Over the past few years, there has been a focus on math and science education and STEM. Since President Obama has been in office, it seems like almost everyone is jumping on the "how important math and science education is and/or we need our kids to help us create our future STEM workforce" bandwagon. It seems like more resources are being put into enhancing math and science education programs. However, with all this attention on math and science, people are really not paying attention to the hows and whys we have gotten to this point in education and in our economy.
If you pay attention to economies of the world's wealthiest countries; they have a strong educational system where there kids excel academically in all or most disciplines. The reason why education is linked to a strong economy because it is with education that you are able to have workforce that has the skills for the jobs in your economy. When the United States had a strong economy and was the global leader, we had a great educational system. However, now the current state of our educational system is that students aren't graduating with the skills for the jobs that are currently available in our economy. There are various reasons for this, however my main theory behind this is not enough kids or parents think about their future as it relates to connecting their education with their future careers.
I remember when was growing up, I remember always knowing that I was going to get good grades so I can go to college and get a good job. But even my peers, who didn't have any aspirations to go to college, had some plan in mind for a career, job or business after high school graduation. However, today's kids and parents are missing that connection to their education and their place in the future workforce and it takes place in all socioeconomic levels. So why people are asking where are all the jobs going? The question they should be asking is I am preparing myself and my children to become a part of jobs that are available in the current and future economy?
The great thing about STEM is that this is a sector that never disappears from any economy. STEM professional have been around since the beginning of time coming up with solutions to make our lives easier, solve the major problems of the time period and create innovation. There are jobs being added to the STEM sector daily and unfortunately many of them go unfilled. The reason why they are going unfilled is because we aren't preparing our children to pursue STEM careers. The great thing about education is that is is not only a tool to train and equip students with skills, but it opens one's eyes to see the possibilities. If we are going to have a future STEM workforce, we have to not only give our kids the skills to academically achieve in math and science, but allow them to see the possibility of having a career in those fields.
Thursday, November 18, 2010
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About SEM Link
- SEM Link
- Science, Engineering and Mathematics Link, Inc. (SEM Link), a tax-exempt nonprofit organization, was founded in 2004 on the premise that exposure to members of the science, engineering and mathematics (SEM) communities is critical to student development in math and science. Our mission is to promote student achievement and career exploration in math and science while increasing student exposure to the science, engineering and mathematics communities and enhancing resources that are available at local schools and community organizations. Our two core programs, Math and Science Career Academy and Experimental Design Program, provide students with an opportunity to develop their math and science skills by enhancing the classroom learning experience and teaching them skills that are transferable to other areas of life. We recruit students and professionals for our programs that have backgrounds in science, technology, engineering and mathematics.