​ STEM Ambassadors lead the way for future training

During two nights of presentations on the evenings of March 22-23, teachers presented their final projects showing how they taught STEM related lessons to their students, sharing how their students responded to the lessons, and noting what they might do different next time.

There was a lot of enthusiasm as teachers said their students delighted in using BeeBots and other robotic tools or even something as low tech as donuts. Some said the entire process was intimidating, but also fun and they look forward to incorporating more STEM lessons in their classroom.

The presentations were a culmination of a STEM Ambassadors pilot program offered through the Mercy College Center for STEM Education. As many as 50 teachers took part in the symposium from public schools in Ossining, New Rochelle, White Plains, Tarrytown, Port Chester, and Elmsford.

Chris Demattia, director of Science, Technology, Engineering and Math, at Ossining High School served as the lead in his district and the county. He worked with Mercy College to coordinate all the participating districts.

Mr. Demattia said the program was made possible through a five-year Start Smart grant funded through the state which will provide $250,000 annually. Each teacher was also provided with $750 to purchase supporting materials for their lessons.

The purpose of the program, he said, was to support teachers in integrating STEM into their K-8 classrooms.

“This was the first cohort,” Mr. Demattia said. “We will soon start recruiting for the following year. Our goal is to send 10 teachers each year from Ossining.”

Teachers were divided into groups and selected an article about STEM in the classrooms that interested them. Using the article and their chosen New York State K12 Computer Science and Digital Fluency Learning Standard, they created a lesson for their students and documented their experience.

Lindsay Valentine, Library Media Specialist at Park Early Childhood Center and Roosevelt School, said her group used an article about coding apps to teach all literacies and content areas. Although it might not seem like a librarian would need to teach lessons on STEM, Ms. Valentine said, “part of my role as LMS in my buildings is to teach STREAM classes (Science, Technology, Research, Engineering, Arts, Math) to kindergarteners and fifth graders. When I heard about the program, it seemed like the perfect opportunity to learn about strategies and tools to enhance what is already happening in Ossining.”

“A large part of STEM is collaboration,” she continued. “This program offers the unique opportunity to network with area educators who are also interested in STEM. With the responsibilities of teaching, it can be difficult to find time to get a pulse on what is happening within your own building let alone surrounding school districts, but this program allows you to see what other enthusiastic educators are doing and hear about what is working or how it can be better.”

Most of the Ossining UFSD participants presented on March 23. Mr. Demattia was there to support them and their colleagues.

“You guys have brought it to life, and that is unbelievable,” Mr. Demattia said following all the presentations on that night referring to the Smart Start grant.

“The essence of this is ‘how do we get the students eyes to light up,’” he said. “A brighter future is what I saw in your presentations.”

“This was an amazing opportunity for our teachers to learn more about STEM and how to facilitate lessons in their classrooms,” Ossining Superintendent Ray Sanchez said. “I am very appreciative of our staff who took the time for professional development and for Mercy College for providing this opportunity. It will only help to further our efforts to develop 21st century learners.”

Amanda Gunning, PhD, Associate Professor of Secondary Education and Co-director of the Center for STEM Education, at Mercy College, together with Professor Meghan Marrero ran the program which began in September.

“A lot of these teachers are not STEM teachers; they are regular classroom teachers. To add these kinds of activities with their kids was out of their comfort zone,” Dr. Gunning said. “How they pushed themselves was so inspiring.”

“The teachers’ presentations highlighted how they have made computer science and engineering accessible to all learners, including those at diverse ability levels," said Dr. Marrero. "All learners have been engaged in authentic problem solving solving and critical thinking opportunities.”

The concept for the program dates to 2019 and Dr. Gunning and her colleague knew it was a model that could work. Last year when Ossining became the lead district on the grant, it was time to move forward.

The program was conducted like a graduate course with two groups of participants attending on different days of the week. They had to navigate through COVID-19 guidelines, sometimes not being able to meet in person. The program consisted of a lot of hands-on activities, Dr. Gunning said, and attention focused on computer science such as coding, robotics, and new state standards.

Not all students in the participating district have opportunities to engage with computers, many are English language learners and having these opportunities in school is important, Dr. Gunning said.

“This is a mission to get these kinds of experiences for every child,” she said, “so they can be decision makers in the future. To be digitally literate and an informed member of society.”

For teachers interested in being a part of the next cohort, look for an application to be posted on the Mercy College website in April.