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Abstract In this article we studied how community educators’ designed for equity in an after school science program. Building from discussions of equity in out‐of‐school‐time (OST) science, this case study offers insight into the role of pedagogy in organizing for dignity and belonging in an after school program. This case study focused on the practices of nine Latinx community educators as they supported science practices in an after school program. Grounded in an understanding of place and the specific cultural, political, and historical densities of life in an agricultural town, the study found that educators created a space of affirmation and care that supported alternative paths to deep engagement in science. The findings add dimensionality to current discourses of equity in OST science and engineering education by examining how historical and political understanding of marginalization informed educators’ pedagogical strategies. These strategies include offering: moment‐to‐moment affirmations of young people's ideas, material and cultural generosity in the Studio, connections to political belonging through science, and extensions from community activities into the after school science inquiries. Together educators created a space of belonging that used science and engineering as entry points for creation, political expression, and intellectual expansion.
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The fish weir: A culturally relevant STEM activity
The Next Generation Science Standards framework focuses on “equity and diversity in science and engineering education,” with a goal that states “equity should be at the forefront of any effort to improve the goals, structures, and practices that support learning and educational attainment of all students.” Thus, curriculum and instructional strategies that are personally meaningful engage students from diverse ethnic and cultural backgrounds. Instructional activities that draw on historical references, descriptions, examples, and analogies are particularly engaging to students typically marginalized from STEM disciplines. The Fish Weir Engineering Challenge provides an example of how cultural and historical STEM practices can form the foundation for science and engineering lessons for Native American students. In this activity, students design, build, and test model fish weirs, a type of fish trap, while exploring how tribal communities have used engineering to adapt fish weirs to accommodate a changing environmental and community.
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- Award ID(s):
- 1139657
- PAR ID:
- 10015373
- Date Published:
- Journal Name:
- Science scope
- Volume:
- 38
- Issue:
- 9
- ISSN:
- 0887-2376
- Page Range / eLocation ID:
- 45-52
- Format(s):
- Medium: X
- Sponsoring Org:
- National Science Foundation
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