The Equity and Ethics (E&E) Committee would like to take this opportunity to share our plans for the upcoming NARST 2017 Annual International Conference in San Antonio. We are inspired by the many connections between the conference theme (Glocalization and Sustainability of Science Education Research and Practice) and our work, as can be seen in the session descriptions below.

We thank all E&E Committee members as well as the NARST members and staff who are working to make these events happen. We look forward to seeing you at one or more of them in San Antonio!

Pre-Conference Workshop

The E&E Committee sponsors this annual pre-conference workshop to explore more deeply the conference theme in a welcoming environment. We invite you to join us in what will undoubtedly be a stimulating and productive session. Participation in this workshop is free but do register in advance to secure a space.

Glocalization and Sustainability of Science Education Research and Practice

Globalization and sustainability in science education has increasingly received attention among educators, researchers, and policymakers. Cultivating a scientifically literate citizenry has been tied to the concepts of globalization and sustainability. As highlighted in NARST’s conference theme description, glocalization represents a dual perspective that combines the ideals of globalization with the importance of localization. Pre-conference workshop participants will engage in constructive and meaningful dialogue with leading science education scholars about the influences of glocalization on educators’, researchers’, and policymakers’ efforts to build and sustain scientific literacy within local contexts for a global citizenry. Through an equity and ethics lens, this workshop will pay special attention to understanding the concepts of glocalization, sustainability, and scientific literacy; exploring how these concepts have been used within science education practice, research, and policy; and critiquing the benefits and limitations glocalization and sustainability offer the science education community. Dialogue between and among workshop participants and leading science education scholars will be facilitated through roundtable and panel discussions.

New Scholars Symposium

The E&E Committee sponsors this annual interactive poster session for the previous year’s Basu scholars. With the theme, Equity and Excellence in Science Education, thirteen of the recipients of 2016 Basu Scholars Awards will present exciting and compelling research (titles and names below). These scholars bring diverse educational perspectives that will shape science education, and they present new approaches to help us understand challenges and successes of science teachers, students, and programs.

• A Case of Design Based Online Teacher Professional Development to Introduce Integration of STEM – Tasneem Anwar, University of Minnesota
• How Science Teacher Educators of Color Conceptualize and Operationalize their Pedagogy in Science Methods Courses – Sumreen Asim, University of North Texas
• The Perspectives and Experiences of African American Students in an Informal Science Program – Dominique Bulls, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill
• Elephant in the Classroom: Social Positioning of Emergent Bilingual Students and Implications on Science Identity Development – Shakhnoza Kayumova, University of Massachusetts Dartmouth
• In the Midst of a Disaster: A Critical Analysis of Relationships between Science Curriculum Development, Implementation, and Local Environmental Injustice Crises – Corey Knox, University of Arizona
• The Impact of Place-based Case Studies on Student Learning and Affect in Introductory Biology – Lynnsay Marsan, University of Texas at El Paso
• Gendered Performance Differences in Introductory STEM Courses are Consistent Across Five Universities – Rebecca Matz, Michigan State University
• STEM Story-Telling Online Resource for Inclusive EnvironmentS (STEM STORIES) – Ayana McCoy, University of Massachusetts Boston
• Science Teacher Identity Development Through a Black Feminist Lens: Stories of Resilience, Resistance, and Struggle for Recognition – Olayinka Mohorn, University of Illinois at Chicago
• Examining the Influence of Physics Focused Professional Development on Advanced Placement Teachers – A Case Study – Justina Ogodo, University of Alabama
• The Use of a Sociocultural Construct to Examine Four Hispanic High School Students’ Experiences in a Lunar Research Program – Catherine Quinlan, Teachers College Columbia University
• Pre-Service Science Teachers in Culturally Diverse Classrooms – Suzanna Roman, Georgia State University
• Middle School Teachers’ Experiences with Engineering Design Projects – Diane Silva Pimentel, University of New Hampshire
• Supporting English Language Learners and At-Risk Students in STEM – Enrique Suarez, University of Colorado Boulder

E&E Committee Sponsored Session

The Equity & Ethics Committee Administrative Session for the 2017 conference will be a panel discussion on the topic of diversity and equity in science education from a global perspective, as described below. The topic is a continuation of the discussion at the 2016 session. Based on feedback from the 2016 participants, the session will be more interactive.

Addressing the Challenges of Science Teaching and Learning in a Glocal Context: Informing Practices in Equity and Ethics

Currently, there are numerous challenges to science teaching on both a national and global level. As highlighted in the 2011 special Issue of the Journal of Research in Science Teaching, it is critical to promote scientific literacy for children across the world. Science teaching and learning does not occur in a vacuum, and the context of how children experience science across the world on a local level and within their own communities has implications on a global level. Moreover, there are many challenges to science teaching, and it is essential to emphasize the need for all science communities (e.g. science educators, policymakers, teachers, researchers) to share best practices in science teaching and learning that bridge global science and local science. This Equity& Ethics Committee Sponsored Symposium will feature a panel designed to share challenges and solutions to bridging global and local science while promoting sustainability. Panel members will facilitate small break-out interactive sessions, and a moderator will conclude the symposium with an overview and recommendations for “next steps.”

Moderator:

• Miri Barak, Israel Institute of Technology, Israel

Panel members:

• Yehudit Judy Dori, Israel Institute of Technology, Israel
• Marcelle Siegel, University of Missouri, USA
• Peter A. Okebukola, Lagos State University, Nigeria
• Sonya Martin, Seoul National University, Republic of Korea
• Alejandro Gallard, Georgia Southern University, USA

Annual Social Action Project: Book Drive

We are excited to adopt two K-5 schools in the San Antonio area. We are encouraging NARST members to donate books for these schools to the E&E Book Drive. A Google Drive form will be populated by classroom teachers, indicating books they would like to have. NARST members are asked to purchase these and bring them to the annual conference in San Antonia or mail them directly to the school. The Wish List is available at: http://bit.ly/NARSTEEBookDrive

Equity Dinner: Brazilian Steak or Chilean Sea Bass

The E&E Committee is pleased to announce that Equity Dinner will be held on Monday, April 24, at Fogo de Chão San Antonio (https://fogodechao.com/location/san-antonio), located near the famous River Walk, 3 minutes-walk from the Grand Hyatt. Space is limited so be sure to purchase your ticket when you register for the 2017 conference.