Inclusive Learning through Earth,
Environmental, and Planetary Sciences

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About ILEEPS

Inclusive Learning through Earth, Environmental, and Planetary Sciences (ILEEPS) is a 3-year program for high school Earth Science Teachers, Environmental Systems Teachers, and Aquatic Science Teachers to further science content knowledge and pedagogical skills of exemplary high school teachers. Using Culturally Sustaining Pedagogy (CSP) to enhance high school Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics (STEM) teachers' cultural awareness, teachers will grow their understanding of creating inclusive, equitable learning science environments.

CSP is a pedagogical framework that encourages teachers to value cultural differences and engage in teaching methods that connect, reflect, and build on student knowledge and practices. Teachers who use CSP specifically focus on fostering cultural flexibility. For example, in some indigenous communities’ place-based systems of knowledge, or traditional knowledge, can incorporate significant geoscientific observations and ideas that promote cultural and ecological sustainability. Teachers who can connect science standards to traditional knowledge will foster a learning environment that leads to innovative ways of making sense of earth, ocean, and environmental systems.

Funded by the National Science Foundation, the Rice Office of STEM Engagement (R-STEM) has partnered with faculty in the Rice Department of Earth, Environmental and Planetary Sciences, and GeoFORCE Texas to provide three years of sustained professional development to Houston-area high school science teachers. The goal of the ILEEPS program is to help Earth and Space Science teachers use CSP within geoscience concepts leading to meaningful student STEM connections.

ILEEPS aims to:

understand how high school STEM teachers develop in-depth knowledge of what it means to be culturally competent and inclusive
build a network of high school teachers, informal educators, and school administrators, and
develop lessons and strategies to enhance K-12 students' belongingness in geoscience and related fields.

2022-2024 ILEEPS Program

ILEEPS is a three-year-long program that includes summer institutes and follow-up sessions during the school year. Participants are also required to attend one week long summer excursion with GeoFORCE during the course of the program. Program dates and other program expectations are listed below.