Educators from around the globe convened in Atlanta last week for the International Society for Technology in Education conference. They explored new ways to empower students to flourish in a connected world.
With a few taps and swipes on their phones, tablets and computers, today’s students have nearly instant access to much of the world’s information. But with a projected 8.65 million U.S. workers needed by 2018 in the fields of science, technology, engineering and mathematics (collectively referred to as STEM), they need to be more than just consumers. They need to be makers.
Technology helps our students learn and innovate, but it isn’t a one-way street. Tens of thousands of public school students in metro Atlanta, including Clayton County where I’m a high school math teacher, have the potential to create the technology that will help future students.
It’s our responsibility to provide all of our students with access to a high-quality STEM education and opportunities that prepare them to be pioneers.
To help connect more teachers and students with the opportunities and resources to create, Teach For America, Digital Harbor Foundation, Project Lead The Way and STEMConnector are encouraging educators to pledge to be Maker Teachers at www.makerteacher.org.
What is a “maker?” Across the country, people are seeking solutions to everyday problems and identifying new areas of opportunity. Simply put, makers are do-it-yourself types who make things to help advance society – in ways both silly and significant. Interactive “making” can uniquely spark students’ interest in science, technology, engineering and math. A commitment to being a maker teacher means we are committed to equip students with innovative and interactive resources to learn in STEM subjects.
In my North Clayton High School classroom, we approach our math lessons in ways that are culturally relevant. You can feel students’ excitement as they discuss potential solutions to big societal problems in the context of math. As we discuss and learn about functions, students are also talking about rising gas prices and incarceration rates across races. They’re examining what factors contribute to these issues, and debating solutions.
Not only are they exercising their minds in ways that makers, inventors and the world’s problem solvers do, but they are getting excited about math, specifically about functions.
Our teachers and students are, quite literally, inventing us into the future — and it’s critical we provide them with every opportunity to expand their definitions of what is possible. Pledge to become a Maker Teacher to be connected with other trailblazing educators and maker opportunities for your classrooms and schools.
Together, we can develop metro Atlanta’s students into today’s makers and tomorrow’s leaders.
