It's Contagious! Promoting the Biomedical Workforce Pipeline through Infectious Diseases

Texas Biomedical Research Institute, San Antonio TX

Investigators

Abstract

Enter the text here that is the new abstract information for your application. This section must be no longer than 30 lines of text. To remain a global leader in bioscience research, our country's STEM workforce needs more bioscience professionals. Interventions, from elementary to college, address this need through informative programs that educate students about career opportunities in STEM. However, it's important to note that educators of our future STEM workforce are often not included in these interventions. The lack of engagement with teachers results in a growing gap in knowledge about the STEM workforce pipeline which must be remedied. Innovative classroom interventions are needed to expand student exposure to STEM careers. Further, when teachers are provided the tools to apply research methods to their teaching practices, they are empowered to generate novel interventions to maximally engage their students. The proposed SEPA program, “Teacher Enrichment Initiatives: Teachers as Researchers Promoting the STEM Workforce Pipeline”, will launch two programs: 1) Teachers as Researchers (TaR) and 2) Classroom to Career curriculum. The goal of these programs is to expand teacher and student knowledge of about STEM careers as well as promote teachers' ability to apply a researcher mindset within the classroom. The TaR program addresses a gap in research training for teachers through professional development modules, novel tools and opportunities to engage with colleagues in a Community of Practice (CoP). The Classroom to Career curriculum features STEM professionals and aims to empower students to envision themselves achieving a variety of STEM careers. Teacher participants in these programs will be recruited from our extensive network of teachers and collaborative school districts. These programs will engage cohort teachers as research partners who will create Classroom to Career activities to enhance existing curriculum. Within a CoP, cohort teachers will use evaluation tools to assess their STEM teaching practices. In this way, teachers will help to answer the program's research questions to determine the effect Classroom to Career curricular activities with real world applications have on students' awareness of and interest in STEM careers. This innovative program will have maximum reach through an online platform, serving as a tool to increase student interest and preparation for careers in STEM while providing a valuable means for teachers to engage in TaR modules across the nation and beyond.