STEM Career Awareness Curriculum

Collection Description

The STEM Career Awareness Curriculum, developed by DeafTEC at the Rochester Institute of Technology (RIT), provides 6th through 12th grade educators with an accessibility-minded curriculum for STEM topics to help deaf and hard of hearing students explore STEM careers and the requirements of college. The curriculum hopes to achieve the following goals:

• To start the development of a STEM based curriculum designed specifically for deaf and hard of hearing students. 
• To increase educators' abilities to teach introductory STEM concepts to deaf and hard of hearing students.
• To support the development of schools and out of school time programs in the United States that include STEM-related instruction to deaf and hard of hearing students.
• To give deaf and hard of hearing students the tools they need to transition from high school to college and into a career in the STEM fields.

The curriculum's instructional approach aligns with the common core and is inquiry based.

Collection Contents

An overview/introduction document, four unit documents, 13 videos, an about us document, and a document with supplemental materials compose the curriculum materials. 

The overview/introduction document highlights curriculum goals, pre-requisite knowledge requirements for educators, information on the instructional approach, common core information, a rubric, and communication best practices for educators.

The unit 1 document covers STEM basics, sports and STEM, American Sign Language (ASL) and STEM, cooking and STEM, and STEM in relation to everyday lives. Additional resources, key vocabulary, and standards are included.

The unit 2 document covers what a scientist is, deaf professionals in STEM careers, changing technologies, why students should be interested in a STEM career, and examples of STEM careers. Additional resources, key vocabulary, and standards are included.

The unit 3 document highlights deaf and hard of hearing college students who are STEM majors, examples of STEM college majors, the transition from high school to college, communication in college settings, English skills, interviewing skills, family backgrounds, life goals, American Sign Language (ASL), and STEM college planning resources. Additional resources, key vocabulary, and standards are included.

The unit 4 document covers gamification and educating hearing people on how deaf people can be involved in STEM. Additional resources, key vocabulary, and standards are included.

The videos augment the curriculum in each unit, covering topics such as ASL, life goals, family backgrounds, English skills, and more.

The about us document highlights the project goals more generally, describes DeafTEC, and highlights individuals involved in the development of the curriculum.

The supplemental materials document provides hyperlinks to educational resources and other institutions similar to DeafTEC.