Students in a Federal Way Public School taught a Hollywood actor a little about STEM education. Danny Glover visited a science, technology, engineering and math school to learn about innovations in public education.
Danny Glover has been an actor a lot longer than students at the Technology Access Foundation, or TAF, Academy have been alive. But the star of all 4 Lethal Weapon movies and The Color Purple has worked in education even longer. He says ever since he became involved in a tutoring program when he was 20 years old, he’s been searching for ways to improve public schools.
“Technology plays a major role in advancing students capabilities. So, I came to a place, specifically, in TAF, where technology’s used as a platform, a major platform in introducing children to the capacities that they have as learners. I wanted to see that.”
The 'smart board'
One of the things he got to see is a new take on the old chore of solving problems on a chalkboard. Excited freshmen show him how they use a “smart board” – a high-tech white board that lets them save their work to a computer. Glover takes the electronic pen and uses a little algebra to solve for unknown coordinates.
Glover’s visit to the school was coordinated by Washington STEM, an organization that promotes science, technology, engineering and math programs. They say it was the perfect fit for the actor’s advocacy work since TAF targets children of color and other students who traditionally lag behind in science and math. They say they also hope it influences his upcoming role as a math professor in a TV series, so more people have a chance to see what STEM education is all about.
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