The U.S. has a teacher shortage. More than 85% of K-12 public schools faced hiring challenges last year, according to the National Center for Education Statistics. In California, the shortages have hit the STEM fields especially hard.
To help address the problem, the UC Davis CalTeach/Mathematics and Science Teaching Program (CalTeach/MAST) prepares undergraduates for careers in the classroom. Through CalTeach/MAST, students undertake coursework that explores teaching in the STEM fields, participate in professional networking and get connected to opportunities for financial support, among other things.
“Every UC campus has a version of the CalTeach/MAST program,” said David Gold, faculty director of the program and an associate professor in the Department of Earth and Planetary Sciences. “Here at UC Davis, hundreds of our students have gone on to become teachers. It’s a really wonderful program where we provide a series of courses that are designed like classes to give students the tools to teach.”
Integral to the CalTeach/MAST program are opportunities for students to get real-world experience in the classroom. While opportunities in the California Capital Region exist, earlier this year, some students in the program traveled to Loreto, Mexico to teach water science to local schoolchildren.
“The Loreto community is facing a water crisis,” said Susann Pinter, academic coordinator for the CalTach/MAST program. “Issues include over-extraction of the San Juan Londó aquifer, which is Loreto’s sole freshwater source. In addition, inefficient infrastructure causes an estimated 35% leakage loss, and lack of domestic water meters results in water use that exceeds sustainable levels.”
Conservation programs, metering, infrastructure improvements and education have been identified as key strategies for addressing Loreto’s challenges. The education part is where AguaEd comes in.
AguaEd is the result of a partnership between CalTeach/MAST, Loreto schools and Eco-Alianza, a nonprofit organization dedicated to conserving the natural and cultural environment of the Loreto region.
“AguaEd is tackling the water challenges in Loreto by bringing Spanish-fluent CalTeach/MAST students to teach water science in Loreto’s schools,” Pinter said. “Water stewardship begins with knowledge, with children and teens bringing that understanding home, and encouraging grassroots community change.”
Teaching water science
Great teaching requires flexibility. Unlike sole-endeavor professions, communication is key, as is the ability to adapt to unique situations and different learning styles. Preparation is important too, but teachers need to be able to pivot from the plan to ensure lessons resonate with students.
For the UC Davis students teaching at Loreto’s Escuela Secundaria Estatal Modesto Sánchez Mayón, such flexibility was critical to success.
Before arriving in Loreto, the UC Davis students thought their primary student audience was between first and third grade, with children ranging from ages six to nine. But in Mexico, secondary school, which is equivalent to middle school in the U.S., uses the terminology first, second and third grade. This shifted the student’s age range to between 11 and 14 years old.
“We had a few bumps, but once we got down there, we fixed the lesson plans,” said Angela Zelaya, an undergraduate majoring in pharmaceutical chemistry. “When I first came into CalTeach, I thought I wanted to be an elementary school teacher, but after this experience, I think that I want to work with older kids because you can teach them more complicated things.”
Over two weeks, UC Davis students taught Loreto students about the water cycle, water quality, water quantity and filtration, and their local groundwater resources. Each UC Davis student was tasked with leading a lesson and activity — entirely in Spanish.
“My activity was about water quantity, specifically in groundwater,” said Cassie Bonfil, a UC Davis student in the Hydrological Science Graduate Group. “The water challenges that they’re facing in Loreto, with it being an arid environment, are related to groundwater and groundwater overdraft.”
To bring this concept to life in the classroom, Bonfil had the students construct mini water wells using plastic cups, rocks and gravel. The students then simulated rain with pipettes and used a red liquid to signify contaminants in the water, like seawater intrusion.
“The students see the water seep in through the rocks and then see it become groundwater,” Bonfil said. “When they see the red contaminant — the seawater — coming in, they can see it infiltrate and discolor the whole, impacting the quality of the water.”
Kallan Ritzman, an undergraduate student majoring in environment science and management, and minoring in Spanish, said that instilling awareness of water issues and conservation practices was a big aim of the trip.
“We were hoping that this could lead to the students’ families engaging in water conservation practices too,” Ritzman said. “Hopefully then Loreto will be better prepared for water issues they may face.”
Local lessons, global scope
While the CalTeach/MAST AguaEd program was focused on Loreto, water scarcity is a global issue. According to UNESCO, 26% of the world population doesn’t have access to safe drinking water and 46% lack access to safely managed sanitation. It’s a severe problem that’s only expected to grow due to ongoing climate change and environmental pollution.
The opportunity to engage the public about this issue attracted Antonia Vezzoli, an undergraduate student majoring in environmental engineering, to the AguaEd program.
“I’m interested in water resources and having equal access to water, but also the environmental aspects of cleaning up polluted water,” Vezzoli said.
Traveling to Loreto allowed Vezzoli to put her academic learnings into practice.
“For me, it was just a really cool experience to visit somewhere and get to know the people a bit better, and not just be a tourist, but kind of get integrated a bit more in the community,” Vezzoli said.
“I’m just really thankful for the ability to do this, both to UC Davis, the secundaria in Loreto and Eco-Alianza,” added Zelaya. “I’m very grateful that they gave me the ability to enter their school and teach.”
The UC Davis CalTeach/MAST program provides hands-on STEM teaching experience, mentorship and professional development. Students gain valuable classroom skills, build networks and address the critical STEM teacher shortage while inspiring future generations.
“It’s the perfect pathway for students who are passionate about STEM education,” Pinter said.
Learn more about the CalTeach/MAST program.
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