Making Connections with STEM Fall 2021 Cohort 8: Week 1

Week 1

This class was developed with non-STEM teachers in mind, pulling in current resources and perspectives on the importance of STEM thinking for all students. Each week we will look at a different aspect of STEM that you may not have considered before. Our goal in this course is for you to leave with a broader understanding about what STEM is and how you can support the development of STEM skills in your classroom. WEEK 1 WHY STEM?

Read:

*Optional Resource: Science, Technology, Engineering, & Mathematics (STEM)

Reflect: Post your response to the prompt below by Monday morning.

First, begin by briefly introducing yourself--tell us who you are and what your teaching context is. Then, read through some foundational documents explaining why STEM matters in Washington schools, and consider your own understanding of the value of STEM and STEM thinking.

Based on your reading and thinking so far, why does STEM matter? What value does it add in classes and contexts that are not typically thought of as STEM?

Interact: On Monday, read your colleagues' reflections and respond to at least one other post by sharing a comment, insight, or interesting possibility by next Thursday.

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JanineG · 182 weeks ago

Hello! My name is Janine Greene and I teach first grade in the Issaquah School District. This is my 4th year in Issaquah but, my 24th year of teaching.
I am excited to be reading about STEM and I'm sure I will learn so much from the readings and also from all of you as we share and learn together.
I believe that STEM definitely matters in all states, but for sure in WA schools as Ms. Angela Jones shared that our state ranks among the highest in the nation in the concentration of STEM jobs. That is amazing..and yet, not surprising!
I do believe that STEM and STEM thinking has to be a part of a movement that schools in our country make happen. Students need to learn how and why and not just learn by memorizing and rote work.
The problem that I see we have to figure out is how do we have time to do all that we will need to do in order to use STEM thinking and activities in our classroom. That is something that I hope to get some answers to by participating in this group.
I look forward to the next few weeks!

1 reply · active 181 weeks ago

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Erin K. (TSD) · 181 weeks ago

Janine,

I was drawn to your recognition of STEM's relevancy in Washington State as I thought back to what my own students have shared about their parents' professional statuses and their career aspirations. Teaching in this region of the United States, we have a myriad of families employed by Microsoft, Boeing, Amazon, Blue Origin, and other tech giants due to their concentration in the Seattle area. Our families invest in their children's education throughout their K-12 experience and it is our duty, as educators, to invest in the design of learning experiences relevant to our students in our community. This means we must provide authentic opportunities to learn and engage with the careers of their parents and the careers they may want to pursue themselves. The STEM Work Group noted in their report, "The saturation of technologies in most fields means that all students not just those who plan to pursue a STEM profession — will require a solid foundation in STEM to be productive members of society and the workforce" (p. 15). It is imperative we guide our students towards a recognition that any career is rooted in STEM, though some may be more obvious than others. Through this attention to the value of STEM in all careers, I think we can garner more investment from our students into STEM subjects as well as to their school experience itself.

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Ashleigh R. (TSD) · 182 weeks ago

Hi! My name is Ashleigh R. and I teach in the Tahoma School District. I have taught for 10 years, and I am currently a 2nd grade classroom teacher.

After completing the reading, I believe that STEM is an important component of learning to help students develop critical thinking skills for the future. The focus around innovation and problem-solving is applied to a vast array of subjects and situations beyond the K-12 classroom. While building specific content knowledge is important, STEM can create a toolbelt of strategies for students no matter what they choose as a career path. STEM can teach students how to cope with challenges and adapt to the changing 21st century.

2 replies · active 181 weeks ago

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Katelyn V. (ISD) 12p · 181 weeks ago

I love that you put in "no matter what career path" as I think many people contribute STEM as only being important for careers in STEM but it truly does help with any career path one may choose!

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JanineG (ISD) · 181 weeks ago

I agree with what you said about 'no matter what career path' too! That's so true. I feel that no matter what after-high-school path the students take, no matter what career they decide to pursue, STEM skills will help them!

