How Teachers Can Incorporate STEM—Without Making It a Big Production

Introducing students to STEM early, and consistently exposing them to those subject areas throughout their K-12 careers, can motivate students who might be searching for a subject that interests them to succeed academically, potentially changing the trajectory of their lives. And teachers can make that exposure happen in small ways throughout the school day, even when they don’t work in schools with robust STEM programs.

That was the message from educators who have managed to more closely incorporate science, technology, engineering, and math into their classrooms and schools during a recent webinar organized by the National Math and Science Initiative.

“STEM is everywhere,” said Kristen Vesely, the director of advanced academics in the Ector County, Texas, district. “There are so many everyday ways that we can introduce these concepts.”

The emphasis on STEM learning has continued to grow in recent years, as educators and employers increasingly work together to introduce students to STEM-related concepts and skills that can translate into in-demand jobs.

Some districts have poured big bucks into building STEM programs that carve out pathways for students to pursue training—and oftentimes receive postsecondary certificates—in a variety of related careers, from nursing to automotive technology to engineering. The goal is to provide a diverse assortment of opportunities for students to prepare for college or careers after high school in high-demand, high-paying jobs.

But that’s been far from a universal experience in K-12 schools.

Gaps persist in access to STEM programs based on whether districts have invested in them, and young people over time come to believe that boys are more inclined than girls to succeed in those subjects. Districts also face challenges filling STEM-specialty teaching positions.

Even without those major investments and formal advanced STEM programs, however, teachers of all grade levels and subject areas can still take steps to introduce STEM concepts in their classrooms, Vesely said.

Teachers can look to a new technology-related trending topic—like artificial intelligence—and create opportunities to discuss the new tool, how it works, and emphasize that people have careers developing and maintaining those tools. Such discussions help plant a seed, and get kids thinking about topics that interest them and how their interests can someday translate to jobs, Vesely said.

Read more at Education Week.