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“I feel like most practicing teachers grew up in the same educational system that I did where you are penalized for getting the wrong answer, and you kind of get into this flow of needing to have the correct answer. And that has really informed the way that they teach—they're afraid to be wrong. And so the number one thing I work with teachers on is really building up their confidence to be flexible in the classroom.”
In this episode, we sit down with Hannah Kurzweil, STEM educator and Community Manager for Data Science for Everyone. Hannah shares her unconventional journey to STEM teaching and national community-building in data literacy, and reflects on what it means to support teachers in embracing flexibility and designing interdisciplinary curriculum. Together, we discuss the barriers to bringing data literacy into K-12 classrooms and strategies for building stronger educator communities.
“A lot of teachers feel like they're working in silos…a lot of teachers, often because of the median salaries for educators, don't feel like professionals, and that's really hard when you are so passionate about your work and you don't feel like you're able to be a valued member in society for the work that you're doing. And that's why a community of educators is so important, to bring those levels and that sense of community back, and professionalism back, to the classrooms and the classroom teachers.”
