If you take a look at the world around you, it is impossible to deny the steady increase of advancing technology. No matter what you may be doing, technology is somehow integrated into your everyday tasks in your personal and public life. Many of these technological advancements are proving to be very beneficial to society, in turn, creating a more significant need for jobs in the industry.
STEAM (science, technology, engineering, art, and mathematics) education– this concept may be all too familiar to you, or, might possibly be a brand new concept. Regardless, the concept of STEAM education has been around for some time, but has recently gained a ton of attention on not only a national but global scale for its significant importance in being taught to children.
Why is STEAM Education Important?
In recent years, educators of all different levels, have been working diligently to find both more effective and meaningful ways to connect and engage STEAM concepts with students. Educators are doing so because they are aware of the importance and positive impact that STEAM education curriculum and concepts have on children.
STEAM education not only teaches the acronym of science, technology, engineering, arts, and mathematics but also dives deep into aligning these concepts in the way students work and problem-solve in their daily lives.
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STEAM Education Improves Student Learning
Over the past decade, jobs in all career fields have become increasingly more interdisciplinary. This means that instead of teaching subjects and concepts separately, as done previously, children now are being educated on how STEAM subjects can be integrated to work together.
STEAM education encourages children to develop diverse skills, as opposed to just memorizing facts and numbers, as previously encouraged. This allows children to think critically, evaluate information and apply knowledge, research, and skills to solve a bigger problem.
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STEAM Education Sparks Natural Curiosity in Children
A major foundation of STEAM education is based on the notion of asking questions. For many children, asking questions is believed to be a sign of lack of understanding as opposed to general curiosity. Instead, STEAM education promotes the idea of questioning as a form of problem-solving and overall curiosity.
As a result of asking questions, children are not only exploring their curiosity but also improving their verbal and written communication skills.
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STEAM Education Attracts Children to STEAM Career Fields
STEAM education opens the door for so many career opportunities for children to make their futures even brighter than before– STEAM jobs in the United States alone are expected to grow by a whopping 16% between now and 2024 compared to the 11% increase in other career fields (insane, right?). Not only is the job market growing rapidly for STEAM-related careers, but the average income of these jobs earn more than double of the average job in the United States as well.
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The STEAM career field is also looking to increase the percentage of women holding positions. Many large STEAM-based companies are hoping that an increase in STEAM education will encourage young females to pursue future careers in the industry.