Sunday, November 20, 2011

Three Months Later!

I can't believe that it has been 3 months since the end of the Research Experience for Teachers program! Time flies! Participating in this opportunity the past summer has pushed my life in a new direction.

This fall I am student teaching at Archbishop Williams High School in the science department. Though I am limited by the fact that I am only a student teacher, I am doing what I can to share my knowledge of STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics). As part of my teaching degree at Boston College,I must design and implement an inquiry research project based on something that I believe is missing or lacking in the classroom. After talking to my 9th graders, I realized that almost none of them are aware of the intricate involvement of STEM in every aspect of their lives. Furthermore, most of my students did not even like science. I therefore created a plan to try and spark their interest in STEM and hopefully increase their interest in science and technology. I also helped plan the annual STEM breakfast at Archies in which we invited professionals in a variety of STEM fields to come and talk to seniors about their careers and schooling. We also had the opportunity to participate in the BU CityLab on the BU Medical Campus a few weeks ago. We were able to talk 3 biology classes into the lab to do either a polymerase chain reaction analysis or an ELISA test. This field trip got many more students interested in the diverse fields of STEM.

In all, I am very thankful I was able to participate in RET this summer. Though my student teaching ends in December, I want to stay involved with STEM outreach programs and AWHS to promote STEM education. This is definitely something that I want to pursue involvement with in the future.