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For some people, memories of high school science lectures aren't filled with excitement and wonder. Today, when the need for skilled workers and critical thinkers in the areas of science, technology, engineering and math is more crucial than ever, many students still deem science learning boring and stale.
MSU researchers have been asking why. And as a result, they're revolutionizing STEM education to make science exciting and interesting to students of all backgrounds and ages.
"Young people love Star Wars and science-related fantasies, but in science class they are distracted and daydream about anything except the subject matter that one day may help those science fantasies become real," says Barbara Schneider, John A. Hannah University Distinguished Chair and renowned sociologist. "Is there a better way to teach science that will capture that imagination and create more interest, which will result in students being more successful in class?"
The materials have been translated into Spanish and are being tested in a California school a mile from the Mexican border. Additionally, materials have been distributed and tested in large urban areas including Detroit and Los Angeles, and also in rural, poor areas. Often the children that come from those areas don't go further in school, and that's a real inequity, says Krajcik.
Now that the researchers are seeing such powerful results, they are ready to take the approach to more classrooms not only across the nation but around the world, preparing more teachers who can make a collective and profound impact on the next generation of science learners. Schneider and Krajcik have been invited to countries around the world, including China, Taiwan and South Africa, to share CREATE's work.
"CREATE for STEM is about all children, no matter what background they come from," says Krajcik. "We're working to help those kids develop the intellectual skills needed to live in our science- and technology-based world. That's what CREATE for STEM is all about."