{"id":1711,"date":"2018-11-14T23:13:36","date_gmt":"2018-11-15T04:13:36","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/sites.miamioh.edu\/edt431-531\/?p=1711"},"modified":"2018-11-14T23:13:36","modified_gmt":"2018-11-15T04:13:36","slug":"equity-for-all-its-time","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/sites.miamioh.edu\/exemplary-science-teaching\/2018\/11\/equity-for-all-its-time\/","title":{"rendered":"Equity for All – It’s Time"},"content":{"rendered":"

It’s no secret that women and minorities in STEM fields are lacking. Though many focus on the lack of women in these fields, it is\u00a0really\u00a0<\/em>important to also look at how minorities are represented. A startling statistic from 2006 shows that 73% of scientists and engineers are white.
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73%<\/strong><\/h1>\n

\u00a0<\/strong>Between black, Hispanic, and other groups, only 10%<\/strong> had STEM related\u00a0careers.<\/p>\n

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Just this one statistic shows that it is clear that access to these career fields is not as accessible to minority groups than it is white people. This is not the only implication though. This lack of minorities and women in STEM fields means that we are missing so many different viewpoints<\/strong> and ideas<\/strong> based on lived experiences of different types of people with different backgrounds. All of that creativity and innovation is being stifled because of a lack of representation<\/strong>.\u00a0 We as educators need to make sure that our classrooms promote equity among men, women, minorities, and everyone in between.<\/p>\n

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Despite the lack of representation of minorities, it is also important to address the tangible implications of having a primarily white male population of scientists.<\/p>\n

According to a number of Harvard studies:<\/p>\n

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  1. Women physicists will make on average 6% less than men if they are identical in every other way.<\/li>\n
  2. Undergraduate males consistently rank their female classmates as less knowledgeable about science course content than their male counterparts, even when the females outperform them.<\/li>\n
  3. Professors tend to respond more often to potential Ph.D. students when they are white male names than if they are women or men and women of color.<\/li>\n
  4. Women need more publications to be considered successful in the science realm.<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n

    This video does a great job of explaining some reasons for why women are not more involved in STEM fields as well as some statistics about the underrepresentation.<\/p>\n

    https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/watch?v=fQyCBTDproE<\/a><\/p>\n

    The lack of women and minorities in STEM fields is honestly a tragedy. A start to help promote STEM to these groups needs to happen in schools\u00a0before\u00a0<\/em>college. Teachers have a HUGE impact on their students, often even larger than they realize.<\/p>\n

    Some things you as a teacher can do to help promote STEM are:<\/p>\n

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    1. Actively encourage participation<\/em> in science topics, lessons, labs, and questions from\u00a0all<\/em> of your students, not just the ones who feel comfortable participating.<\/li>\n
    2. When introducing\u00a0new topics, be sure to point out scientists that don’t fit the white male stereotypical model. If students can see themselves<\/em> in someone else doing incredible things, they will be far more likely to pursue a similar path.<\/li>\n
    3. Encourage students to come to talk to you for guidance<\/em> about how to get involved<\/em> in STEM.<\/li>\n
    4. Become a faculty advocate<\/em> for STEM experiences. One thing that my Biology teacher in high school did was arrange for local doctors to let students shadow them for a day or several days to learn about their profession. If possible, reach out to professionals that are minorities or women.<\/li>\n
    5. Ask alumni from the school to come and talk to current students about opportunities<\/em> and potential career paths<\/em> that these students have taken and how they can achieve those things too.<\/li>\n
    6. Involve<\/em> yourself<\/em> in clubs that promote STEM such as a robotics club or cybersecurity club. Help these clubs stay alive and help them to become a place that students can thrive, especially those students that may be hesitant because of their ethnicity or gender.<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n

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      We NEED to work as a society to fix the underrepresentation of women and minorities in STEM fields. This needs to start in schools with equity emphasized. @AnnMacKenzie<\/a> #scienceteaching<\/a> #edt431<\/a> https:\/\/t.co\/vDZuyEKEjL<\/a><\/p>\n

      — Margaux Haiber (@margaux_haiber) November 15, 2018<\/a><\/p><\/blockquote>\n