Webinars, phone calls, Facebook Live, TikTok, and Twitter are all part of a virtual classroom designed to engage students on the fourth-largest Indian reservation in the U.S. According to a statement by the American Indian Science and Engineering Society, the organization is working to address barriers in the fields of science, technology, engineering, and math (STEM) for students in South Dakota.
Funded by the U.S. Department of Education, AISES is making instruction possible through Native Youth and Community Project grants.
In 2018, AISES was awarded $1,897,169 for an additional project grant to expand the model to other schools on the Cheyenne River Sioux Tribe reservation. The new partner schools are Dupree School, Takini School, Timber Lake School, and Tióspaye Tópa School.
“Many of our students do not have access to the internet and most do not have computers in their homes,” said Sheri Drew, the Native Youth and Community Project program manager for Tióspaye Tópa School in the statement.
Joseph Moreno, chair of the Native Youth and Community Project Program Curriculum Development Committee, created a Robotics lesson which includes a kit of 15 possible robots the students could build. Students take pictures of their robots in several stages and send them to Mr. Moreno via their cell phones. The next lesson was on growing native plants. Students are not only studying plants; they are using their math skills to calculate growth. Each student keeps a growth journal where they enter growth, calculations, and observations. Students also interview a Lakota elder to record traditional stories of the plants they are growing.
Another program manager is working on Lakota star lore, having students study the night sky and make drawings in their science journal. Students will receive a book on Lakota star knowledge and a video of a traditional elder telling a story. All activities will have a webinar attached so students can log in daily to ask questions and show their progress.
Meanwhile, members of the Summer STEM camp planning team are working on creating the first AISES Native Youth and Community Project Virtual Summer STEM Camps. These virtual camps will be held for students in grades K-5 in July and August 2020. The focus of the kit is on Lakota culture activities where students go out each day as natural scientists.
Native Youth and Community Project program managers have also started the first AISES College and Career Readiness Webinar series. Each week this summer, STEM professionals will discuss their STEM fields and jobs. There will also be elders who will talk about Lakota traditions and how they see the need for youth to go into STEM fields and bring that information back home to help the people. Other college and career readiness topics include food sovereignty, language preservation, youth leadership, scholarships, and choosing a college.
AISES is working to build the capacity of Cheyenne-Eagle Butte schools, and generate Cheyenne River Sioux Tribe parent and community support of and engagement in STEM studies and careers. The Cheyenne River Sioux Tribe has a diverse economy, with some farming and cattle ranching operations. Lakota values and community center around family, spirituality, ceremony, language, and culture.
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