STEM UP: Unlocking Potential and Breaking Barriers for Deaf/Hard-of-Hearing Students
Year Awarded
2024
Amount
€34,920
- Organisation:University College Dublin (UCD)
- Co-funded with Dept of Education:Yes
Project Summary
The STEM-UP programme is designed to create an inclusive learning environment for Deaf and Hard of Hearing (D/HH) secondary school students and adults. It focuses on engaging participants in STEM activities, studies, and careers through workshops at University College Dublin (UCD) focusing on the science behind COVID-19 diagnostics and vaccines.
Key features of the programme include:
• Hands-on activities in research laboratories, allowing participants to manipulate and test COVID-19 molecular diagnostic tools as scientists rather than end-users.
• Problem-based and team-based learning approaches, connecting scientific concepts to personal experiences from the pandemic.
• Accessibility support through Irish Sign Language (ISL) interpreters, adapted materials using universal design, and dedicated demonstrators.
• Information sessions on pathways to third-level education and support available for D/HH students.
• Opportunities to meet scientists and clinicians, including D/HH scientists serving as role models.
• Sessions at Deaf Village Ireland’s “The Hub Cafe” to facilitate conversations with the D/HH community around access to education, scientific and medical information and healthcare system.
The programme aims to make STEM education more accessible, engaging, and relevant for D/HH students while fostering connections between the D/HH community, organizations like Deaf Village Ireland (DVI), Chime, the Irish Deaf Society, AHEAD, and scientists, clinicians, staff and students from UCD. By providing hands-on experiences and role models, and outlining various routes to access higher education, STEM-UP addresses the challenges faced by D/HH students in STEM fields and encourages their participation and persistence in these areas.