By Stephy Mahoney | Reporter
Dr. Dwayne Simmons, director of STEM Initiatives at Baylor University, helped students embark on a six-week intensive internship in Yucatan where they learned and taught from a program specifically for students pursuing research-related careers.
The Inclusive Biologists Exploring Active Research with Students program had multiple growth opportunities this past summer as they taught students grades fourth through sixth in Valladolid, Mexico.
According to the Office of Engaged Learning, each student had five categories in which they would teach and research. These included biology, physical science, chemistry, environmental science and mathematics.
With this unique opportunity to study abroad, undergraduate students conducted research in a new area of science, received career counseling to develop new interests and built a social network for growth and career opportunities following graduation.
According to Simmons, the students of iBEARS had been working under the teaching and counseling of senior lecturer Dr. Marty Harvill during the school year as they prepared for the internship as well as everyday learning.
Alongside their knowledge of the five categories, each student was also expected to teach in Spanish to the students in Yucatán.
“The first week I was there, we helped them set up their teaching assignments and curriculum,” Simmons said. “Teaching human philosophy in Spanish was challenging, as you can imagine.”
Garland graduate student Morgan Castillo worked alongside Simmons in Yucatán as his teaching assistant. Castillo said she was also there with Simmons for their first week as they watched and helped each student adjust.
“Once they had their learning objective, they presented these to the elementary students,” Simmons said. “Our students did really, really well, and they continued with this cycle of researching and presenting evidence throughout June.”
Simmons said since the students have returned home, they have been continuing to assessed the data they collected with Castillo. He said he is proud of their hard work and how well they did this summer.
Castillo said that prior to the internship, the Baylor students held weekly Zoom meetings with the elementary students in Mexico for six weeks in the fall and six more in the spring.
“It was neat to see the differences between watching the student’s video conference and the interactions and seeing one another face to face,” Castillo said.
Castillo said you could truly see the love on the Baylor students’ faces being able to give the students hugs and strengthen those relationships.
Each of the 55 Baylor students were given a $2,000 stipend as well as pairing up with the Office of Global Engagement to cover all room and board expenses. They also were allowed to explore as they traveled and saw the Mayan ruins, natural Cenotes, Playa del Carmen and other excursions.
