The post below is a reprint of my Op-Ed that was published in Youth Today on May 5, 2014.
In STEM, Content is Not Enough
There has been an explosion
of interest in providing young people with learning opportunities in science,
technology, engineering and math (STEM). Many have argued correctly that
afterschool and summer programs are perfectly situated to respond to this
interest. After all, the
out-of-school (OST) environment provides the teacher and learner with a
flexibility not found in school – the freedom to choose interesting topics, the
ability to extend the learning activities across time (days or even weeks), the
advantage of working in smaller groups, and use of the larger community and
their surroundings as a classroom. However, the rush to offer STEM-related
activities has not necessarily resulted in quality programming.
Many OST managers figured
that STEM activities meant a focus on content, without an eye on what makes for
a good learning experience. But successful STEM activities are more than
content. They are designed to ignite young people’s imagination and involve
them in ways that excite them as learners. Those responsible for providing STEM
activities need to provide staff training using a framework for learning and engagement.
Research on learning and
engagement suggest several principles to guide the design and implementation of
activities. To begin, learning activities must be active. They must be
collaborative and meaningful to the participant. They should support mastery and
they should expand the horizons of participants. These principles have become
influential in how the state of California now defines quality OST learning
programs.
According to Carol Tang,
former Director of the Coalition for Science After School, these principles are
relevant when applied to STEM. She
says, “A lot of young people are turned off because they had bad experiences learning
about science. If you look at these
learning principles, I think it’s a way to really look at science education, and
take a step back and say it is really about doing science. If you
think about what scientists do, they are active and hands on, they make things
and break things, they talk to their peers, they learn from their mistakes, and
they get better with time. If we don’t get kids excited about science then they
can learn as many facts and figures that their brains can hold, but that’s not
really going to help us.” (You could also view an interview with Carol Tang by clicking here.)
SRI International recently published the first part of a
5-year National Science Foundation funded research project, the Afterschool
Science Networks study. In this
important report, SRI presented case studies of science activities in
California afterschool programs and identified “staff capacity” as one of
several limitations. Many of the issues in staff capacity involved the failure
to engage and can be addressed through staff development on how to engage young
people as learners. Part of this is allowing young people to learn in a
hands-on fashion and facilitating questions instead of giving answers.
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| Dr. Ann House, SRI International |
According to
Dr. Ann House, leader of the SRI study, “We believe that the learning principles
developed by the Learning in Afterschool & Summer project are very well aligned with inquiry
science activities. For example, conducting investigations, collecting data,
and designing solutions make learning activities active, meaningful, and
support mastery. Engaging in scientific reasoning and argument deepens the
meaningfulness of activities and often involves collaboration. Finally,
investigating science phenomena and designing solutions broadens youth’s
horizons. Their horizons can also be broadened as they learn more about
STEM-related careers and how STEM skills and knowledge can help them become
more informed citizens.” (To view our interview with Dr. Ann House, click here.)
The growing
number of afterschool programs focused on STEM is an exciting development. But
if children are to develop a growing interest in STEM topics, we need to think
about how children learn when we design the activities and prepare adult staff
to facilitate them. This can be accomplished through training and materials
that offer a framework for learning and engagement.
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