We are still in our first year of getting this project off the ground and we are seeking input on many aspects of our program. Here are a few questions that we brainstormed during our most recent project staff meeting. We are interested in your feedback to these questions -- or any other aspect of our project.

1. What are your recommendations for programs or professional development opportunities that our STEM minors in early childhood education (undergraduate students) should pursue?
2. What are the suggested venues for presentations or potential publications that we should consider? (We are already engaged in ITEEA, NSTA, and NCTM...to name a few.)
3. What specific resources do you have to recommend that might support our research efforts?

Thanks for your feedback and support!

Thanks for viewing our video! We appreciate any feedback or suggestions you have for us regarding our project!

Thanks for the video, Sharon and Jennifer. You have me excited about your project! As for resources, check out the New York Hall of Science (NYSci) at http://nysci.org/ Through an Investing in Innovation grant and others they are researching how to integrate STEM learning in classrooms in engaging and student-centered ways. One of the researchers in particular, Harouna Ba, specializes in learning through play. 

Others? 

Sharon and Jennifer, Great concept! I'd love to learn more about the integrative STEM minor and especially how the five research-based elements are enacted. With respect to PBL, for example, I'd worked years ago with IMSA's PBL model, and more recently with the Buck Institute's "Gold Standard". So I am very interested in how you incorporate research on PBL (etc.) into the clinical experiences and praxis of the  program. I am in awe.

Hi Sharon and Jennifer - like, Stephen, I would love to hear more about the integrative STEM minor. Is this minor only available for students who attend Millersville University? What is involved in students achieving a STEM minor?

Hello Sharon and team,

I was excited to hear about this project. In our work, we are aiming to eventually develop instructional materials that help teachers deliver integrated math + CS instruction for K-5. We plan to make the materials educative, but acknowledge that integrated teaching will also require both in-service and pre-service professional development. This is really interesting and I really look forward to reading more about your work.

I'm wondering if you have any data or even just thoughts on how your students have applied the integrative STEM minor in their teaching. Have schools in general been supportive in allowing teachers to try out integrative approaches? Does it help to have a school culture that allows for integrative teaching, and do you have thoughts on how such a culture can be fostered? We're lucky enough to work with a school that has taken math + CS integration on as part of the school identity, but I've often wondered about the extent of the impact of the school-wide support.

Hi Katie - 

These are all great questions.  We are in year 1 of our grant and we are beginning to collect data to answer these questions.  

One initial impression I can share is from a professional development iSTEM environmental education program we hosted called Stream to Sky. During this professional development program,  the richness of the participants' conversation and depth of their discussion was enhanced because the program was purposefully designed to have 1/2 pre-service teachers and 1/2 inservice teachers in attendance.  This mix of novice and expert was truly valuable. 

This is awesome!  I look forward to hopefully hearing more about this minor.  Not only am I a 2nd grade educator in a local school, but I also am the coordinator for our afterschool program that is a science based program aimed at students in 3rd-5th grade that we want to provide additional support in reading and math in order to get them to the proficiency/advancement mark.  As a coordinator I am always looking for ways to provide exciting and engaging ideas/concepts for not only our students but our teachers as well.  I am eager to hear more about this minor and some of the ideas that you all have for integrating STEM into schools in more than just a science way.

I've been thinking more about your questions on where to present and publish. I did a search and came up with this list of National and Texas STEM educator conferences: http://www.vivifystem.com/blog/2016/1/16/stem-e... Here is MSPNet's listing of 2017-2018 STEM Conferences: http://hub.mspnet.org/index.cfm/stem_conf And I've heard of presenting at STEM Lab conferences, such as in Boston or MIT. Also AERA 

Having your students present as they do in the video seems a great way of spreading the word. 

Do others have ideas for where to present or publish? 

Another interest of mine in learning more about the STEM minor, is the pipeline issue. To what extent are entering secondary prepared to teach in integrative ways?

Can you tell us what prompted you to start this program? Is there research or experiences you could share that helped you decide that you wanted to focus on this? 

Could I make one note about the video? Although I thought the content was great, is it possible for you to lessen the volume of the music, a lot? For me it was a bit distracting, and people with ears like mine would appreciate a quieter background so we can better grasp and understand the main focus, the content. 

Not taking away from my being impressed with the program and the rest of the video, however! :- ) 

Hi Millersville STEM Team:

This is a very compelling project!  How many undergraduate students do you expect to go through it each year, both during the piloting and then once the project is completed?  Also, out of curiousity, is there a particular reason why this project is pegged as PK-4 rather than PK-5?