Hanscom Air Force Base’s STARBASE Academy has long focused on building children’s confidence in STEM fields. Now �����ؿ���Ƶ State University students are bringing the learning to new heights.

Twenty education majors recently helped teach science, technology, engineering, and math to fifth-grade English learners while improving their own skills as budding teachers.

“I love the hands-on aspects and learning alongside the kids,” said Marissa Exama, ’24, an early childhood education and English major from Gloucester. “I just wanted to step out of my comfort zone.”

The experience, which will involve a second group of students next summer, is funded by a $300,000 grant from the National Science Foundation.

Students took two free courses about teaching English learners and incorporating STEM topics such as viscosity, force, motion, and coding in lessons. Then they used their new skills during weeklong internships at STARBASE. 

“They’ve blown us away with their enthusiasm and passion for this,” said Dr. Jeanne Carey Ingle, an elementary and early childhood education professor coordinating the program with colleague Nicole Glen.

Students developed and taught lessons using books featuring scientists of color and mentored children during challenges such as building bridges from sticks.

As part of the NSF grant, Ingle and Glen are researching how to prepare future educators to teach STEM to students who are not native English speakers.

“There are a lot of opportunities to do STEM where language doesn’t need to be a barrier,” Dr. Glen said.

In one such activity, children from Boston’s Josiah Quincy Elementary School excitedly watched as a robot they coded drove on an oval track. When it veered off course, BSU students helped the children discover why the robot failed.

“They bring inquisitiveness and energy and I think they bring a fresh perspective,” Dr. Peter Holden, director of STARBASE Academy, said of involving �����ؿ���Ƶ students.

Julia Sullivan, ’23, an elementary education and English major from Cambridge, started with minimal STEM experience. Now she sees it as an integral part of teaching.

“The kids really like it and thrive off learning it,” she said. “I’m learning lots of different strategies.”

Grace Martel, ’23, who is from Uxbridge and aspires to become a reading specialist, said the program prepared her for the diverse students she will serve during her career

“I think it was a really good learning experience,” said Grace, who is majoring in early childhood education and psychology and minoring in special education. “It shows how �����ؿ���Ƶ wants to expose education majors to different experiences we might face in the field.”

Do you have a BSU story you'd like to share? Email stories@bridgew.edu.

I think it was a really good learning experience. It shows how �����ؿ���Ƶ wants to expose education majors to different experiences we might face in the field.

A new program will soon be offered at �����ؿ���Ƶ State University to encourage girls to pursue an education in STEM subjects and demonstrate that opportunities exist for women in what have traditionally been male-dominated fields. 

Jennifer Aizenman, director of the Center for the Advancement of STEM Education (CASE), was recently awarded a Community Action Grant from the American Association of University Women to fund the project. 

“This is an opportunity for us to get funding to improve STEM education for students who are underserved,” Aizenman said.

STEM stands for science, technology, engineering, and mathematics. Women have long been underrepresented in these fields.  

The new program, Engineering a Better World, will invite students from Our Sisters’ School, an all-girls school in New Bedford, to work with BSU faculty and undergraduates to learn more about STEM subjects and careers in the field, as well as all BSU has to offer.  

Together with BSU faculty, CASE is in the planning stages of the program, which will be geared toward students in grades 7 and 8.  

As part of the program, set to launch next semester, students will use engineering concepts to better understand how to respond to natural disasters.  

They will explore what considerations are important following natural disasters, such as an earthquake or a building collapse, investigating ways people can still communicate when power is lost and the kinds of public health issues that can result from large-scale events. The program will also investigate preventative measures of such disasters.

“With climate change there is an increase in the frequency of storms,” said CASE Assistant Director Kim McCoy. “Students will look at what can be done to prevent the huge impacts created by natural disasters.” 

The program includes two campus visits, where students will get a glimpse of what college life is like.  

“We won’t just be doing STEM content and hands-on activities, but we also give the students a chance to come and see themselves on a college campus, particularly at BSU where math and science are so strong,” Aizenman said.  

A recent survey indicated that CASE outreach programs, such as science fairs and open lab nights, have drawn students to enroll at BSU.  

“We kept hearing back from students that the reason they came here was because they attended one of our programs,” Aizenman said.  

McCoy believes part of the reason is because CASE uses undergraduates to help run many events. Having that peer-to-peer interaction is key, she said. It also gives undergraduate students the opportunity to serve in leadership positions. 

“We have integrated undergraduate students in as many programs as possible,” Aizenman said. “When students come to campus for STEM career day or science fairs, we make sure we have undergraduates available,” she said. 

According to McCoy, many CASE programs are also taught by retired teachers, adding another layer of community outreach. 

“I love the fact that we are able to generationally impact multiple audiences. From preschoolers to 80-year-olds, we’re having a significant impact on many people’s lives,” she said.  

Engineering a Better World adds another way CASE can continue to be impactful, Aizenman said.

“Our overarching goal is to increase student STEM motivation, improve STEM identity, and increase the interest in STEM careers,” she said. 

Our overarching goal is to increase student STEM motivation, improve STEM identity, and increase the interest in STEM careers.