Confronting Extremism through Culturally Responsive Pedagogies in a STEM Educator Program

Project team: Dr. Adriana Villavicencio, Dr. Doron Zinger, Socorro Cambero

Abstract

The underrepresentation of marginalized students in STEM is a serious equity issue. Teachers can play a pivotal role in addressing this issue, especially through the preparation they receive during teacher preparation programs. We propose a pedagogical program offered to students enrolled in CalTeach, a 4-year baccalaureate plus credential program at UCI interested in developing their STEM pedagogies in ways that promote equity and combat extremism. Participants will engage in weekly activities foregrounded on principles that can promote equity including reading circles, group dialogue and critical reflection journaling. This program can impact the pedagogical practices of future educators. This program can also inform STEM education scholarship and be a model for teacher preparation programs beyond UCI aiming to combat extremism and promote equity.

Project Activities 

The pedagogical training program consists of 3 modules. Module one during Fall 2021 engaged participants in critical examination of topics relating to equity and extreme ideologies in education and their roles as teachers through reading circles, group dialogue, and critical reflection journaling. This past Fall 2021, we based the reading circle on content discussed in This Book Is Anti-Racist, by Tiffany Jewell. To deeply engage, participants discussed how their personal histories inform their navigation of various spaces in the world, including institutional settings, and how their learnings from their personal experience and the reading circle can inform their role as future teachers. The plan for Module two during Winter 2022 is focused on applying knowledge to practice through journaling that addresses how teachers can practice equity through curricula and their relationships. Participants will continue to read together following the format from module one during the first half of the session and focus on practitioner-facing journals during the second half of the session. Module three during Spring 2022 will focus on practices through vision statements, equity plans, and lesson plans. Participants will engage in a reading for the first half of the session and work on vision statements and lesson plans both independently and in collaboration with others during the second half of the meetings.