Language, Culture, and Literacy for African-American Students in STEM classes

National Science Foundation funded study on the Role of Language, Culture, and Literacy for African-American Students in K-12 STEM classes

Anne and Christine conducted a three-year NSF sponsored research project, “Assessing the Results of Sociolinguistic Engagement with K-12 STEM Education in Maryland and Virginia Public and Independent Schools.” We studied the ways in which language plays a role in the educational challenges that often affect culturally and linguistically diverse students in STEM classrooms, focusing on the academic experiences of African-American students. During the three-year grant, we worked with K-12 STEM educators in the Baltimore and Richmond areas to study how these educators learn from professional development workshops on language variation and integrate pedagogy and assessment techniques into their classroom. We worked to figure out what sociolinguistic challenges are being faced by their students and what resources teachers and students need to be able to face those challenges. We also developed a website for STEM K-12 educators to share our findings and resources. We gratefully acknowledge the support of the NSF and the Developmental & Learning Sciences Program in funding this project.

Read more about the project through the links below:

• The official UMBC press release
• The official William & Mary press release
• NSF award description for Christine Mallinson
• NSF award description for Anne Charity Hudley
• Charity Hudley & Mallinson Resources for STEM Educators website

The project has been approved by the William and Mary Human Subjects Committee and the UMBC Institutional Review Board (IRB).

This material is based upon work supported by the National Science Foundation under Grant Number 1050938/ 1051056. Any opinions, findings, and conclusions or recommendations expressed in this material are those of the authors and do not necessarily reflect the views of the National Science Foundation.