Math and Science

Students with math and science skills are more likely to go to college.  Educators who empower students from disadvantaged backgrounds with math and science skills have a profoundly positive impact upon the future potential of those students. 

Multicultural adaptations to math and science instruction help to bridge the gaps between students' cultural backgrounds and the academic content.  There are many ways to adapt math and science curriculum, including:

 

• Assess the learning style of students and adapt instruction accordingly
• Teach the math and science contributions of people from multiple cultural backgrounds, such as Arabic and Mayan contributions to numbers and astronomy
• Incorporate experiential activities
• Emphasize the real-world applications and benefits of the content material
• Create a positive and enthusiastic environment where students have positive experiences with math and science
• Understand your own biases about who is able to understand and comprehend math and science – and provide opportunities to all learners

 

The following links provide examples, ideas, and organizations for educators. 

 

Effective ESL Classroom Practices

Links

African Americans in Science

• This site provides useful profiles on African Americans that have made a significant contribution to the fields of chemistry, biology, scientific inventions, engineering, and mathematics.

4000 years of Women in Science

• Complete with photographs and biographies, this site indexes famous female scientist for the past 4000 years.

Exploratorium

• For those in the classroom who may be more of a hands-on learner, this site provides many great activities online as well as teachers' references to help their students learn to appreciate science.

NASA

• This site allows teachers and students alike to explore the world of space travel. Practically useful are the biographical sketches of the NASA employees.

Multicultural Environmental Education Actives

• Whether it is teaching about the ozone layer or about not littering, this site provides many multiculturally sensitive ideas.

American Indian Science and Engineering Society

• This organization helps to provide resources for American Indians and Alaskan Natives who are interested in exploring the fields of science and engineering.

Checklist for Multicultural Mathematics

• This site includes questions that can be helpful for anyone integrating multiculturalism into a math curriculum.

Math Forum

• This site has many great links and ideas within it about math education and multicultural approaches.

Multicultural Math Fair

• This website is full of activities that integrate multiculturalism into mathematics.