“STEM” may seem like a marketing buzz-phrase, but the acronym has earned its status. After all, careers in Science, Technology, Engineering and Math are growing much faster than those in non-STEM roles (24 percent versus 4 percent over the past decade), and those who earn STEM degrees earn more – 12 percent more, in fact, than non-STEM degree holders, regardless if they pursue a career in a STEM field.
As STEM careers lead the way into the future, we need to encourage children to pursue STEM education more than ever. STEM concepts are relatively language agnostic – which means engaging, hands-on activities like the ones you'll find in this blog post can be enjoyed by students throughout the world. That’s why Emerson hosts I Love STEM Day in offices from Austin to Manilla and from Bradenton to Brazil. #ILoveSTEM Day encourages Kindergarten- 8th grade students to flex their STEM muscles by participating in hands-on technology and engineering-focused activities that are designed to help them better understand the scientific concepts they encounter every day. While learning about scientific principles like geometry, balance, circuits, electrochemistry and the fundamentals of force and motion in a kid-friendly and memorable way, they develop a deep sense of curiosity for these fields that lends itself directly to more “why” and “how” questions and can often lead them to pursue studies in these fields.
Building 3-D models with gumdrops and designing rollercoasters out of foam insulation isn’t the only path to growing a love of science and engineering — but it’s a strong start. We know that STEM education helps kids develop critical thinking, supports innovation and boosts science literacy and an understanding of how the world works.
Last week in Austin, we hosted 127 children for #ILoveSTEM Day. Perhaps an even more impressive stat is the 95 volunteers (including 11 high school students on summer vacation) who stepped up to the plate to make this effort successful. Some of the more raved about (and tastier) activities included The Roller Coaster Challenge, Gumdrop Bridge and Snap Circuits. We hope you’ll try these at your home of office. Here’s the instructions: ILoveSTEM Day 2017 Activity Guide.pdf
We know that starting kids early in engaging, focused STEM education can create a lifelong interest in these key fields. A 2010 study from Raytheon Co. found that, of the 1,000 middle-schoolers surveyed, 44 percent would rather take out the trash than do math homework—and a whopping 56 percent would rather eat broccoli than tackle their math homework. This statistic shows the leaps we need to take to become a society that values STEM.A lack of exposure to STEM options follows American students throughout the education system. The U.S. Department of Labor estimates there will be 1.4 million computer specialist job openings in 2020—but that U.S. universities are expected to produce enough qualified graduates to fill just 29 percent of these jobs.
As citizens of the world, we need to be mindful of how and what we communicate, to find ways to better integrate, to take the more holistic approach, and to challenge each other to think bigger. We need an education system that can help develop STEM-minded professionals with the ability to market and communicate, and vice versa.
We’re falling behind—but we can catch up. Whether you are a global business or a parent, resources exist to help you instill scientific curiosity and teach early-age STEM concepts. Check out organizations such as STEM Scouts, GirlStart, and, if you’re Texas, TAME’s Trailblazer Science Bus. I Love STEM Day is one of a handful of programs supporting Emerson’s commitment to STEM this year, but it’s just a single piece of a larger puzzle. We need to talk about STEM and we need to make it accessible – the future of our world tomorrow rests on our shoulders today.