RGV STEM Education Consortium
7th Annual STEM ED
Conference
February 26 and 27, 2024
The Inaugural Multi-site & Multilingual Synchronous conference (University of Texas Rio Grande Valley, Cinvestav Unidad Monterrey, Universidad de Guadalajara) will bring together educators to discuss STEM education research and how they are applied in P-20 learning environments. Presenters will share current research within disciplinary and interdisciplinary STEM contexts and promote collaborations and partnerships from local to international. This first-ever multi-site, multilingual conference will take place in-person at the Mission Events Center, 200 N. Shary Road, Mission TX 78572.
Toward Transformative Practices: Uprooting Foundations of
STEM and Planting Rhizomes of Equity and Justice
Opening Speaker
Dr. James L. Moore III is the Assistant Director for the Directorate for STEM Education at the National Science Foundation. Prior to his NSF appointment, Dr. Moore served as the vice provost for diversity and inclusion, chief diversity officer at The Ohio State University. He is nationally recognized for his work on African American males and STEM education. Since 2018, he has been cited annually by Education Week as one of the 200 most influential scholars and researchers in the United States.
Conference Call for Proposals
(Now Closed)
Proposals are now closed for the 7th Annual STEM Education Conference. If you have any questions, please contact rgvstemed@utrgv.edu.
This year’s conference theme is Toward Transformative Practices: Uprooting Foundations of STEM and Planting Rhizomes of Equity and Justice. As we continue toward transformative practices in STEM education, we seek to embrace learning for all learners, including designated underrepresented or othered learners. There is evidence that despite initiatives in STEM education that aim at addressing disparities in STEM, the needle has moved but so much. Why is this the case? We suggest that one reason is because the historical foundations of STEM persist. These roots are like a domesticated tree that has long passed but root structures remain, impacting the growth of other things around it. There is a plethora of research that suggests that within society there are deeply embedded and ongoing inequities that persist in STEM education. However, there is another body of STEM research that provides little evidence that a tree existed until one attempts to dig into the soil. We suggest that in order to build a foundation that supports STEM education for all, we specifically need to make visible and uproot the existing inequities in STEM education. This will create an opportunity to sow seeds of diverse ways to construct and value knowledge. What we seek to see in the proposals is how, what, and why there needs to be a constant push within STEM education to respect, recognize, and revive diversities in languages, perspectives, and processes that benefit communities and their members. The purpose of this conference is to build foundations that lead to equitable, transformative practices and outcomes in STEM education. This conference is unique in that it brings together stakeholders across all P-20 STEM learning environments. This includes, but is not limited to formal and informal educators, and K-12 students. Thus, proposals from practitioners and researchers are welcome.
- Discipline specific core concepts: This strand explores appropriate disciplinary core, content or curricular ideas in science, mathematics, technology, engineering practices, and/or crosscutting concepts.
- Teaching and learning for understanding and conceptual change in P-16 STEM: This strand emphasizes research that focuses on the ways we teach and how students learn, student understanding, and conceptual change.
- Context and learning: This strand explores contextual factors that may facilitate or inhibit teaching and learning in STEM classrooms.
- Standards as Contracts: This strand addresses research related to STEM teacher practices, including but not limited to curriculum, evaluation, and assessment. Determining what students know and can do is often measured by high stakes, standardized testing. Proposals that address these challenges faced in STEM teaching and learning are strongly encouraged.
- Equity in STEM: This strand addresses research on equitable practices in STEM classrooms, including the complexities and intersectionalities of sociocultural phenomena. This may include theoretical frameworks that examine social, cultural, political, historical, gender, LGBTQ, race, ethnicity, special education, and/or linguistics.
- Paper Presentation: Each 60-minute session consists of 2-3 individual papers related to the same thread as determined by the steering committee. Each presenter will discuss a research study, theoretical paper, position, or innovative idea related to strand I or II. Practitioner presentations are encouraged to include data that support its success or promising practice. Discussion, interactive, and other formats will be considered.
- Deeper Dive Sessions: Each session will be 60 minutes and allow for an in-depth exploration of a topic. This might be organized as a roundtable discussion or panel discussion. Other formats will be considered.
- Poster Presentation: Each presenter will prepare and display a representation of research (completed or in-progress), issue, or practice related to science, technology, engineering, and mathematics education.
- Interactive workshop: Each 60-minute session will allow for sharing research and emerging practices in a way that is more informal and intimate. This can include panel discussions, roundtable discussions, simulations, modeling curriculum, or other interactive formats.
- Author(s) information: Name(s), title(s), professional organization (if any), email address.
- Session title (25 words or less)
- Intended audience (indicate all that apply): Early child/P-2 High school (9-12) Elementary (3-5) Informal educators Middle school (6-8) Other (please indicate) Higher Education
- Keywords (minimum of 3, maximum of 5)
- Short description (50 words or less) as it will appear in the program.
- Proposal (1,000 words or less not including references)
- Clear focus/problem statement: The proposal has a clear focus and/or addresses a problem that is relevant to objectives of the STEM Education Conference.
- Theoretical or conceptual framework: The proposal is grounded in an appropriate conceptual and/or theoretical framework(s).
- Methodology/design of the study or organization: For research studies, describe the methodology and research design. For philosophical viewpoints, describe the logic and coherence of arguments as it relates to the theoretical or conceptual framework. For position papers, the position is well-grounded in relevant literature. For practitioner focused proposals, there is a clear connection to the appropriate framework (theoretical or conceptual) and pedagogical perspective.
- Findings/conclusions (for research study) and contributions (for philosophical, theoretical, position paper, or practitioner): The work contributes to the knowledge base in STEM education either through using evidence to answer one or more research questions, communicating a philosophical viewpoint, synthesis of existing literature and the implications for practitioners, and/or by providing evidence of the effectiveness of practitioner proposals.
- Clear focus/problem statement: The proposal has a clear focus and/or addresses a problem that is relevant to objectives of the STEM Education Conference.
- Special requests: (AV equipment, room or table set-up, etc.)
Conference Registration
The conference registration is now open view information for early bird and regular registration.
UTRGV Student |
UTRGV Faculty |
Non-UTRGV Student |
All others | |
Early Bird (Before Jan. 6) | $25 | $50 | $50 | $100 |
Regular (After Jan. 6) | $50 | $100 | $100 | $200 |
Conference Registration Opened on October 15, 2023 |
If you need hotel accommodations, a group rate is available (limited number of rooms) at the Hampton Inn & Suites has rooms available for $96 per night if interested.
To book your room call : (956) 682-0313 and ask for the Room Block. These are the only rooms that are $96 per night.
- Discount code: STE
- Address: 2505 Victoria Dr, Mission, TX 78572
Conference Leaflet
Conference Program