Premium
Reimagining STEM Education to Create Spaces for Underrepresented Students to Thrive
Author(s) -
Jones Shan
Publication year - 2021
Publication title -
the faseb journal
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.709
H-Index - 277
eISSN - 1530-6860
pISSN - 0892-6638
DOI - 10.1096/fasebj.2021.35.s1.00078
Subject(s) - presentation (obstetrics) , mathematics education , psychology , pedagogy , medicine , radiology
This presentation will highlight a novel, interdisciplinary course for students interested in pursuing an undergraduate degree in STEM. Science, Math, and Research Training (SMART) is a year‐long course that provides first‐year students with a strong foundation in biology, chemistry, calculus, and computer science. These disciplines are integrated in a manner that allows students to develop problem solving skills and to appreciate the value of collaboration and communication across multiple STEM disciplines. SMART is a thematic course that focuses on important and timely issues such as antibiotic resistance and infectious disease. Using these themes, we allow students to see the intersection between science and social justice. In order to provide this type of interdisciplinary training for students, the topics covered during the course of each semester must be limited. This presentation will discuss the means by which the content that is covered in a traditional introductory science course has been stripped down and limited to the most important, foundational concepts. The purpose of this redesign was to provide students with foundational knowledge of science, but also focus on the development of critical thinking and scientific writing skills. The removal of traditional content also allows the instructors to focus on metacognition to allow students to assess their own learning needs. Our goal is for our students to feel empowered to take charge of their own learning and to determine, early on in their scientific career, the strategies that work best for their learning. Furthermore, this course redesign allows for instructors to implement high impact classroom practices as well as inclusive pedagogy techniques that guarantee the success of all students, regardless of their background and preparation in high school. SMART is geared primarily to first generation college students, student from underrepresented backgrounds, and students with a low socioeconomic status. Helping these students develop a sense of belonging and self‐efficacy in STEM is a primary goal of this program.