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Erin K. (TSD) · 181 weeks ago

Hello! My name is Erin K. and I currently serve as our building's fifth-grade highly-capable teacher for the Tahoma School District. This is my second year in my current role and my third teaching in a fifth-grade classroom. This year, our building has the unique privilege of providing an engineering course for students in K-5, and thus STEM feels particularly relevant, actionable, and achievable. Observing our Engineering Specialist instruct and engage students in the practice of STEM has in no way lessened the importance of our basic content subjects, but rather allowed students to see the mechanisms by which their core knowledge translates into tangible strategies to approach and solve problems in their own lives. As Deangelis stated in the WIRED article, "grounding students in STEM subjects doesn’t mean that other social or liberal arts subjects aren’t important, only that STEM subjects teach life-skills that other disciplines don’t". Frankly, we fail to equip our students with the confidence and aptitude to embrace the challenges of a dynamic, global society if we restrict our curriculum to traditional subjects alone.

Often, it seems STEM is seen as a supplementary or elective addition to our core content, yet we must shift our mindset to see STEM as essential to any child's learning experience, regardless of their school's context or availability of resources. The article prepared by the STEM Work Group stated, "to achieve these ends students must have rich experiences that begin in preschool and are intentionally expanded and refined throughout their K-12 experience". Our instructional design ought to see STEM as a core subject with diverse, interdisciplinary applications and relevancy. I have begun to uncover opportunities to incorporate STEM learning in my own curriculum as I have searched to strengthen the rigor of our learning activities and prompt a greater depth of knowledge. The eager response of my students is evidence enough of the value of STEM. They continue to reference new design ideas, self-start their own projects, and demonstrate a genuine understanding of the need for empathy in engineering designs. I look forward to diving into the topic of STEM and increasing my competency with STEM integration and application.

1 reply · active 181 weeks ago

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Rachael S ISD · 181 weeks ago

Hi Erin! I totally agree about STEM sometimes being relegated to something extra or a special project instead of fluently incorporated into all areas of curriculum. STEM is a lens that can and should be applied to any and all curriculum. If we start STEM with our youngest learners we can make flexible thinking and executive functioning skills a standard learning tools for all students.

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Katelyn V. (ISD) 12p · 181 weeks ago

Hello! My name is Katelyn V. and I am a paraeducator for an elementary school in the Issaquah School District. I am currently going to school to be an elementary school teacher. STEM has always been a valuable part of my education growing up, but also within my job. We use STEM to enhance the activities we do on a daily basis. STEM matters because without it we would not have a well rounded education, and many of the activities we run would not be educational. One thing that is not typically thought of as a value of STEM is that it creates workers who are capable and flexible in their thinking.

1 reply · active 181 weeks ago

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JanineG (ISD) · 181 weeks ago

So true Katelyn....it creates problem-solvers and flexible thinkers!

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Stephen Elms · 181 weeks ago

Hello, my name is Steve Elms and this is my 30th year of teaching, although my 1st year in the Snoqualmie Valley School District. I have taught K-5 and this year I am teaching in 5th grade. I couldn't agree more with the article regarding all of the critical thinking aspects - right now most of our kids can't do that for themselves. Teaching for this long, I was so excited that people started developing a STEM curriculum for teachers and students to use. STEM is usually the highlight of the day for students as they can collaborate and explore, experiment and revise, and MOVE! In a mostly broken public school "delivery" system of teach and test (and I say that with love because I am a public school teacher and always have been who would love to see change) we need to start thinking outside the box on how best to educate our students, and not keep them in the same box that was originally designed hundreds of years ago. Hopefully STEM will inspire that change for all !

3 replies · active 180 weeks ago

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Danielle S. · 181 weeks ago

I agree Steve! Those critical thinking skills are really lacking for our students right now. Not all students are alike so to treat them that way seems like a failure. Hoping this study gives us some good ideas!

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Ashleigh Rocco (TSD) · 181 weeks ago

I was thinking the same thing. I am hoping I can gain some insight on how to do within my everyday teaching. I often "do" STEM, and I am hoping to weave it into my teaching in a practical way.

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Hannah Johnson · 180 weeks ago

Hi Stephen!

I agree, we need to start thinking outside of the box, especially when it comes to state testing. In my classroom, I have also noticed that a majority of my students still need lots of support with developing their critical thinking skills, which is totally understandable. I look forward to helping students develop these skills and look forward to learning more about how I can better implement STEM into my classroom. Thank you for sharing!

