What Is STEM?

Science                                                                                                   Science

Technology                                                                                            Technology

Engineering                                                                                            Engineering                                   

Math                                                               OR                                   Art

                                                                                                                Math



            I have learned that the STEM acronym stands for the above subject titles through having worked in a STEM middle school, by finishing up the STEM Teacher Quality program that I completed this past year, and through this STEM Certification class that I am currently enrolled in. 

            The first day of class we looked into STEM school that were from Pre-K to 12th grade. The School that myself and my group researched was STEAM at Drew Academy in Atlanta, GA. Our research was from two website, https://steamatdrew.weebly.com/ and https://www.drewcharterschool.org/academics/our-innovative-approach . This school looks crazy awesome. The only downside that we found out that I don't like is the lottery system that's used to get it. For there to be no specific things that are considered, there's a lot are some strict considerations to get into this charter school. But again, I still find this school very amazing. I love their traveling trunk system, the coffee with the principal family night, and their grand makerspace. I believe that their traveling trunk is apart of their makerspace, at least from what I gathered by review their website. 

        I would definitely want my children to be a part of a school like STEAM at Drew Academy, I also would not mind working at this school or a school like it. The ratio seems to be 12 students to 1 teacher, which is a dream as a teacher and as a parent. The number of distractions are down for both the teacher and the students, lessons can be dove deeper into because it won't take as long to go around the room to hear out each student that will need help and that takes quite a bit of time with a class size of 20 to 27, and it makes it harder to know the needs of that many students, someone is bound to get left behind even if that's not the intention. No parent wants their child being that child that is overlooked, I most certainly don't want mine to be left behind. As an educator, it breaks my heart to know that even one of my students may have possibly gotten left behind. 

        I appreciated doing this research on the school and listening to the findings of the other groups in class because I appreciate schools that do whole brain teaching. Learning hands on has always been a way that I believe that humans have learned and retained things. It wasn't by simply reading a note card and reciting what's on it over and over again or copy notes from an overhead projection or white board or smart board that had people remembering things, it's the movements that were made, the different color pencils, pens, markers that we were able to use to take note, the pictures we were able to draw, the creative ways that our brains were able to retain information. People learn by doing and STEM / STEAM is helping us as a society and globally, to remember this again.



Comments

  1. AnonymousJune 12, 2023 at 5:31 PM

    Wow! That school sounds amazing. No reason STL ,which if I remember correctly is #1 in innovative technology couldn't pilot or establish a school like that!

    ReplyDelete

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