Adopting the STEM Guitar Curriculum to Prepare Students in American Samoa for Technician Education

美属萨摩亚距离美国本土1万英里，是美国在南太平洋唯一的领土。美属萨摩亚社区学院是岛上唯一的一所大学。有了这笔奖金，学院将建立技术人员教育准备途径，以满足对熟练技术劳动力的迫切需求。几乎所有进入美属萨摩亚社区学院的学生都需要在数学和阅读方面进行补习，这使得他们无法参加现有的技术人员教育课程。目前，在这些学科领域，只有不到5%的高中教师被评为“高素质”。技术人员教育准备途径将采用STEM吉他建筑课程，以加强应用数学，以及技术阅读和写作的教育。该课程建立在音乐在美属萨摩亚日常生活中发挥的强大文化联系的基础上，从而为学生和教师在技术教育途径上提供了额外的动力。该项目的目标是：(1)提高学生在STEM概念方面的知识，(2)增加有资格参加技术员教育计划的学生人数，(3)为学生准备行业认可的认证考试。技术人员教育准备途径将在美属萨摩亚社区学院的STEM教师和Nu 'uli职业技术高中的教师之间建立伙伴关系。该合作伙伴关系将为20名教育工作者提供吉他建筑课程的专业发展，其中包括AutoCAD和激光切割系统的培训。经过培训的教师和教师将在三年内与至少100名学生合作，将STEM学习与吉他制作结合起来，为他们准备参加技师教育项目。不需要补习课程的学生将能够快速获得STEM证书或学位，使他们有资格在STEM劳动力中就业。美属萨摩亚社区学院将建立一个咨询委员会，其中包括美属萨摩亚电力管理局，以获取行业反馈，以及大洋洲社区发展网络，以广泛传播项目的成功。该项目由先进技术教育计划资助，该计划侧重于为推动国家经济的先进技术领域培养技术人员。该奖项反映了美国国家科学基金会的法定使命，并通过使用基金会的知识价值和更广泛的影响审查标准进行评估，被认为值得支持。

American Samoa, located 10,000 miles from the United States mainland, is the only US Territory in the South Pacific Ocean. American Samoa Community College is the only college on the island. With this award, the College will establish the Technician Education Readiness Pathway to meet the critical need for a skilled technical workforce. Nearly all students entering American Samoa Community College require remediation in mathematics and reading, which bars them from enrolling in the existing Technician Education programs. Currently, less than 5% of high school teachers are rated as ‘highly qualified’ in these subject areas. The Technician Education Readiness Pathway will adopt the STEM Guitar Building curriculum to enhance education in applied math, as well as technical reading and writing. This curriculum builds on the strong cultural connection that music plays in everyday life in American Samoa, thus providing additional motivation for students and teachers in the technician education pathway. The goals of the project are to (1) improve student knowledge in STEM concepts, (2) increase the number of students eligible to enroll in Technician Education programs, and (3) prepare students for industry recognized certification exams. The Technician Education Readiness Pathway will establish a partnership between the STEM faculty of American Samoa Community College and teachers from Nu’uli Vocational Technical High School. The partnership will provide professional development for 20 educators on the Guitar Building curriculum, which will include training in AutoCAD and a laser cutting system. The trained faculty and teachers will then work with at least 100 students over three years to integrate STEM learning with guitar building as they prepare to enroll in the Technician Education programs. Students that enter without the need for remedial coursework will be able to quickly earn a STEM certificate or degree, making them eligible for employment in the STEM workforce. American Samoa Community College will establish an advisory board that includes the American Samoa Power authority to gain industry feedback, and the Oceania Community Development Network to broadly disseminate the program’s successes. This project is funded by the Advanced Technological Education program that focuses on the education of technicians for the advanced-technology fields that drive the nation's economy.This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.