WPHS freshmen present projects on STEM leaders for Black History Month social studies project

White Plains High School’s Media Center was lined with student research Friday, as freshmen presented their multimedia projects on significant figures in STEM for their Black History Month social studies research assignments. Students researched influential Black people who have contributed to advancements in STEM, while also having freedom to present their research in a paper, poster board or podcast. 

In the Black Awareness Club at WPHS, the theme for this year’s Black History Month is "Black History in STEM." Ninth-grade social studies built upon this theme by giving students an opportunity to research Black and African American people who have made an impact throughout STEM fields. 

“The students are able to learn that we all contribute something to history,” said Jawanda Weston, ninth-grade social studies teacher.
"So, when they go out into the world, they can remember their time here at the high school, knowing that we have all done something to contribute to the world that we live in.”

The project allowed students to learn about people that they may not have heard about on their own or in a textbook. Students were also able to hone their research skills, which they will need to be effective learners for the remainder of high school. 

“We really wanted to, first and foremost, celebrate the diversity of our school community through Black History Month,” said Emory Davis, Coordinator of Social Studies, Grades 7-12. “In doing that, we set up research projects. All ninth graders really need to learn the process for research. We feel that it really helps them throughout the whole high school career to know those skills.” 

The element of choice in the project was important, giving students multiple ways to access the learning material. Allowing students to have choice, inspired by the Universal Design for Learning (UDL), gives them more opportunities to present what they learned in a way that aligns with their learning style. UDL is designed to meet diverse educational needs, allowing for greater participation and success for all students. 

“There's not really one way that you could demonstrate how you learned, and by giving all the students an opportunity to pick how they demonstrated what they learned, we could really assess them better and know what they're learning instead of in one particular format,” Mr. Davis said. 

Students were able to focus more on the research because they were given the choice to present it in a way that was effective for them. Lia Vittorioso and Kelcie Dominick researched Marie Maynard Daly, an African-American biochemist, and they presented a poster board with their research. 

“I had a fun time working with my partner, and it was nice to have a lot of freedom during the project,” said Lia. “We got to do a lot more research, and less focusing on making sure we have everything in the rubric and things like that.” 

Jane Mitschele, Mali Robinson and Saniyah Stevens took the podcast route for their project on Jane Cooke Wright, a pioneering cancer researcher. Mali and Saniyah served as interviewers, while Jane took on the role of her namesake. 

“We wanted to do a podcast because we wanted it to be original and have our voices within the project and not just a poster where it's just, you know, information about her and facts," said Mali. "We can incorporate what we think along with the facts.”

“We wanted it to be more than just what’s been written about her, we also wanted to include our thoughts,” Jane added. 

Creating the podcast this way also gave them a deeper understanding of the impact made by their research subject. 

“Because our research process was so hands-on, we knew the information so well that writing it was easy,” said Jane. “I feel like we really know who Jane Cooke Wright is now.”

Students from other classes visited the Media Center to listen to the presentations, writing down what they learned about the different figures from Black History as they went. After seeing all the projects, they left with a much wider view of the breadth of impact made in fields of STEM by Black people throughout history.