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Danielle S. · 181 weeks ago

Hi There! My name is Danielle S. and I am in my 14th year teaching. I was in LWSD for that past 13 and this is my first year in the Snoqualmie Valley District. I am currently a Kindergarten teacher but spent the past 6 years in Reading Intervention. I am really looking forward to this STEM course as it's been a while since I've been a classroom teacher. I am excited to learn all things STEM that I can incorporate into my teaching. I agree with these articles that critical thinking and problem skills lend themselves to any area of career path or life skills. In my old school we had a STEM school integrated within our school and it was a lottery to get in. Which is great, but it seems like this is something we should all integrate into our teaching and learning. Teaching students to problem solve using real world examples seems like best practice.

2 replies · active 181 weeks ago

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Stephen Elms · 181 weeks ago

Definitely agree with you Danielle, best teaching occurs when they understand these skills will last them a lifetime, not just for a 45 minute science lesson!

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Meg H. · 181 weeks ago

Yes, it should not be a lottery to get engaging, critical thinking lessons. Opportunity for all.

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Rachael S ISD · 181 weeks ago

Hello! My name is Rachael S (ISD) and I am in my 7th year of teaching, all in kindergarten. This is my 2nd year in the ISD schools. In my previous district I helped lead a STEM club for K-2 students. Although I have participated and lead a STEM club, I still feel like I don't know enough about STEM to properly implement and integrate it in my classroom. I'm hoping to shake off this insecurity though this book study.

I believe STEM is important for so many reasons. One thing that comes up a lot in kindergarten is how much it encourages and inspires students no matter how strong their reading level or other academic progress markers. In kindergarten students sometimes feel shy participating in creative activities (drawing, art, etc). When you assign an open ended building task to a table full of assorted recyclables, the pressure to make it look like the example melts away. Students feel more free to try new things, revise their work, and to continue working long past their normal attention span. STEM matters because it a a tool instructors can use to help kids love to learn and learn to love school!

STEM is sometimes thought of as a "fun" project for the end of the year in a general ed classroom. In kindergarten so much of our learning is expressed through demonstrating skills. This makes kindergarten learning the perfect match for all things STEM.

1 reply · active 180 weeks ago

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Megan Mitchell · 180 weeks ago

Hi Rachel,

I love hearing that you're doing STEM beginning in Kindergarten. I teach second grade and one of the biggest challenges I face throughout the year is building student confidence. Students come into second, so afraid of making mistakes or doing something wrong and they don't know how to enjoy the process of learning, including making mistakes. I think STEM is so great for building confidence and practicing to enjoy the process of learning.

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Hannah Johnson · 181 weeks ago

Hi! My name is Hannah Johnson (this year I am going by Dusenberry - I recently got married). This is my fourth year teaching in ISD and my first year in third grade. My previous experience was in kindergarten. I am excited to learn more about what STEM looks like in third grade and to find more ways that I can foster my student’s curiosity and critical thinking skills.

I completely agree with every article that we read. It is so important for students to develop these skills so that they are prepared for future learning opportunities and life. There were several quotes from these articles that stuck out to me: 1.) "This system of standardized, rote learning that teaches to a test is exactly the type of education our children don’t need in this world that is plagued by systemic, pervasive and confounding global challenges.” Third grade is the first year that students take the SBA and I was nervous when moving to this new grade level that I would have to teach to the test, which is not something that I really love. I am so happy to hear this message is being more widely shared. 2.) "Too often we are feeding our students instead of teaching them how to feed themselves. The disciplines that do that best are STEM-related." This quote resonated with me because I feel like this exemplifies the bigger picture of education. Instead of directly teaching everything, we need to invite students to ask questions, think outside the box and bring in their prior knowledge to help teach others. In addition, I think this is important for preparing students for the real world – which is the mission of most school districts. 3.) "Washington state ranks among the highest in the nation in the concentration of STEM jobs, and opportunities are increasing rapidly. By 2030, 70% of high-demand, family-sustaining wage jobs available in our state will require postsecondary credentials; 67% of those will require postsecondary STEM credentials. But Washington students are still not equitably or adequately prepared to take advantage of these opportunities." These quotes resonated with me because it backs up the reasoning for why we should be focusing on STEM more in the classroom. It also goes to show that at the moment, we have not prepared students in Washington for future STEM opportunities. Through STEM, we can teach students life-skills that are not often taught in other content areas.

