In this day and age, it’d be hard to find a spot on Earth where modern technology hasn’t managed to assert itself as an integral part of everyday life.
Whether it’s several stories high nuclear-powered warships, or those food preservation containers that lock your cookies away for a specified period lest you give in to the temptation, plucky devices full of sophisticated electronics and circuits are everywhere around us!
It’s a brave new world, really, and to be one step ahead of it in the future, we need to teach our kids how to control, operate, and then even make some of these mighty contraptions.
It may sound far-fetched, but the exciting thing is- it’s already happening! STEM education represents one of the first steps in preparing our children to take on the future, no-doubt, technology-filled world with an air of confidence and a sufficiently-developed set o’ mean skills!
In this article, we’ll describe STEM education and explain why it’d be essential to consider it when it comes to choosing the educational direction for your kids.
Let’s take a closer look, shall we?
What is STEM Education?
The word STEM does not represent just a clever name to pitch the new education platform to curious parents. In fact, STEM is an abbreviation, and it stands for four particular scientific fields that are the most represented in the world of high technology. These are:
- Science
- Technology
- Engineering
- Mathematics
Now, this does not mean that a STEM education program will have a student merely attend some classes in these four subjects, proceed to study from a fat ole textbook, and then take an exam.
Instead, a STEM-based education encompasses a dynamic learning environment where these four subjects are explored by working with real-life examples. For instance, ‘disembowelling’ a laser printer may be the topic of one of the classes!
Benefits of STEM Education
- Problem-Solving Skills – Working with high-tech devices means understanding what makes them tick. So when they do break down, bringing them back to the operational state will make a child think before it acts.
Experiences acquired by setting a faulty piece of equipment back on track can be valuable for developing critical thinking and a problem-solving mindset!
- Encourages Creativity – Organizing your assets around a problem and then tackling it head on afterward is a procedure that surely demands a fair share of creativity. Whether it’s coming up with a new and exciting design for a 3D printing project or finding a solution when the rest of the team hits a brick wall, STEM education provides a child with a toolset that will enable it to unleash its creativity to the fullest extent!
- Creates an Advantage for Future Careers – The world of tomorrow is the world of technology. Soon, an increasing number of jobs will revolve around handling robots, providing cyber security and performing maintenance on various high-tech contraptions. In respect to this, STEM education is the best possible way for ensuring that your child will have a sound platform for further education and job search!
Bottom line, as technology starts making its way into more businesses and different areas of our life, becoming acquainted with it and understanding how it works early on, undoubtedly represents a massive advantage for a child’s future.
STEM education can help your child unleash its creativity, learn more about the new technologically-based world, and possibly have an easier time finding a job in the future!