WPI STEM Education

A great teacher can spark a love of STEM in future generations of students. Thus, STEM Education Center is committed to working with current and future educators to guide relevant, integrated, and inclusive STEM learning experiences with their students and communities. Informed by current education research and by the lived experiences of educators, learners, and community members, we collaborate with others to foster high-quality STEM learning experiences. We extend the impact of WPI’s approach of STEM learning to the formative PreK-12 levels. We believe that everyone has the capacity to do STEM and the values for our work are inspired by Indigenous ways of knowing and doing: Respect: We respect the knowledge and experiences of the educators and schools/organizations we partner with by listening to their needs and goals when developing professional development, trainings, and programs. Relationships: The impact of our work can be measured by the enduring collaborations we have with our partners to develop deeper and broader connections as we work within a STEM learning ecosystem. Reciprocity: Authentic problem-identification and problem-solving in a local context allows for the co-construction of relevant and meaningful knowledge by educators, students, and community members. Responsibility: We have the responsibility to create the conditions for students of all identities to joyfully learn and thus we support culturally and linguistically responsive instruction and practices.

WPI students who are in the teacher preparation program are learning about family and community engagement in Worcester. They are doing their pre-practicum and learning about Worcester. We would like for our students to learn more about Worcester and do community service.