Bahamian educator partners with director of prestigious NASA K–12 SEMAA to launch new STREAM activities series

Bahamian educator partners with director of prestigious NASA K–12 SEMAA to launch new STREAM activities series
Dr Patrice J Pinder.

NASSAU, BAHAMAS — Meet Bahamian female educator, Dr Patrice Juliet Pinder, a STEM-based scholar recently identified by the American National Council for Black Studies as a “leading scholar” for her continuous work in equity, social justice and advancing the educational cause of Black and African children in K–12 schools.

Pinder has teamed up with Dr Jonathan Wilson, program director of the prestigious NASA K-12 SEMAA (science, engineering, mathematics and aerospace academy), Maryland, campus to launch a series of innovative, fun-filled and exciting STREAM (science, technology, reading/writing, engineering, arts and mathematics) educational activities and events, which will combine Wilson’s NASA SEMAA program activities and activities from Pinder’s previous international and local works — her prior training workshops and conferences; and curriculum tools and strategies she used in the USA, Trinidad and here in The Bahamas at the first National Game-Based Learning (GBL) STEAM conference and Ministry of Education National teacher-training summer workshops.

Dr Jonathan Wilson.

Educational gaming tools and instruments, simulations and an exposure to new-age 21st Century science trends in nanotechnology — nanoscience and nanomedicine — will be just part of this exciting series, which is designed for pre-primary and primary schools, teachers, parents and children. It will be for The Bahamas, but is open to other places.

Four components will be:

  • Teacher training.
  • Parent(s) and child(ren) learning events and fun-filled activities.
  • Research development for educators — creating and fostering a “culture of research” in country.
  • Provision of creative and entertaining teaching and learning products and tools to enhance a cross-curricular approach in enacting STREAM education.

The overarching aim of the initiative is to create among Bahamians a drive and enthusiasm for STEM and STREAM learning while at the same time focusing efforts on increasing the numbers of Bahamian students to later pursue STEM courses at college and ultimately careers in STEM.

Pinder and Wilson believe “the love of STEM has to start very early in a child’s life”.

Pinder stated: “The sobering reality is that our Bahamian educational system and students cannot continuously ‘lag behind’ the rest of the Caribbean and USA.

“So, our focus has to be ‘how can our children and our education system move forward?’ and this is where the expertise of doctors Patrice Pinder and Jonathan Wilson come in to assist the nation.”

Pinder and Wilson are extremely excited to be launching this initiative and look forward to working with educators and parents.

Pinder is a professor and PhD advisor with extensive education and training. She participates in numerous global conferences and training workshops with institutions like the University of California at Berkeley Lawrence Hall of Science.

Wilson, a graduate of Duke University, is a professor of science and director of SEMAA. He formerly served as the director of the Baltimore Urban Systemic Initiative and catalyzed the systemic educational reform of Baltimore City Public School System, emphasizing science and mathematics reform. He has extensive experience in developing hands-on, minds-on and content-rich professional development workshops for K-12 teachers.

For more information, please contact dr.patricepinder@gmail.com or 242-468-9009.