Get the Facts Out Features Assistant Dean Weir in Newsletter

All incoming first-year, first-semester students at Montclair State University must enroll in a one-credit New Student Seminar course. Students are enrolled into a college/school specific section, which may further be major/program specific (i.e., students majoring in biology will be enrolled in the same New Student Seminar sections). In the beginning of the Fall 2023 semester, I reached out to the instructors of our College of Science and Mathematics sections and requested a brief visit to have a discussion about STEM teacher education. Over the course of the semester, I was able to visit more than eighteen of our sections (twenty-three total) and have discussions with more than 600 students about the importance of (and opportunities in) STEM education.

At each session, I began by asking students if they had ever thought about becoming a teacher? One maybe two hands would raise. I followed that up with some reflection questions. For example, I asked how many of them had ever been supported by a teacher? Inspired by a teacher? Encouraged by a teacher? Listened to/heard by a teacher? How many had their interest in STEM begin with a teacher? As you can imagine, many, many more hands were raised. In fact, although I didn’t do an official count, almost all students in every section had their hand raised after the reflection questions. I felt it was important for the students to acknowledge the valuable roles teachers play in the lives of students.

I then went on to discuss career opportunities available to students who enroll in and graduate from a STEM TE program and busting many of the myths they’ve heard about the profession. Students received a handout (developed by GFO) that included average salaries, housing costs, etc. for some of our surrounding districts. We engaged in a dialogue about teachers’ level of satisfaction with their lives, available scholarships to assist with educational costs, number of vacancies, job security, opportunities for paid professional development and more.

In the coming fall term, we will more fully develop our outreach plan, with the goal of visiting each of our New Student Seminar course sections.