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Essay / Overview of the Key Points of STEM Education in the United States
STEM Education in the United States As Drew Faust once said, “Higher education is the strongest and most more solid towards increased socio-economic mobility”. The STEM curriculum, which is the curriculum used in some schools in the United States, refers to science, technology, engineering, and mathematics. The main objective of this system is to educate students in the four subjects listed above in a deeper approach in order to improve the education received by students and have more compatible future leaders of the nation. It is of great importance to take care directly of the functioning of this educational program, because the economy depends on these students, because one day they will be the ones who will feed the system. This type of responsibility is not an undemanding undertaking and therefore it is necessary for these students to be fully prepared in order to understand any of the four areas. For this reason, the question arises how will the STEM education system help these young students achieve greatness and ultimately how will this program reflect the improvement of our economy? The STEM curriculum could be one of the most important factors in economic growth in the United States if changes were made to the way it is implemented by the government and used by teachers. Say no to plagiarism. Get a Custom Essay on “Why Violent Video Games Should Not Be Banned”?Get an Original EssayThe main problem that arises when the topic of STEM curriculum is brought up is the fact that there are not enough workers STEM in the United States. , and this is attributed to different factors that are said to contribute to the lack of effectiveness of the STEM education system, as well as the lack of STEM workers. In the article Refueling the US Innovation Economy, Robert Atkinson introduces this topic when he presents that "there is clear evidence that the United States is consistently unable to produce enough of its own STEM workers in key fields » (p. 6). Additionally, it features a project called “STEM for All” that was created in hopes of improving the curriculum. The various approaches taken to pursue this project included "improving the quality of K-12 STEM teachers, imposing more rigorous STEM standards, improving curricula, and educating students about the importance and attractiveness of STEM careers”. (Atkinson, p. 7) Nevertheless, many professionals questioned how well these approaches would work, because the money the government or schools would have to pay to make them possible and the work would be expensive. Better teachers with improved resumes and more suitable for teaching in STEM fields are expensive, and the money that would be used to pay them and for the materials they would need could be better used in different fields. Although it is beneficial to educate as many students as possible in STEM, teachers are skeptical about a major change in the education system. Because the economy is constantly changing and evolving, the education system must evolve with it to keep pace. In the article So You Think You Know STEM? Anders Hedberg notes that "K-12 teachers are rightly tired of trends aimed at transforming classrooms" because there are not enough "resources [that] are available for new activities” (p. 146). It would take drastic changes in the education budget to allow STEM education for students, which could pose a problem for the program. However, if these changes canbe implemented, students will become more well-rounded learners, better suited to enter the job market. STEM “defines the everyday practice of solving tasks using digital and mechanical tools to access information” (Hedberg, 147). Having even a basic knowledge of STEM subjects will help students solve problems and teach skills needed outside of the field. The economy would improve with the implementation of the STEMCurriculum because the problem-solving and task management skills that will be acquired can lead to entrepreneurship and innovation in businesses. There is a need for “effective collaboration between [the] education and workplace sectors” in order to have “national talent development”, meaning that school and the economy are interdependent and should be treated as such (Hedberg, 148). that there is more emphasis on STEM in school, as STEM is a rapidly growing field. In the article, Pioneering a New Path for STEM Education, Clifton B. Vann IV writes that STEM-related jobs "will grow 70 percent faster than other jobs" and that "2.4 million jobs will be created in STEM fields during this period” ( p. 31). Due to these anticipated economic changes, students will need to be prepared differently. The only way to effectively prepare students for the workforce is to provide them with in-depth STEM training. This will require teachers capable of teaching this curriculum, and there may be difficulties with the transition of students learning a different curriculum. Job readiness is one of the greatest benefits of a STEM education. The STEMersion program has been implemented by many companies to teach other companies the importance and benefits of STEM. The goal of the program is for teachers to learn "how science, technology, engineering and mathematics are used in the workplace" and immersion would "enable them to better prepare students for 21st jobs." century” (Vann IV, 31). This type of program is important because it would allow students to understand why they are learning the way they are. Real-world application is important to hold students' attention, and they would absorb more of it in turn. There is a widespread misconception that the United States does not play a major role in manufacturing. However, this is not the case. Innovation is a key component of the manufacturing industry, and the skills students will learn through a STEM education will make them key players in a manufacturing-based economy. Nevertheless, various arguments discuss why the STEM program would not work. for the United States economy. In his article Refueling the US Innovation Economy, Robert Atkinson provides a very useful example on page eight, where he makes a musical analogy and compares it to the STEM curriculum. He states that "although music is important to society, not everyone needs to know how to play a musical instrument, and it would be a waste of societal resources to invest large sums of money to ensure that every student has access to a Steinway piano and a Steinway piano.” Juilliard-trained music teachers. (Atkinson, p. 8) Not all students want to study STEM-related subjects, just like not all students want to study music. It would not be appropriate to spend additional funds on a perfect STEM-focused education system, if every individual did not benefit from it. Additionally, a country would not be as competitive.