Poster #61 - Centering Multiplicities of Meanings From Materials in STEAM Professional Development

• In Event: 79.052 - MTCC Poster Session 19
  In Poster Session: 79.052-8 - Informal Learning Environments Research Poster Session

Abstract

While STEAM has gained popularity, there are few formalized professional development opportunities for informal educators. In this paper, we study a STEAM professional development program based on a set of STEAM practices developed in previous work. We focus on the importance of materials, which include the stuff (construction paper, paints, etc.) and the meanings they take on in STEAM learning settings. We explore the question: In what ways can materials support informal practitioners in understanding multiplicities of meanings of STEAM and how it relates to identity and ways of thinking? We show examples of how materials are connected to land and historicity and argue that we must pay attention to this in order to develop more culturally sustaining pedagogies.

Authors

• Blakely K. Tsurusaki, University of Washington Bothell

• Carrie T. Tzou, University of Washington - Bothell

• Laura Conner, University of Alaska Fairbanks