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Biographies of black female scientists and inventors. An interdisciplinary middle school curriculum guide: "What Shall I Tell my Children Who are Black?"
Abstract
The purpose of this study is to gather and present biographies on afro-american female scientists and inventors to be used in interdisciplinary units of core curriculum. Black female students without the benefit of experiencing black female scientist and inventor role models during their school career, lack appropriate modeling for choosing careers in the fields of science and technology. The youngsters are therefore underrepresented in professional science careers and are usually relegated to low paying jobs and poor self esteem. The development of these biographies of black female inventors has shown that black women have historically always had a strong committment to science and inventive technology in America. Yet, there is a lack of discussion about these women. It is as though they never existed. It is also noted, through the biographical interviews, that black women have not relied on white support of themselves in their science and technology careers for they have understood that not to be included has been a political statement made by the state and the nation about their being. What has been uncovered in these biographical statements is not new to the women themselves. Invisible dignity, unshouted courage, and quiet grace have been the attributes utilized to encourage each to find meaning in her life and to create something where nothing was before. To arrest this incomplete educational tragedy, a sample interdisciplinary curriculum guide utilizing the biographical profiles of one of the women has been developed in order to offer educators examples of appropriate curriculum development for black female students. It is generally agreed that the differential representation between black females and persons of other racial and gender groups in the scientific community is especially presaged by educational patterns at the elementary and secondary levels. Schools simply are not offering role models for these youngsters to bond with. It is expected then that this study, designed especially to be used at the elementary and middle school levels, will be a beginning tool for promoting change in an usable and exciting manner.
Subject Area
Curriculum development|Black history|Biographies|Multicultural Education
Recommended Citation
Hambrick, Arlene, "Biographies of black female scientists and inventors. An interdisciplinary middle school curriculum guide: "What Shall I Tell my Children Who are Black?"" (1993). Doctoral Dissertations Available from Proquest. AAI9329618.
https://scholarworks.umass.edu/dissertations/AAI9329618