The question of how character influences society and how education should shape character is critically important at a historical moment in which economic globalization, information availability, and technological innovation are changing how knowledge is defined, acquired and used. After the family, educational institutions are most responsible for shaping tomorrow’s citizens. In “The Moral Dimensions of Teaching,” John Goodlad writes that the profession of teaching must “...
Latinx communities represent more than 18% of the U.S. population. But the most recent data from the National Center for Science and Engineering Statistics show that Latinxs account for only 8% of the nation’s science and engineering workforce; this despite two decades of efforts to broaden minority participation in those fields. Opportunities to make science and engineering activities visible, accessible and relevant remains a significant challenge, particularly for Latinx youth from lower-income communities.
Women are underrepresented in the field of computer science in the U.S., and their numbers are declining. A study by the National Science Foundation found the percentage of females among computer science majors in 2014 was 18, down from 35 percent in 1985. The underrepresentation begins in high school — girls are much less likely than boys to take an advanced-placement computer science test — and even middle school, when many girls lose interest in science in general and decide not to enroll in high school computer courses.