A closure look at STEM 2026 initiative by Tej Velaga and Jaiden Shah

As we move on into the future, STEM is becoming a more essential part of education. STEM is an acronym for Science, Technology, Engineering, and Math and this system is slowly being introduced into schools today. The goal of this type of education is to advance people’s problem solving skills and enhance their critical thinking skills while taking part in tasks like, building a catapult while only using a fork and a rubber band. In addition, STEM is also being incorporated into schools right now to adapt to our changing society. As we are moving towards a more digital future, STEM helps better prepare kids for this era, so that they can be successful when it's time for their career. In order to make sure the process of STEM is carried out successfully, the Obama administration set up a vision for what STEM should be like. This vision is called STEM 2026.

STEM 2026 was a vision created in 2015 by the US Department of Education along with the American Institutes for Research. They thought that the STEM field had many opportunities and were confident in the places they could go with it. It was a report that essentially planned out the next ten years. They saw that this department could effectively help them reach their goals of national security, and thrive in a technology-operated economy. The vision consists of the following six components: 1) Engaged and networked communities of practice. 2) Accessible learning activities that invite intentional play and risk. 3) Educational experiences that include interdisciplinary approaches to solving grand challenges. 4) Flexible and inclusive learning spaces. 5) Innovative and accessible measures of learning. 6) Societal and cultural images and environments that promote diversity and opportunity in STEM. These components all are making the point that STEM is going to have a bigger role in education as it is becoming progressively important as we move toward a technology-driven future.

Overall, STEM 2026 will be the perfect system to set up kids in school right now for success. Even though this program is already doing pretty well, since it was just initiated a few years ago, they still have many adjustments to make. Adding on, even though this program hasn’t reached its full potential yet, it has many advantages as it is right now. One of the main ones being that this program is being offered to kids everywhere, even in places where kids have a poor education. Since its being offered everywhere, STEM 2026 can maybe even replace the poor education that they are receiving for a better one. In conclusion, this program offers an endless amount of benefits, so all we need to do is help support this program.

Sources

· http://teccenter.erikson.edu/tec/stem-2026/

· https://www.air.org/resource/stem-2026-vision-innovation-stem-education

· https://www.air.org/system/files/downloads/report/STEM-2026-Vision-for-Innovation-September-2016.pdf

· https://www.educationdive.com/news/what-should-stem-ed-look-like-in-10-years/426631/

· https://www.theedadvocate.org/vision-future-stem-education/