JoinTeacher Voices
National Conference in Atlanta • March 22-25, 2023
New teacher? Seasoned veteran? Informal educator? Leader in a school or district? No matter your role, working in education is tough with constant pressure to produce great results, adapt to sudden changes, and support nuanced student needs. At NSTA, we believe that educators have unique expertise and perspective, with an educational journey and experience worth sharing. Through our new NSTA Teacher Voices keynote series, we seek to spotlight authentic voices that are often missing from the dominant narratives in education.
Teacher Voices Keynote Panel
Humanizing Science Education: Places, People, and Community
Encouraging Students to Feel Their Place and Identity In and Out of the Classroom
Thursday, March 23 • 8:00 - 9:15 AM
Speakers: Whitney Aragaki, Autumn Rivera, and Bill Stockton
Moderator: Dr. Stephen Pruitt
About the Session
Join us for our inaugural Teacher Voices Keynote Panel, moderated by Dr. Stephen Pruitt, President of the Southeast Regional Education Board (SREB). Panel members—three inspiring, passionate educators from various parts of the country—will share engaging and inclusive strategies for humanizing science education, drawing on their own teaching experiences to fuel the discussion.
Panelists
Centering Place in our Learning Space
Speaks out about: Place (Where are you, Who are you, and Who are we together)
Speaker: Whitney Aragaki
A place-based education is informed by our multiple ways of knowing. Inviting our interactions with places into the classroom amplifies our students’ connections with family, community, and the environment. Preparing our students and ourselves to learn from and with places is a continual process of learning and leading.
All Experience—All Learn
Speaks out about: People (Building Background Knowledge to increase equity in the science classroom)
Speaker: Autumn Rivera
As teachers, we are trained to draw on students' background knowledge. However, when we do that, we are not providing our students with an equal playing field. By providing common background knowledge experiences, such as anchoring phenomena and/or fieldwork experiences, we can increase student engagement and learning.
Opening Doors and Curriculum
Speaks out about: Community (Establishing Community through co-teaching and cultural connections)
Speaker: Bill Stockton
Education is a social endeavor, but often teachers and students feel isolated in our school systems. To foster a true sense of belonging, teachers need to open their doors and curriculum. Using effective co-teaching strategies and making our content culturally relevant not only strengthens our school community, but can eliminate the isolation many feel.
Moderator
Dr. Stephen Pruitt
Stephen Pruitt is the sixth president of the Southern Regional Education Board in July 2018. Under his leadership, SREB has continued its work on college and career readiness, postsecondary attainment, workforce preparation, learning environment, and support of the SREB states’ policy and education leaders to improve the education systems for each student.
During his career, Dr. Pruitt has amassed education policy, assessment, and instructional background at the local, state, and national levels.
Before coming to SREB, Dr. Pruitt was Kentucky’s state commissioner of education. At the national level, he had worked closely with state agencies and educators around the country to improve policy and practice in science education. In Georgia, Dr. Pruitt began his career as a high school science teacher and subsequently served in several roles for the Georgia Department of Education. Dr. Pruitt can be reached via email, Stephen.Pruitt@sreb.org, or followed on Twitter, @DrSPruitt.