STEM for All: Breaking Down Barriers

Dr Rosetta Romano, Assistant Professor Information Technology and Systems, University of Canberra.

Dr Rosetta Romano is an Assistant Professor of IT and Systems at the University of Canberra, focusing on improving learning outcomes for under-represented groups. She is lead-researcher in projects including cyber security for small businesses; tech-facilitated domestic abuse for women; and Indigenization of the IT curriculum for students.

Through this article, Romano emphasizes the importance of equity, diversity, and innovation in STEM education, advocating for a student-centered approach that values different learning styles and empowers learners to understand the systems that shape their world.

I was in the Australian Public Service and utilized the study assistance program for many years. Joining academia was a pivotal moment in my career journey. The skills I developed working in large, complex environments enable me to think about everything big. Big data, big problems, and small ways we can impact parts of the systems that impact other systems. 

Challenges in Introducing STEM Programs

My research and teaching interests are about making the invisible visible (or at least transparent). I would like my students to understand that the systems you may not have been designed to ensure equity, equality, and fairness, and you should do your best to understand this. Are you being taught from a colonized curriculum that makes no room for other learning styles? Has the AI you are experimenting with been trained on information that favors an American and male standpoint? Maybe overcoming these issues is not possible, but raising awareness about them is. At the University of Canberra, we have indigenousized the IT curriculum and promoted that other learning styles are valid.

Building Strong Teacher-Learner Relationships

Respect for knowledge that learners bring with them is important. Higher education gives you the tools to understand and study the knowledge, acknowledge how it was developed, how it is used by others, and how you use it to build further knowledge for yourself, your discipline or the world. As we tackle big contemporary IT issues that have no single solution, it is worthwhile reflecting on how we learn and others learn so that we can influence or be influenced by others. Respecting the different ways and making room for them is how diversity leads to innovation. Embracing diversity in our teams of teaching, learning and researching promotes innovation.

“The options for learning are also expanding to provide student-focused learning as individuals can opt for short courses, micro credentials, self-learning, as well as the traditional Bachelor and Higher Education qualifications.”

Trends in STEM Education

The STEM education domain is reflecting on its place and space in a world that has so many options. Our place no longer determines where we learn and the opportunities that e-learning is offering are enormous. The options for learning are also expanding to provide student-focused learning as individuals can opt for short courses, micro credentials, self-learning, as well as the traditional Bachelor and Higher Education qualifications. The University of Canberra is embracing e-learning and different options for learning that place the students at the center of learning. 

Advice for STEM Teachers

Teachers bring their values with them. Those who have empathy for their students and who maintain a student-focused approach in the STEM field will be supporting students to develop resilience and success in their studies and roles they will fulfill in their lives.

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