I look forward to incorporating more STEM skills in my classroom and learning more in this book study.

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Megan Mitchell SVSD · 181 weeks ago

Hello, my name is Megan Mitchell and I teach 2nd grade at North Bend Elementary, this is my 4th year of teaching. As an educator, reflecting back on my own education I have always been drawn to STEM and its ability to provide a creative learning process that isn’t so tailored, or one sided. I’ve found as a teacher using STEM in the classroom increases curiosity, creative problem solving and confidence. Students that might normally shut down, or lack any engagement, on a worksheet that is likely structured around preparing for a test, begin problem solving in their own way that is unique to them. They’re thinking outside the box and they’re enjoying the learning process. I think STEM in the classroom matters because there’s so much opportunity for all of the different learners we teach, especially in our rapidly changing world. I think one of the educators in the article, Tim Taylor put it very well ‘If you front-load knowledge and leave all the thinking and critical questioning until later, children don’t develop as effective learners.’

1 reply · active 180 weeks ago

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Eric Richards · 180 weeks ago

Megan, I love your comment about how STEM levels the playing field and that there are opportunities for all. That is so true. And your quote from Tim Taylor is so spot on. It is more important for us to flip that script and develop thinking and critical questioning skills and then integrate the knowledge.

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Meg H · 181 weeks ago

Hi friends! My name is Meg Handy and I've been teacher librarian at Fall City Elementary School for many years. We have been incorporating STEM lessons in the library for a few years now as a design lab. Students are given challenges and recyclable materials to build. It's so rewarding to see them excited about learning and building. It has been a struggle since we see all the students and that makes it kind of a materials nightmare.
I really loved the part in the article where they talk about the kids loving school and being so vested in their studies. Learning by doing and creating. I agree we are ready for a change and am ready to embrace the STEM model.

1 reply · active 180 weeks ago

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flaggna 34p · 180 weeks ago

Hi Meg, I love that you're doing the design lab. I would love to hear more about your challenges, as I'm looking for ways to bring collaborative challenges into my social skills groups. It is so fun to watch students build relationships and they work in a structured environment to create something together. Feel free to give me some suggestions!

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flaggna 34p · 180 weeks ago

Good Morning! My name is Nora Armstrong and I am a special education teacher at Issaquah Valley elementary school. I initially signed up for this class to fulfill STEM requirements for my recertification; however, I am quickly learning that the use of technology has increased this year. STEM in the classroom matters for a myriad of reasons. Most importantly, it helps students this critically and solve problems in a safe and structured manner. STEM is also important through an equity lens. Not all students have access to the same levels of technology or come from homes where technology is explored and encouraged in a learning capacity. In the new digital age, it is critical that all students build their skills, particularly with the use of technology so they can acquire jobs as adults. Lastly, as a special education teacher, I find that technology enables all students to access grade level curriculum in a format that is best. With technology, students can listen to books on tape, receive immediate homework help fro adults and websites, as well as collaborate with peers more effectively.

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Eric Richards · 180 weeks ago

Hello,

My name is Eric Richards and I teach 4th grade at Glacier Park Elementary in the Tahoma School District. The value of STEM is so critical to our students' lives and their futures. More future jobs are going to be STEM related than any other field and the needs to give our students exposure and experience in STEM learning is so vital to opening the fields to students who may not think that is their future life. As a father of 3 incredible kids, I am always working to expose my own students to STEM. It is something I focus on in my classroom as well. By being immersed in STEM experiences, students become better thinkers, become more flexible in their approaches, are more fluent in subjects, and can apply this to other subjects. Technology is all around us and is definitely pre-eminent in our children's daily life. Considering the last 1 1/2 years of Remote Learning for many, STEM is just more important than ever.

Making Connections with STEM Fall 2021 Cohort 8

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