Stearns Center for Teaching and Learning

Tag: STEM

STEM Education Coffee Chat

Register Here | Facilitator: Laina Lockett

Join your STEM liaison and chat about your class or anything else teaching related over a cup of coffee (or tea if that’s more your speed). Sign up for one of these small group chats, happening this fall on select Thursday mornings. Topics are open to anything, but we will start with a discussion of the previous week’s Teaching newsletter from Beth McMurtire at The Chronicle of Higher Education. The newsletter will be shared for those who are not already on the mailing list the 48-hours before the chat is scheduled.
* Adding to your calendar will not register you for the event; please register using the link above.

STEM Education Coffee Chat

Register Here Canceled| Facilitator: Laina Lockett

Join your STEM liaison and chat about your class or anything else teaching related over a cup of coffee (or tea if that’s more your speed). Sign up for one of these small group chats, happening this fall on select Thursday mornings. Topics are open to anything, but we will start with a discussion of the previous week’s Teaching newsletter from Beth McMurtire at The Chronicle of Higher Education. The newsletter will be shared for those who are not already on the mailing list the 48-hours before the chat is scheduled.
* Adding to your calendar will not register you for the event; please register using the link above.

Workshop: Motivating Students in STEM Courses

Register Here | Facilitator: Laina Lockett 

Do you teach a STEM course but feel that your students lack motivation? If you answered yes, you aren’t alone. Since the pandemic, professors across the country have been expressing that they have noticed a general trend in reduced student motivation. In this workshop we will discuss theories of motivation so that you can engage your students whether you teach a large class, teach online, have many non-majors, or are teaching an upper-level course. You will gain tips, tricks, and ideas that can be implemented into your course this semester and beyond!

Part of the Level 1 Foundational Practices in STEM Education Cluster.

* Adding to your calendar will not register you for the event; please register using the link above.

Dates of workshops in this Cluster:

Wednesday, September 2 – 9:00 a.m. – 10:00 a.m.
Wednesday, September 16 – 9:00 a.m. – 10:00 a.m.

Monday, September 14 10:00-11:00am or Tuesday, November 3 10:00-11:00am (attend first hour of workshop)

Workshop: Reflective Assessments for STEM Faculty and Students

Register Here Canceled | Facilitator: Laina Lockett

What are the essential actions to stay an innovative STEM Educator? This workshop will review strategies for continual growth as STEM educators to ensure that students are best prepared for a changing world. In this workshop we will discuss essential reflective actions for both you and your students as a way to grow.

Part of the Level 1 Foundational Practices in STEM Education Cluster.

* Adding to your calendar will not register you for the event; please register using the link above.

Dates of workshops in this Cluster:
Monday, September 14 10:00-11:00am or Tuesday, November 3 10:00-11:00am (attend first hour of workshop)
Wednesday, September 2 – 9:00 a.m. – 10:00 a.m.
Wednesday, October 7 – 9:00 a.m. – 10:00 a.m.

Workshop: Reading as Active Learning in STEM

Register Here | Facilitator: Laina Lockett 

How many times have you asked your class a question only to realize that only a few (or maybe none) of your students have done the assigned reading? Working with students who are not prepared for class is a common frustration among STEM faculty especially since there is often a large amount of material to cover in any given course. In this workshop, you will learn how to turn reading assignments into opportunities for active learning. We will discuss some of the research on how students learn from reading, how to teach your students to get more out of reading, as well as how to design more engaging reading prompts, guides and classroom activities. The small changes discussed in this workshop can have large and long-lasting impacts for your students, so be sure to join the session!

Part of the Level 1 Foundational Practices in STEM Education Cluster.

* Adding to your calendar will not register you for the event; please register using the link above.

Dates of workshops in this Cluster:
Monday, September 14 10:00-11:00am or Tuesday, November 3 10:00-11:00am (attend first hour of workshop)
Wednesday, September 16 – 9:00 a.m. – 10:00 a.m.
Wednesday, October 7 – 9:00 a.m. – 10:00 a.m.

Deadline: STEM Education Retreat: STEM for All: Applying UDL in Your Courses

Register Here | Facilitators: Carley Fisher-Maltese and Laina Lockett 

Registration for this event closed May 1. We will offer this event again in Spring 2027. 

Faculty are invited to participate in the second STEM Education Retreat, an in-person professional development workshop focused on Using Universal Design for Learning (UDL) in STEM Courses. The workshop will be held on May 19 from 10:00 a.m. to 2:00 p.m. and is open to any faculty who teach STEM courses across Mason’s colleges and schools. Participation is limited to the first 15 faculty who register. The Canvas course will open on May 6.

During the workshop, participants will explore how to apply UDL principles to the design and delivery of STEM courses, with an emphasis on creating inclusive learning environments that proactively address learner variability. Faculty will learn strategies for aligning student learning outcomes, instructional activities, and assessments using the UDL framework. The session will include hands-on activities, guided reflection on current course design, and collaborative discussion. Participants will leave with practical, actionable strategies to implement UDL in at least one STEM course, including applications in laboratory, quantitative, and problem-based learning contexts.

* Adding to your calendar will not register you for the event; please register using the link above.

Workshop: AI in STEM Education

Register Here | Facilitators: Laina Lockett & Carley Fisher-Maltese

 
In this introductory one-hour workshop, STEM faculty will explore the various artificial intelligence tools available to design their courses. Participants will learn how to use these tools to align their student learning outcomes, instructional activities, and assessments. Participants will have time to practice using these tools and will leave with actionable strategies to implement AI-enhanced instruction in at least one of their courses. This workshop will specifically focus on STEM application including using AI in a laboratory setting and quantitative applications.

*Adding to your calendar will not register you for the event; please register using the link above.

Deadline: STEM Education Faculty Fellow

Line graphic of a sheet of paper with a money bag and pen on top

Apply here | Learn more here| POC: Laina Lockett

We are excited to once again hire a faculty fellow to support STEM Education in 2026! We invite any faculty who teach STEM curriculum & who will be teaching in the spring semester (from any relevant department, program, college, or school) at George Mason University, including full-time and part-time faculty, to submit an application for the STEM Education Faculty Fellow position. Please note that faculty may not receive funding for multiple Stearns Center funding opportunities in the same academic term, which includes the Curriculum and Teaching Leadership Funds (CTL Funds).

Inclusive Teaching for STEM Graduate Students Mini-Course: Session 3

Register here | Facilitator: Rachel Yoho

Join the Stearns Center for Teaching and Learning and build community with other STEM graduate students as we discuss how to create teaching and learning spaces that support all students, instructors, and TAs/graders.  All students, whether current TAs or hoping to have a future grader, TA, or instructor of record position, are welcome! 

Inclusive Teaching for STEM Graduate Students Mini-Course: Session 2

Register here | Facilitator: Rachel Yoho

Join the Stearns Center for Teaching and Learning and build community with other STEM graduate students as we discuss how to create teaching and learning spaces that support all students, instructors, and TAs/graders.  All students, whether current TAs or hoping to have a future grader, TA, or instructor of record position, are welcome!