Dr. Mamta Singh cherishes each day she has spent at Lamar University. Since becoming a faculty member in the College of Education and Human Development in 2014, she has been preparing new teachers for the classroom and helping them grow their skills.
Prior to joining LU, she served as the site director for NASA’s Science, Engineering, Mathematics and Aerospace Academy (SEMAA) at Martin University in Indianapolis, Indiana. SEMAA programs align with national standards for K-12 STEM curriculum. Each site’s Aerospace Education Laboratory also features technology that simulates space flight and zero gravity conditions. The goal is to inspire more students to explore STEM careers and increase diversity in those fields.
“We live in a very exciting era,” Dr. Singh said. “Students having a biology, physics, chemistry, engineering, arts—any background even—they can go and work with NASA.”
She enjoyed running the program and working with young learners. However, since she completed her Ph.D. in Science Education and Aquatic Biology from Texas State University, contributing to the state’s vibrant academic community was important to her. “I always wanted to come back to Texas,” she shared.
As a Professor of Science Education at LU, she now helps ensure that K-12 students across Texas have instructors who are engaged in lifelong learning and invested in their role. Dr. Singh has received accolades for her commitment to helping Lamar University students reach their potential, including the Faculty Mentor Award, Distinguished Faculty Teaching Fellowship and Presidential Faculty Fellowship.
In addition to her undergraduate courses on campus, Dr. Singh works with teachers in the online Alternative Certification Program (ACP) and online Master of Arts in Teaching (MAT) program. Both provide a pathway to licensure in Texas. ACP students can go on to earn a master’s degree by completing three additional courses.
Dr. Singh says the programs stand out for their affordable tuition and accelerated format, as well as their focus on practical skills. Students develop mastery in planning and classroom management while studying a range of innovative practices in education.
Dr. Singh appreciates her online ACP and MAT students because their enthusiasm for learning is evident. Even though all lectures are recorded for them to watch at their convenience, she says many log on for her live sessions, arriving early to discuss the weekly topics.
“They share the experience,” she said with a smile. “I get the sense that [it’s a] learning community that they are enjoying.”
Finding a New Calling, by Surprise
Dr. Singh understands why ACP and MAT students often come to education from other professional fields. Her passion for teaching emerged after years spent pursuing a different career.
In 1996, she graduated from Tribhuvan University in Kathmandu, Nepal with a bachelor’s in biology and a clear vision for her future. While she was preparing for medical school, she accepted a temporary job teaching middle school math and science. Although she had little experience, she loved working with students and felt a strong calling to continue.
“That short time of me being in teaching changed my entire career,” she remembered.
After a few years in the classroom, she focused on her own education again, earning a master’s in Environment and Natural Resources Law from the Norwegian University of Life Sciences in 2001, then a second master’s in Environmental Science from Ohio University in 2004. She began teaching at the college level as a graduate assistant at Ohio and continued developing her pedagogy at Texas State while earning her doctorate. She graduated in 2009.
“You learn best when you are a teacher,” she said, sharing her philosophy. “To become a good learner, become a good teacher.”
She joined the faculty at Martin University the following year and became site director for the NASA SEMAA program in 2011. Dr. Singh has fond memories of her time on the project. “That was a very fascinating experience for the kids,” she recalled. “Adding additional knowledge of math and science is always helpful.”
Since returning to Texas, she has continued to champion STEM education and support new teachers at LU specializing in all content areas. In addition, Dr. Singh has led the Becky and Chuck Mason STEM Scholars program, an annual summer initiative to help increase the number of teachers serving Southeast Texas and beyond.
The program offers undergraduates from majors such as physics, chemistry, biology, engineering and mathematics a one-month intensive paid internship. They learn basic instructional concepts and classroom management skills, then complete field work teaching STEM subjects to elementary students.
“They already have strong background of content,” Dr. Singh explained. “They get the exposure of intensive pedagogy and pedagogical content knowledge with us, and they implement it in the classroom.”
She also leads LU’s Bridging the Digital Divide program. Each fall, student volunteers hold workshops on digital literacy at elementary school campuses, interacting with children in small groups. “They become a role model to these kids,” Dr. Singh said, to convey the message “I can do it, you can do it too.”
Promoting Research, Resiliency and Teacher Success
Dr. Singh thinks it’s important for all instructors to keep building new skills, and she continues to lead by example. She earned her fourth graduate degree in 2023, completing LU’s online Master of Education in Applied Digital Learning program.
Dr. Singh encourages her students to keep expanding their knowledge, advising those interested in teacher licensure or a master’s degree to be adaptable. She says advances in technology will continue to drive innovation in the classroom.
“We educators, we need to cope with the times and then adjust our teaching and learning,” she observed. “It’s an opportunity for us to grow and add additional marketable skills.”
Dr. Singh also suggests that online ACP and MAT students conduct research, because she feels it’s essential for teachers to have that experience. She says it begins with reflection and strategic thinking, and that questions to consider can come from a teacher’s daily practice.
“Don’t think that research can be done only in controlled labs,” she said “We’re doing research every day.”
Dr. Singh is currently leading a group of studies funded by the Lamar University Center for Resiliency. She’s examining preservice teachers’ mental health and perseverance strategies and looking at ways to incorporate social-emotional learning in the K-12 classroom, as well as culturally relevant teaching.
Dr. Singh’s work has been published in the Journal of College Science Teaching and numerous other peer-reviewed journals. She also presents her findings at professional conferences. This November, she will present her Building Resiliency Among Preservice Teachers study at the National Science Teaching Association’s annual conference in New Orleans.
After 30 impactful years in education, Dr. Singh says teaching still gives her the most joy. She’s happy to be at a university that shares her commitment to supporting learners of all ages and backgrounds, and meeting their needs. “We don’t see students as numbers,” she said. “We really try hard to help students to be successful.”
Dr. Singh expects her next decade at LU will be just as rewarding. “It has been fun and fantastic,” she said. “The experience has been phenomenal.”
Learn more about the online Alternate Certification Program for teachers at Lamar University.
Learn more about the online Master of Arts in Teaching program at Lamar University.
