Papers by Aldrin E. Sweeney
STEM Education in the Caribbean: Challenges, Goals, and Possibilities
Teachers’ Commitment to Promoting Education for Sustainable Development: Outcomes of a Faculty Collaborative Action Research Project
Caribbean journal of education, Dec 12, 2023
STEM Education Research, Policy and Practice in the Caribbean: Imperatives for the Next Five Years
Caribbean Journal of Education and Development, 2024
The last 10 years have seen repeated calls of increasing urgency regarding the importance of STEM... more The last 10 years have seen repeated calls of increasing urgency regarding the importance of STEM and STEM education in the Caribbean regional economy (iNews Guyana, 2018; Mitchell, 2018; Warde & Sah, 2014). In 2019, the Journal of Education and Development in the Caribbean published a special issue entitled “STEM Education in the Caribbean: Challenges, Goals, and Possibilities”. In the Editorial to that special issue, we articulated four primary considerations regarding future regional efforts toward integrated STEM education policy and practice (Sweeney & George, 2019, pp. vii-x). The commentary below (i) offers our reflections on the quality and extent of progress toward this goal approximately 5 years after publication of that Editorial (2019–2024); (ii) highlights what we believe to be the key roles and responsibilities of STEM education scholars in the region; and (iii) provides recommendations for integrated STEM education research, policy, and practice in the Caribbean over the course of the next 5 years.
Caribbean Journal of Education and Development , 2024
The last 10 years have seen repeated calls of increasing urgency regarding the importance of STEM... more The last 10 years have seen repeated calls of increasing urgency regarding the importance of STEM and STEM education in the Caribbean regional economy (iNews Guyana, 2018; Mitchell, 2018; Warde & Sah, 2014). In 2019, the Journal of Education and Development in the Caribbean published a special issue entitled “STEM Education in the Caribbean: Challenges, Goals, and Possibilities”. In the Editorial to that special issue, we articulated four primary considerations regarding future regional efforts toward integrated STEM education policy and practice (Sweeney & George, 2019, pp. vii-x). The commentary below (i) offers our reflections on the quality and extent of progress toward this goal approximately 5 years after publication of that Editorial (2019–2024); (ii) highlights what we believe to be the key roles and responsibilities of STEM education scholars in the region; and (iii) provides recommendations for integrated STEM education research, policy, and practice in the Caribbean over the course of the next 5 years.
Incorporating NBIC social/ethical issues into STEM teacher education programmes
Heightened emphasis is being given worldwide to STEM education at all educational levels. In comm... more Heightened emphasis is being given worldwide to STEM education at all educational levels. In common with the Caribbean, various challenges regarding STEM education are being noted in other parts of the world, e.g. Canada (DeCoito, Steele & Goodnough, 2016). A critical component of STEM education pertinent both to Canada and the Caribbean is that of STEM teacher education. An ongoing research study in the School of Education at The University of the West Indies, Mona addresses an issue of relevance to Canada and the Caribbean, i.e. culturally relevant/responsive STEM teacher education (e.g. Aikenhead & Elliott, 2010). The study investigates culturally relevant/responsive STEM teacher education within the context of Caribbean secondary level science/STEM teachers’ perspectives and beliefs regarding social/ethical issues associated with nanotechnology-biotechnology-information technology-cognitive science (NBIC) converging technologies (Roco, 2016). Ultimately, the study wishes to prov...
The promises and perils of nanoscience and nanotechnology: exploring emerging social and ethical issues. Bull Sci Technol Soc
Rapid advances in nanoscience and nanotechnol-ogy are profoundly influencing the ways in which we... more Rapid advances in nanoscience and nanotechnol-ogy are profoundly influencing the ways in which we conceptualize the world of the future, and human abil-ity to manipulate matter at the atomic and molecular levels offers previously unimagined possibilities for scientific discovery and technological applications. The convergence of nanotechnology with biotechnol-ogy, information technology, cognitive science, and engineering may hold promise for the improvement of human performance at a number of levels. Based on a National Science Foundation–funded Research Expe-riences for Undergraduates Program in nanoscience and nanotechnology at the University of Central Florida (summer 2002), a variety of social and ethical issues associated with these advances is discussed. Im-plications for the future of science-technology-society studies andK-16 science educationalsoarepresented.
International Journal of Nanomedicine, 2015
Various applications of nanoscale science to the field of medicine have resulted in the ongoing d... more Various applications of nanoscale science to the field of medicine have resulted in the ongoing development of the subfield of nanomedicine. Within the past several years, there has been a concurrent proliferation of academic journals, textbooks, and other professional literature addressing fundamental basic science research and seminal clinical developments in nanomedicine. Additionally, there is now broad consensus among medical researchers and practitioners that along with personalized medicine and regenerative medicine, nanomedicine is likely to revolutionize our definitions of what constitutes human disease and its treatment. In light of these developments, incorporation of key nanomedicine concepts into the general medical curriculum ought to be considered. Here, I offer for consideration five key nanomedicine concepts, along with suggestions regarding the manner in which they might be incorporated effectively into the general medical curriculum. Related curricular issues and implications for medical education also are presented.
