The BC researchers include principal investigator G. Michael Barnett, professor of science education and technology in the Lynch School’s Department of Instruction, Curriculum and Society; co-principal investigator Avneet Hira, assistant professor of engineering and Sabet Family Dean’s Faculty member; and co-principal investigator Helen Zhang, research associate professor at the Lynch School.

A total of 60 teachers and nearly 600 high school students will be recruited from historically excluded, low-income and underrepresented populations from rural and urban settings in Massachusetts, Maine and Alabama. Teachers will participate in summer institutes and two years of professional development activities that immerse them in the same transdisciplinary learning experiences their students will eventually experience. Teachers will then co-design their curriculum with the project team for use in their respective local contexts.

Teachers and students will design smart desktop greenhouses by connecting electronic sensors capable of detecting light or other environmental data to microcontrollers that activate plant watering devices and regulate environmental factors such as temperature or humidity. ‘lighting.

“We are grateful to the Schiller Institute for Integrated Science and Society for their incubation funding, as well as to the National Science Foundation for supporting our team’s efforts to continue our work to implement innovative approaches educational materials that motivate and empower young people to learn STEM,” Barnett said.

Zhang said the grant will support the team’s efforts to “build the capacity and confidence of middle and high school teachers to engage students in integrated STEM.”

“It’s exciting to receive support for work that pushes the boundaries of traditional educational practices that often separate learning into disciplinary silos,” Hira said. “Together with our partners, we hope to learn more about how we can create authentic transdisciplinary learning experiences.” »

University of South Alabama collaborators include Shenghua Zha, associate professor in the Department of Counseling and Instructional Sciences, Instructional Design and Development, and Educational Media and Educational Technology; and Na Gong, Warren Nicholson Professor of Electrical and Computer Engineering.

Ruth Kermish-Allen, executive director of the Maine Mathematics and Science Alliance, which seeks to expand equitable access to STEM education and hold educators accountable when teaching science, technology, engineering and mathematics K-12, is also involved.