Since its genesis from the mind of NSF assistant director, Dr. Judith Ramaley, in the days of the early 21st Century the STEM acronym stood for science, technology, engineering, and mathematics — essentially a collection of related educational and ultimately work disciplines. While the acronym remains known mostly to those in the educational sector, it is gaining increased visibility as part of a general call to place more emphasis on the STEM subjects in the schools.
Many feel that America needs to invest more in STEM education, since we are falling behind other countries when it comes to developing new scientists and engineers. In short, our position as a leader and an innovator in the world’s new economy is at risk without a well educated populace.
Adding Creativity to the STEM Equation
At the same time, other educators believe that creativity and art are essential to the process of technical innovation, and that focusing merely on the scientific disciplines leaves something out of the equation. Enter the “A” for art; STEM becomes STEAM.
Over time arts education has suffered from the lack of support that is also typical of technology-related subjects. When funding sources dry up, the arts are usually the first thing to go on the chopping block. This has led many to consider making STEAM educational programs a priority moving forward.
One of the more notable champions of STEAM is Arne Duncan, U.S. Secretary of Education. “For today’s students to be the innovators and economic leaders of the future, they will need to have experiences as musicians and dancers, painters and sculptors, poets and playwrights –– in short, they will need to be creative innovators who will build our nation’s economy for the future,” said Duncan. There is little doubt that creativity is an important aspect of engineering; emphasizing the arts in school in addition to the other STEM disciplines will only help develop the innovators of the future.
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