School of Ed joins STEM initiative

Oct. 20, 2011, 2:05 a.m.
School of Ed joins STEM initiative
The Stanford Teacher Education Program (STEP) recently joined the nationwide initiative 100Kin10 designed to improve performances of American K-12 students in science, technology, engineering and mathematics. (MICHAEL KHEIR/The Stanford Daily)

Stanford Teacher Education Program (STEP) joined a nation-wide initiative called 100Kin10, which is designed to improve the performances of American K-12 students in science, technology, engineering and mathematics STEM departments, according to an announcement from the School of Education.

The 100Kin10 program hopes to train 100,000 teachers throughout the next decade in STEM subjects.

STEP and the School of Education plan to educate a minimum of 230 STEM teachers to work in elementary schools, middle schools and high schools throughout the country. STEP also retains doctorate and Ph.D. students in the math and sciences who will travel to these schools to act as regulators and co-teachers in the classrooms.

“Stanford [University] is known for educating outstanding math and science teachers,” said education professor Rachel Lotan, director of STEP. “We are among the very few university-based programs involved in [the initiative].”

Lotan added that the teachers involved in this program will be able to apply their experience to other nation-wide programs to improve the performance of American students. In order to achieve this goal, STEP has developed criteria to measure the STEM teachers’ effectiveness.

Over 80 organizations, in business and in education, have made commitments to help recruit and foster teachers for this initiative. Nearly $20 million was initially pledged to 100Kin10 by foundations and corporations supporting the recruitment of STEM teachers.

100Kin10 was first announced at the Clinton Global Initiative America Meeting in Chicago in 2011. There, former President Bill Clinton urged corporations and foundations to support the initiative. President Barack Obama and Secretary of Education Arne Duncan have also praised the program, encouraging the program’s integrated strategy.

Currently, the United States is lagging behind other countries in the math and sciences, including China and Finland. 100Kin10 will prepare, recruit and support 100,000 teachers over the next 10 years to prepare all American students with the skills needed to excel in both the sciences and mathematics. By improving education in the math and sciences, 100Kin10 hopes to provide students with the tools needed to solve the nation’s current and predicted problems.

Josee Smith

 

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