I can’t agree with you more on the need for ethics classes. This is especially true in STEM fields. Don’t get me wrong, STEM students usually receive trainings on conducting ethical research. Unfortunately, they don’t receive enough training on how to ethically engage with people. STEM students deal with fellow students, faculty, and staff. It’s important that they know how to respectfully engage with these people in a variety of non research-related contexts. Eventually, STEM students will graduate and go on to be employees. They will need to ethically engage with coworkers and clients. From what I’ve seen, STEM students aren’t adequately prepared to do so. A more in-depth ethics education will only help these students become better employees, coworkers, and global citizens.
Author: E.Clark
Comment on Final Thoughts in Connecting the Dots by E.Clark
I think you wrote a nice reflection. As we transition from student to teacher or new professional, we go from a world of rules and codes of ethics into a new world where these things may not be a clearly defined or enforced. It’s incredibly important that we strive to bring ethics and honor into our new workplace. Integrity is vital for people to respect who you are and the work that you do. It’s something that should become more integrated into our lives, at all levels, during the transition from student to working professional.
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Comment on An ADHD-driven Post by E.Clark
I also was drawn to this post because of the mention of ADHD. Like many women, I was diagnosed with ADHD later in life since it presents much differently in females. I always attributed my ADHD to an aptitude for multitasking. Since my brain always jumped around, I figured I was just capable of doing a million things at once. Yeah….was I wrong. I may be able to do/think of a million things at once, but my ability to fully process or complete any one thought was pretty much nonexistent. This sort of propensity for not keeping my train of thought “on the tracks” does not make learning easy. Thankfully, a combination of natural intellect and highly developed organizational skills helped me succeed academically (for the most part). It raises the point that multitasking and “getting things done” is not necessarily correlated with fully engaging in an activity.
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Comment on Multi-Tasking Has Become A Necessary Skill for A Scholar by E.Clark
Multitasking has become a skill necessary for survival in academia. Heck, it’s become necessary to survive period. There are just too many diversions to invest our attention in. To succeed (or attempt to) in all our endeavors, we end up dividing our efforts amongst the variety of activities that need attention. Sometimes I wish I could just sit there and 100% focus on that one thing. It seems yoga is the only time I’m able to zone out and just focus on the “here and now”.
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Comment on Multi-Tasking Has Become A Necessary Skill for A Scholar by E.Clark
Multitasking has become a skill necessary for survival in academia. Heck, it’s become necessary to survive period. There are just too many diversions to invest our attention in. To succeed (or attempt to) in all our endeavors, we end up dividing our efforts amongst the variety of activities that need attention. Sometimes I wish I could just sit there and 100% focus on that one thing. It seems yoga is the only time I’m able to zone out and just focus on the “here and now”.
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Comment on Compulsive Selective Participation by E.Clark
You could try doing a “Trade Off” speech game. Give them a topic or prompt to respond to and then have them pair up with another classmate. Their goal will be to, based on their knowledge of speech structure, give a live impromptu speech on the prompt. The kicker: they each can only contribute one sentence at a time. This makes them think on their feet and construct a speech together as they go. It can challenge them to a construct a proper speech on the fly, which is a useful skill to have. Lol worse comes to worse, it should prove entertaining to watch!
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Comment on Public Education: Opportunity or Oppression? by E.Clark
Very good point about the value of education! I wonder how our system would look if education was truly championed as something of value rather than something people are “forced” to do whether they see the value in it or not.
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Comment on Public Education: Opportunity or Oppression? by E.Clark
Like many of you all, I do find MANY faults in DeVos plans. I do believe there should be funding for public schools, but I also believe that something needs to be done about the current state of affairs in the public school system. Freire’s piece really made me sit down and try to understand DeVos plans from another angle. I still am not convinced her plan is entirely benevolent or if her proposed changes will ultimately be in the best interest of students. However, I do see how the public school system can offer both opportunity and oppression.
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Comment on Paulo Freire’s Advice by E.Clark
Wonderful post! I think you did a great job discussing how education should be a means by which change is enacted. Whether its educators changing the minds of students or students changing the minds of educators, this is how knowledge can transform our world.
Comment on “They wouldn’t even look at me” – Unexpected Insights on Inclusivity by E.Clark
You make some very valid points in your post about inclusivity by exemplifying the use of eye contact. It’s interesting how such a small gesture can communicate inclusivity. Your mention of women’s experiences with such gestures reminds me of a personal experience where I felt “They wouldn’t even look at me”. As a scientist, I attend many conferences and trade shows throughout the year and ofter find myself exploring these events with fellow colleagues. When I go to converse with a sales rep or speaker, I am frequently ignored if there are males who are also looking to converse with the same person. What’s even more infuriating is when I approach a person in the company of fellow male colleagues and the person goes to shake the males hands before mine regardless of the order we stand in or my proximity to that person — sometimes I don’t even receive a handshake and get skipped over entirely! These small gestures (or lack thereof) exemplify a lack of inclusivity towards women which, unfortunately, is a frequent occurrence in STEM fields. One of these days, I’m just going to yell “Pardon me, but you neglected to greet me in an equivalent manner as you did my colleagues. Now if you could, kindly, please SHAKE MY DAMN HAND!”
