How to create a spark, when no matches are provided

Currently I am employed in an International School and teach only 3 hours a week of science.  This is such a change from teaching 5 hours a week in an American public school.  I have no forms of technology in my classroom, even the bathroom was broken for about three months.  Coming from a classroom that had a Smart Board, a document camera and three computers at my disposal, taking this job has been a wake up call to say the least.

 There are many struggles that I deal with every day.  First of all, I am the ninth teacher to be responsible for the education of these students.  They have had a rollercoaster of a year with the ups and downs that come with getting used to a new teacher every month or so.  The chance of STEM education for these children based on this fact ALONE is gone. 

Secondly, the rate of theft in this area is tremendous.  The school had four computers that the children could use once a week.  About 4 weeks into my employment here, we had a break in and they were stolen.  It took us about 4 more weeks to purchase new computers.  Now, we have laptops and they have to be locked away in the directors office if they are not in use.  Thankfully, the directors are very willing to allow my students to use them if we are completing a project. However, Tuesdays and Wednesdays, the PC teacher is at the school and I cannot use the computers.  Of course, On Tuesday is 1 of my science classes and on Wednesday is the other.  This makes planning a STEM project using technology almost non existent. 

Lastly, my students receive instruction in math, science, history and geography, and literature in Italian as well as English.  The Italian way of teaching is to read out of a book and have the students memorize what they have read and spit it back to their teacher.  It is no wonder the students lost their minds when we did a simple experiment.  They informed me that they had never done anything that resembled an inquiry assignment as far backa s they could remember.  It seems as if I will be bringing in any sort of STEM education into my classroom.

This year I came to the school with four months left of the school year.  Even though I have been teaching for three years in the states, teaching in an International School where 12 out of 14 students are NOT fluent in English has been a real struggle for me to just get them to understand what I was talking about. 

Next year, if I continue to teach at this school, I plan on doing many more STEM activities, including building the children up to an open inquiry if possible.  Research on the internet and suggestions from past colleagues will be where I find ideas from.  I want to show my students that life is more than soccer and cigarettes (the latter is more geared towards their parents and other teachers in the school), they can be truely successful and make a difference in this world if they open their eyes.

Jumper cables anyone?

I will start off by saying I am not one to follow politics.  I rarely get involved into discussions about how our President is doing, or which congressman is sleeping with his assistant rather than his wife.  I actually get frustrated when people get completely caught up in rooting for one party just because that's what their parents did.  Am I naive in thinking that I just want us to all get along?  Yes, probably.  However, with the constant struggle of democrats fighting republicans on what is right and what is wrong, invading other countries for YEARS to try and help them fight a battle, we have lost sight of the struggles happening on our own soil.  Our education system, not just the science aspect, but the entire system is crap when compared to the strides being taken in other countries. I'm honestly not sure what this country needs to recharge their batteries when it comes to educating our youth, but it needs to start with people learning how to compromise and support one another instead of nit-picking at every little move someone makes. 

We have a topic, an event you could say, that connects us all.  At some point in our lives, even if it hasn't happened yet, it will, we will be touched by the terrible disease we know as cancer.  This, I feel, has already sparked interests of children all over America.  I, myself, lost my mom 7 1/2 years ago to breast cancer.  She battled for 4 1/2 years, trying chemo after chemo, radiation after radiation.  Do I share this with my students?  ABSOLUTELY.  I have a connection with my students that I wouldn't trade for anything in the world, they are my children, I view them in this way because I love them dearly.  Likewise, they often view me as a mother figure, some have even called me Mamma Gizzi (before I was married), and I loved it.  My students connect with my story, and I can see in their faces that they know what it feels like to go through this.  Most of my students usually raise their hand and tell me how cancer has affected them.  I think cancer is our Sputnik.  Since it affects nearly all of us, we have reasons to charge our batteries and advance our knowledge in science. 

As for what other countries are doing?  They are focusing on EDUCATION.  They are not bothering with the problems of other countries.  They keep their focus on how they as a country can further their youth so that they are competitive in the upcoming years.  What are we doing?  We do a lot of talking, but at each other, not with each other.  The first step on the road to success is compromise.  We must learn to use our sense of hearing and stop telling other what they are doing wrong.  Instead, we should focus on what they are doing right and go from there.  Constructive criticism goes along way.  We need to realize that our battery in the American Education System has died, and it needs a jump start.  We all know the energy the youth of our country has, why not let them recharge our battery?