DMV STEM Learning Ecosystem USA Hosts Kenyan STEM Student Ambassadors
STEM learning expanded some boundaries this summer as 11 Kenyan learners who are STEM ambassadors in their schools traveled to the United States. They were part of an international Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics (STEM) Learning Tour. The tour, whose theme was “Building a Resilient Transport System of the Future”, aimed to inspire and empower the ambassadors in STEM pathways and careers. Prior to their visit to the U.S., the learners had sessions at the Kenya National Library Services headquarters, National Museums of Kenya, ISCHOOLCLIMATE Maker space, and the Kenya Space Agency.
Kenya’s STEM Learning Ecosystem was formed in 2019, the same year it joined the Global STEM Learning Ecosystem Community of Practice, to popularize STEM learning through after-school programs. The Ecosystem brings together organizations, professionals and university students in the STEM field to support learners with STEM activities. The tour was carried out as a collaboration between Kenya’s STEM Learning Ecosystem Community of Practice chapter, led by Dr. Tom Okaya, and the Washington, D.C., Maryland and Virginia (DMC) STEM Learning Ecosystems led by Melvin Stallings. The goal was to provide the learners with a rich, international experience in STEM pathways by visiting sites in Washington, D.C., and its environs such as the Smithsonian Museums, KID Museum, National Administration for Space Agency (NASA), Howard University, and Six Flags, among others.
Dr. Okaya stated that the tour helped the learners experience the design thinking process and practice problem solving and critical thinking as espoused in competence-based curriculum. He explained, too, that a lack of opportunities and spaces in Kenya for learners to deeply engage in STEM through problem solving, design thinking, and artificial intelligence is what motivated him to mobilize funds to organize the tour.
Mr. Stallings, the DMV Ecosystem leader talked to the learners about the opportunities for Kenyan learners to pursue STEM fields in the USA. The participants heard similar encouragement from professionals at NASA headquarters where they learned about STEM practices in space and careers that relate to that field. Another stop at the KID Museum in Bethesda, Maryland, engaged the students in active STEM learning through observation and prototyping at the experiential and educational makerspace.
The STEM Learning Ecosystems are not just stopping at this successful tour. They are committed to fostering more international collaborations and are actively seeking support from science philanthropists, state and non-state organizations. Their vision is to enable more STEM ambassadors to participate in the program, which is planned to be held in April and August of every year. The program also aims to empower about 200 educators in Kenya to nurture the youth in STEM through after school programs. In the long run, the Kenyan Ecosystem aspires to replicate the inspiring spaces they interacted with in the U.S. locally, thereby encouraging more students to participate in STEM learning and careers.
