CADASE Webinar Series
Winning African Children Early for Science: Exploring the Impact of African Home/Playground Activities and Folklores(90 min)
February 17, 2022;
5:00-6:30 AM Eastern US Time
The literature on low enrollment of African students in STEM has grown in the last four decades. Within this literature, research gaze has turned to solutions mainly within the formal school system. Curiously, scant attention has been paid to preschool years which the psychology literature has provided replete evidence of being a stage for catching and developing interest and fostering attitude to learning in later life. The desire to close this gap in the literature is the major rationale for this project. The project addressed two questions:
- What cultural folklores, home and playground-based activities of African children are predisposing to the learning of science concepts and early acquisition of scientific attitudes?
- How can the interest of preschool children be stimulated through home and playground activities to enhance the possibility of their future interest in science? The study proceeded in two phases- survey (conducted in four African countries spread across the continent) and case studies of children in rural and urban areas in the four countries.
The pursuit of the answers to the research questions using case studies are align with NARST’s goal to help all learners achieve science literacy, especially in terms of equity. This webinar will communicate specific science education research findings to researchers, practitioners, and policy makers about a group of people that live on one of the largest continents in the world. With a question-and-answer segment during this webinar, participants will be able to seek answers about questions in which they wondered in a ‘safe’ place.
Please contact Peter A. Okebukola at pokebukola@yahoo.com with any questions.
