“STEM Education: Concepts, Methodologies, Tools and Applications”

Objectives:
Expanding the number of students who ultimately pursue advanced degrees and careers in STEM fields and broaden the participation of women and minorities in those fields;
Increasing the participation of students’ groups that are underrepresented in the sciences through providing opportunities for highly talented students from these groups;
Increasing STEM literacy for all students, including those who do not pursue STEM-related careers or additional study in the STEM disciplines: STEM literacy is defined as the knowledge and understanding of scientific and mathematical concepts and processes required for personal decision making, participation in civic and cultural affairs, and economic productivity for all students;
Developing scientific and technological understanding, required by personal and societal decisions in the 21st century;
Targeting all students, not just those who will pursue postsecondary education or careers in STEM or STEM-related fields, will better prepare citizens to face the challenges of a science- and technology-driven society;
Establishing a blended learning environment and showing students how the scientific method can be applied to everyday life;
Teaching students computational thinking and focuses on the real world applications of problem solving;
Providing standards-based structured inquiry-based and real world problem-based learning, connecting all four of the STEM subjects;
Bridging in-school and out-of-school STEM opportunities;
Developing the deep mathematical, technological and scientific underpinnings students need to be competitive in the 21st-century workforce;
Intentionally incorporating different subjects across an existing curriculum;
Developing a set of thinking, reasoning, teamwork, investigative, and creative skills that students can use in all areas of their lives through incorporating different subjects across an existing curriculum;
Using an invigorating approach to old content;
Developing habits of mind that can last a lifetime and guide learning and creative thinking;
Amplifying effective units and forming a sense of collegiality and enthusiasm that would not be achieved if they are working in isolation;
Developing of higher-order thinking skills;
Using interdisciplinary approach in the classroom as a team-taught enhancement of student performance, an integration of methodology and pedagogy, and a much needed lifelong learning skills;
Focusing on real-world issues and problems;
Guided by the engineering design process, providing a flexible process that takes students from identifying a problem—or a design challenge—to creating and developing a solution;
Defining problems, conducting background research, developing multiple ideas for solutions, developing and creating a prototype, and then testing, evaluating, and redesigning them;
Forming open ended path to learning;
Involving students in productive teamwork;
Allowing for multiple right answers and reframing failure as a necessary part of learning: learn from what went wrong, and try again – failure is considered a positive step on the way to discovering and designing solutions;
Providing insight into cause and effect by manipulating variables;
Providing an opportunity for teachers to collaborate and further enhance the effectiveness of learning and teaching;
Applying Learner-centered approaches in order to facilitate students to learn how to learn through STEM related learning activities, diversified learning, teaching and assessment strategies should be used to suit the needs and interests of students;
Balancing among different purposes, views and interests: in promoting STEM education, a balance has to be struck with considerations of students’ interests and needs, teachers’ views and partnerships with community key stakeholders;
Building on school experiences and other conducive factors, such as the flexible use of learning time and life-wide learning experiences;
Developing among students a solid knowledge base and to enhance their interests in Science, Technology and Mathematics for further studies and careers in meeting the changes and challenges in the contemporary world;
Strengthening students’ ability to integrate and apply knowledge and skills, and to nurture students’ creativity, collaboration and problem solving skills, as well as to foster their innovation and entrepreneurial spirit as required in the 21st century;
Nurturing talents and developing experts in STEM areas;
Realising that the development of science, technology and mathematics is closely related to the societal environment and that the advancement in science and technology could help improve the quality of life in the contemporary world;
Helping the development of positive values and attitudes among students as part of whole-person development through the experiences of integrating and applying knowledge and skills to solve authentic problems and make inventions;
Preparing students to be successful lifelong learners and leaders in the 21st century.