Pop Culture, Inclusion and STEM Education

The New Year began with great excitement for me. I had the opportunity to be interviewed by Scholastic's Science World about our contribution focused on Black Panther, Vibranium and the Periodic Table. Scholastic's Science World is read by over a million students worldwide, so this is just awesome! In addition to the interview article, there are lesson plans aligned with the Next Generation Science Standards (NGSS), which allow students to focus on where to classify the fictional vibranium (Vb) metal based on evidence, draw conclusions and then share their ideas. Thus, our work is being used to help students learn to engage in arguments from evidence, which is an important skill all students need to develop.

As an educator, I have always used pop culture, history, and music to make connections to classroom content. Several years ago, I published a short paper focused on using iPods to teach electrochemistry concepts for a general chemistry class, which was a lot of fun for me. Obviously, iPods could now be considered "vintage" like eight-track tape players because most people use their phones to listen to music today. However, cell phones can certainly be useful to engage students in the classroom too. 

I love the subjects of history and history of science and I would often try to make connections to classroom content, with the goal of celebrating the important contributions of women and scientists of color. One semester, I was teaching a freshman course (First Year Seminar) with the theme "Science, Race and Gender," which was a great experience for me. One assignment focused on the students reading my essay African Americans and Science, which was published in Chemical and Engineering News. The students were asked to critically evaluate my essay, identifying the thesis statement, and any evidence I used to support the thesis. As I recall, the students enjoyed critiquing my work! Educators must use creative approaches to engage the next generation. What is my take home message? #InclusionMatters


Comments

  1. UnknownFebruary 12, 2019 at 8:45 AM

    You are a genius and recent research indicates children get their intelligence from their mothers. I believe it Dr. Collins

    ReplyDelete

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