls that look like them to engage them in hands on activities in math and science. Although, I will also send people of difference races and nationalities because children who needs to be exposed to people with different backgrounds, religions and cultures than themselves.
So let me rephrase that old African proverb to say" It takes a diverse village to raise a child" and how can we help them be open to share who we are with them and where we have been. But most importantly provide them with the confidence and skills set to be able to not only make all their dreams come true, but be able to be a part of a child's village that comes behind them.
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About SEM Link
- SEM Link
- Science, Engineering and Mathematics Link, Inc. (SEM Link), a tax-exempt nonprofit organization, was founded in 2004 on the premise that exposure to members of the science, engineering and mathematics (SEM) communities is critical to student development in math and science. Our mission is to promote student achievement and career exploration in math and science while increasing student exposure to the science, engineering and mathematics communities and enhancing resources that are available at local schools and community organizations. Our two core programs, Math and Science Career Academy and Experimental Design Program, provide students with an opportunity to develop their math and science skills by enhancing the classroom learning experience and teaching them skills that are transferable to other areas of life. We recruit students and professionals for our programs that have backgrounds in science, technology, engineering and mathematics.