By Christopher Emdin, Ph.D.
When we consider collective effervescence—the shared energy and inspiration that arises when people come together—we must also confront how classrooms either nurture or extinguish students’ aspirations. The persistently low rates of students graduating with STEM degrees and the widespread disinterest in science, technology, engineering, and math are closely tied to the absence of what I call a Dream Culture in schools and the prevalence of a dream-deferred approach to STEM instruction. That approach teaches young people, explicitly or implicitly, that disliking or struggling in math and science is normal, unavoidable, or even necessary for anyone who wants to work in STEM fields.
Langston Hughes captured the harm of deferred aspirations in his poem “Harlem (A Dream Deferred).” Hughes asks what becomes of dreams that are repeatedly postponed—will they dry up, fester, or disappear entirely? His questions push us to ask our own: if a dream is never pursued, is it truly a dream? When dreams are constantly delayed, students who might otherwise transform their communities and the world are denied the chance to imagine and build those futures.
Too often, classrooms derail young people’s sense of possibility. Either students are not introduced to the skills and pathways that reveal how STEM can connect to their interests and identities, or the content is presented in a way that pushes them away. When schools treat STEM as a grueling rite of passage—a place where joy is postponed until after graduation and only the “strong” survive—they teach students to dislike these subjects. The dominant narrative becomes: endure the struggle in science and math now, and someday—when you land a well-paid job—you will finally be happy.
That narrative rests on two harmful assumptions. The first assumes that a high salary equals joy. We know that money does not guarantee fulfillment; many well-paid professionals feel unfulfilled because their work lacks purpose or passion. The second assumption is that learning STEM should be punitive—painful or joyless—and only those who tolerate that pain deserve to advance. This deliberate postponement of joy, framed as a test of endurance, is morally and educationally bankrupt. It squanders talent, discourages creative problem-solving, and reinforces a system of winnowing that filters out many potential scientists and engineers simply because they don’t conform to a narrow view of how learners should think or behave.
A Dream Culture in education insists that learning and dreaming be intertwined. Classrooms should be places where play, curiosity, and collaborative discovery are central. When students experience affirmation, play, and opportunities to experiment, they activate the creative capacities that lead to innovation. On the other hand, classrooms that prioritize outputs—test scores, grades, or “weeding out” students—over the imaginative inputs necessary for deep learning crush curiosity and diminish collective effervescence.
For many students, their dreams arrive already deferred; their life experiences, school practices, or lack of exposure have pushed possibility to the margins. If educators and systems remain obsessed only with measurable outcomes without cultivating the environments that produce those outcomes, we continue to stifle discovery. We have lost imagination in part because we stopped nurturing dreams. And without dreams, growth stalls.
Reimagining STEM education around Dream Culture and collective effervescence reframes STEM as a lifelong practice—not merely a subject to pass or a means to a paycheck. It acknowledges that teachers, administrators, and students are all learners and dreamers. Creating this culture requires intentional practices: making space for play and experimentation, encouraging self-exploration by both students and adults, and celebrating multiple ways of thinking and knowing. These elements restore joy, curiosity, and collective energy to STEM classrooms and help unlock the latent genius in every student.
Restoring Dream Culture means moving away from punishment and exclusion and toward environments that cultivate belonging, creativity, and sustained engagement with science and mathematics. When schools foster joyful collaboration and meaningful exploration, they generate the collective effervescence that fuels curiosity, resilience, and lasting commitment to STEM fields.
About the author
Christopher Emdin, Ph.D., is the Robert A. Naslund Endowed Chair in Curriculum and Teaching and a Professor of Education at the University of Southern California, where he also serves as Director of Youth Engagement and Community Partnerships at the USC Race and Equity Center. He previously directed the Science Education program at Teachers College, Columbia University and served as an alumni fellow at the Hip-Hop Archive and Hutchins Center at Harvard University. Emdin created the #HipHopEd movement and Science Genius B.A.T.T.L.E.S., and has been recognized for his work in multicultural education and STEM access. He is the author of STEM, STEAM, Make, Dream (Houghton Mifflin Harcourt), Ratchetdemic (Beacon Press), and For White Folks Who Teach in the Hood … and the Rest of Y’all Too (Beacon Press).
This article was originally published by The Learning Counsel, a research institute and news media hub focused on the shift in education toward digital curriculum.
The preceding is an excerpt from STEM, STEAM, Make, Dream: Reimagining the Culture of Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics.