Research often focuses on urban centers to improve STEM education, but rural communities are frequently left out of the conversation. This is a missed opportunity, as 9.5 million students attend school in rural contexts. While these districts face distinct challenges, like funding gaps and teacher shortages, they also possess an abundance of ingenuity, resourcefulness, and community spirit.
We are launching Envisioning Rural Futures, a one-year initiative to bridge the gap between research and practice by bringing together the people who know rural communities best—educators and local workforce leaders—and connecting them with STEM researchers. Together, we will tackle the pressing problems in rural K-12 STEM education and explore how local ingenuity can shape the way we teach and bolster rural communities.
Our goals for this project are to:
Help researchers understand the actual needs, desires, and strengths of rural schools.
Identify opportunities for place-based learning that connect the classroom to the local economy.
Produce a practical summary and a set of priority questions to re-invigorate STEM education in rural areas nationwide.
Over the next year, Envisioning Rural Futures participants will…
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