Grounded. Equitable. Transformative.
STEM and maker learning programs and spaces should be grounded, equitable, and transformative for justice-oriented youth experiences and outcomes. A grounded STEM and maker culture centers community expertise and wisdom first and foremost. Equitable maker opportunities support deepening STEM & maker knowledge/practices by connecting and integrating making with community contexts and concerns. Transformative making fosters consequential youth outcomes in STEM by disrupting systemic community injustices through youth agency, identity, and power.
The GET STEM Collaborative is a multi-institutional partnership focused on justice-oriented research and design to develop equitable and consequential STEM-rich maker learning with communities and in community-owned spaces. We explore a) how/why youth engage in STEM-rich making towards new social futures; b) pedagogies and designs for STEM-rich making developed with BIPOC youth, immigrant and refugee youth, and youth from low-income communities; and c) approaches/tools/frameworks to support justice-oriented maker culture.
Access Research + Practice Briefs from our teams, learn about our work both in and outside of schools, and contact us to start a conversation about collaborative possibilities.