The American journal of cardiovascular pathology, 1993
The original description of Ebstein's anomaly mentioned a mild deformity of the mitral valve.... more The original description of Ebstein's anomaly mentioned a mild deformity of the mitral valve. Reviews of large series of cases with Ebstein's malformation have, however, tended to omit reference to accompanying mitral valve malformations. We have compared the mitral valves in 19 specimens with Ebstein's malformation with those in 30 age-matched controls in order to determine the prevalence and nature of these anomalies. In the Ebstein's group the mitral valve was abnormal in 14 hearts with orificial anomalies in four, leaflet anomalies in 11, cord anomalies in 11 and papillary muscle anomalies in 13. In the control group, five cases showed mild shortening of the tendinous cords. Half of the changes found in the Ebstein's group were of moderate or significant degree suggesting a primary involvement of the mitral valve. In time, dynamic alterations within the left ventricle might become superimposed and contribute to the development of clinically significant lesions.
Journal of Nano Education
Encyclopedia of Nanoscience and Society
STEM Education in the Caribbean: Introduction
Undergraduate Research and Education in Nanotechnology
In this paper, we discuss the development, implementation and evaluation of a ‘Research Experienc... more In this paper, we discuss the development, implementation and evaluation of a ‘Research Experiences for Undergraduates’ program in nanomaterials processing and characterization offered at the University of Central Florida. Here, we focus in particular on details pertaining to the program’s instructional design and subsequent evaluation that may be useful for other engineering educators involved in undergraduate research and education in nanotechnology. Based on our analysis of program outcomes, implications are suggested for undergraduate and postgraduate engineering education programs that focus on aspects of nanoscale science and technology.
Introduction: Current Challenges and Future Directions for STEM Education in the Caribbean
Journal of Education and Development in the Caribbean
Infusing education for sustainable development (ESD) into curricula: teacher educators’ experiences within the School of Education at The University of the West Indies, Jamaica
Training Leaders in Nanotechnology
Introduction: Current Challenges and Future Directions for STEM Education in the Caribbean
Journal of Education and Development in the Caribbean
Journal of Chemical Education, 2003
Chapter 1, pp. 1-35
Sweeney, A. E. & Seal, S. (Eds). (2008). Nanoscale science and engineerin... more Chapter 1, pp. 1-35
Sweeney, A. E. & Seal, S. (Eds). (2008). Nanoscale science and engineering education. Los Angeles, CA: American Scientific Publishers. ISBN: 1-58883-085-3; 712 pp.
JOURNAL OF RESEARCH IN SCIENCE TEACHING, 2001
The notion of deliberated teacher re¯ection as a means of improving professional teaching practic... more The notion of deliberated teacher re¯ection as a means of improving professional teaching practice has become one of the most pervasive concepts to in¯uence science teacher education during the past decade. In this case study, we use the notion of teacher re¯ection and Lytle and Cochran-Smith's (1990) typology of teacher research to examine the relationships between a beginning high school chemistry teacher's articulated personal practice theories and his actions as demonstrated by his curricular decisions and instructional practices. In so doing, we describe the ways in which the formal articulations of this teacher's personal practice theories lent themselves to his development as a teacher/researcher and propose this development as a useful model of science teacher practitioner professionalism.
Journal of Education and Development in the Caribbean, 2019
As we rapidly approach the third decade of the 21st century, many Caribbean countries are now in ... more As we rapidly approach the third decade of the 21st century, many Caribbean countries are now in the process of reforming their systems of public education. In particular, heightened emphasis is being given to STEM education and the enhancement of STEM literacy at all educational levels.
Without a clearly articulated vision for STEM education, efforts to enhance STEM literacy will remain fragmented and in embryonic form within our regional context. Thus, at least two key questions may be asked at this stage: What is the emerging contemporary Caribbean vision of STEM education for the region?; and, if such a vision exists, How is it characterised, defined, and operationalised? It is within these frames of reference—and in an attempt to provide answers to these questions—that the rationale for this JEDIC special issue was conceived.
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Papers by Aldrin E. Sweeney
Sweeney, A. E. & Seal, S. (Eds). (2008). Nanoscale science and engineering education. Los Angeles, CA: American Scientific Publishers. ISBN: 1-58883-085-3; 712 pp.
Without a clearly articulated vision for STEM education, efforts to enhance STEM literacy will remain fragmented and in embryonic form within our regional context. Thus, at least two key questions may be asked at this stage: What is the emerging contemporary Caribbean vision of STEM education for the region?; and, if such a vision exists, How is it characterised, defined, and operationalised? It is within these frames of reference—and in an attempt to provide answers to these questions—that the rationale for this JEDIC special issue was conceived.