February 2009
STEM Equity Pipeline News
NAPE NEWS
Register for the 2009 NAPE & Women Work! Professional Development Institute, March
29 to April 1, 2009.
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Register
NAPE will hold its STEM Equity Pipeline State Leadership Institute in conjunction
with this conference. The institute will include a dessert reception, a strand of
workshops and sessions focusing on equity in STEM education, and a session for state
teams to share accomplishments, receive technical assistance, and conduct future
planning.
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STATE NEWS
Wisconsin is pleased to announce that Lakeshore Technical College (LTC) has been
selected as a pilot participant for the STEM Equity Pipeline 5-Step Improvement
Project. High School representatives from the Manitowoc School District, Sheboygan
North and South, and Plymouth High School will be working with the team from LTC.
ARTICLES
A Jobs Bill for the College-Educated
(Doug Ledermen, Inside Higher Ed)
The economic stimulus package that President Obama signed last week has been compared
by supporters and many a commentator to the depression-era Works Progress Administration.
The stimulus legislation, like its predecessor, is designed to create and save jobs
especially for men and lesser-educated Americans who-because they tend to be disproportionately
represented in lower-skill jobs-tend to be affected most powerfully by economic
downturns. But much as the rhetoric surrounding the stimulus legislation has portrayed
it as focusing on creating jobs related to "shovel ready" infrastructure and other
projects, significant numbers of the jobs that will be either created or saved by
the financial package will require at least some kind of college degree.
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Information
Learning Goes Techno
A student uses a video camera, Apple software IMovie and classmates' willingness
to perform to create a story of Julius Caesar's life. A history class studies a
war while a geometry teacher helps students make and read a map of the battlefields.
An English class blogs along to the book they are reading. These are examples of
the kinds of project-based learning that could be taking place within Marion Harding
High School's STEM program that will be launched during the 2009-2010 school year.
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In Science and Technology, Efforts to Lure Women Back
(Sue Shellenbarger, The Wall Street Journal)
It will come as no surprise that many career re-entry programs, designed to help
at-home mothers return to the work force, are disappearing, victims of hard times
among the Wall Street firms and banks that led the so-called on-ramping trend. But
a new bright spot is emerging. Small, innovative return-to-work programs are springing
up in other sectors specifically in STEM. Prospects for long-term job growth in
these fields are relatively good, and many employers expect a talent shortage, partly
because of high quit rates among experienced women.
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It's Girls Day at Google
Google recently celebrated Introduce a Girl to Engineering Day, or Girls Day, as
part of National Engineers Week. For the second year in a row, Google partnered
with the National Girl Scouts to bring girls to six Google offices around the country,
where they participated in fun activities designed to educate them about engineering,
specifically computer science. Googlers, many of them Google Women Engineers, are
hosting the guests of honor and leading workshops covering all kinds of topics,
including solar powered energy, image processing and a demo of Google Earth.
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Generating Public Consensus and Urgency for STEM Education
(Patrick Richards, EdNews)
In this editorial, Patrick R. Riccards writes that states and school districts must
move into a mode of advocacy and social marketing on behalf of Science-Technology-Engineering-Mathematics
(STEM) education, "effectively linking K-12 education and economy and demonstrating
the urgency for improvement to both."
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Mommas Don't Let Their Babies Grow Up to Be Engineers
(Article by Denise Dubie, ITworld.com. Summary from 2/10/09 ACTE Career Tech Update)
"More than 85% of students today aren't considering careers in engineering," according
to a recent survey from the American Society for Quality. The study found "that
interest in engineering careers has waned significantly, with a majority (44%) of
respondents citing a lack of knowledge around engineering as the top reason they
would not pursue such jobs. Another top reason kids don't consider a career in high-tech
involves the 'geek' perception for 30%, who indicated engineering would be a boring
career."
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Help Wanted: US Teens Need Science and Engineering Mentors
(Matt Ford)
A recent survey found that US teens are interested in careers in science, engineering,
and mathematics. It also found that a large percentage of them feel discouraged
from attempting such careers due to the simple fact that they lack any sort of mentor.
If you're a scientist or engineer who would like to help change this, Ars is here
to show you the way.
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Study: Students Must Learn Scientific-Reasoning Skills
(ScienceDaily)
College freshmen in China know more about science than their U.S. counterparts,
but neither group is particularly good at scientific reasoning, according to a new
study of more than 6,000 students at seven universities, published in the journal
Science. "Even when students are rigorously taught the facts, they don't necessarily
develop the reasoning skills they need to succeed," said lead author Lei Bao.
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Gender Bias Found in Student Ratings of High School Science Teachers
(ScienceDaily)
A study of 18,000 biology, chemistry and physics students has uncovered notable
gender bias in student ratings of high school science teachers.
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RESOURCES
SAVE THE DATE
"Partners on the Path to Equity"
March 29-April 1, 2009
Arlington, VA
"The Five-Step Program Improvement Process Step Five: Implement Solutions"
March 11, 2009
2:00 PM ET
"Women: Leading the Future of Technology"
Baltimore, MD
March 12, 2009
"Center Stage: Effective Strategies for Recruitment and Talent Development"
Austin, TX
June 17-19, 2009
"Center Stage: Effective Strategies for Recruitment and Talent Development"
Oakland, CA
August 3-5, 2009