Innovations and Technologies in Science/STEM Education: Opportunities, Challenges and Sustainable Practices


Book Description

In our digital era, harnessing innovations and emerging technologies to support teaching and learning has been an important research area in the field of education around the world. In science/STEM education, technologies can be leveraged to present and visualize scientific theories and concepts effectively, while the development of pedagogic innovations usually requires collective, inter-disciplinary research efforts. In addition, emerging technologies can better support teachers to assess students’ learning performance in STEM subjects and offer students viable virtual environments to facilitate laboratory-based learning, thereby contributing to sustainable development in both K-12 and higher education.




The Case for STEM Education


Book Description

"If you are interested in STEM education, policies, programs or practices, or you work on STEM in some capacity at any level, The case for STEM education will prove to be valuable reading. Author Rodger W. Bybee has written this book to inspire individuals in leadership roles to better understand and take action on STEM initiatives. The book's 10 chapters accomplish several tasks: Put STEM in context by outlining the challenges facing STEM education, drawing lessons from the Sputnik moment of the 1950s and 1960s, and contrasting contemporary STEM with other education reforms; Explore appropriate roles for the federal government, as well as states, districts, and individual schools; Offer several ideas and recommendations you can use to develop action plans for STEM. With an emphasis on both thinking and acting, The case for STEM education is a must-read for leaders at all levels: national and state policy makers, state-level educators responsible for STEM initiatives, college and university faculty who educate future STEM teachers, local administrators who make decisions about district and school programs, and teachers who represent STEM disciplines." - Back cover.




Innovative Learning Environments in STEM Higher Education


Book Description

As explored in this open access book, higher education in STEM fields is influenced by many factors, including education research, government and school policies, financial considerations, technology limitations, and acceptance of innovations by faculty and students. In 2018, Drs. Ryoo and Winkelmann explored the opportunities, challenges, and future research initiatives of innovative learning environments (ILEs) in higher education STEM disciplines in their pioneering project: eXploring the Future of Innovative Learning Environments (X-FILEs). Workshop participants evaluated four main ILE categories: personalized and adaptive learning, multimodal learning formats, cross/extended reality (XR), and artificial intelligence (AI) and machine learning (ML). This open access book gathers the perspectives expressed during the X-FILEs workshop and its follow-up activities. It is designed to help inform education policy makers, researchers, developers, and practitioners about the adoption and implementation of ILEs in higher education.




Cracking the code


Book Description

This report aims to 'crack the code' by deciphering the factors that hinder and facilitate girls' and women's participation, achievement and continuation in science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) education and, in particular, what the education sector can do to promote girls' and women's interest in and engagement with STEM education and ultimately STEM careers.




Multidisciplinary Approach in Research Area (Volume-1)


Book Description




Successful K-12 STEM Education


Book Description

Science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) are cultural achievements that reflect our humanity, power our economy, and constitute fundamental aspects of our lives as citizens, consumers, parents, and members of the workforce. Providing all students with access to quality education in the STEM disciplines is important to our nation's competitiveness. However, it is challenging to identify the most successful schools and approaches in the STEM disciplines because success is defined in many ways and can occur in many different types of schools and settings. In addition, it is difficult to determine whether the success of a school's students is caused by actions the school takes or simply related to the population of students in the school. Successful K-12 STEM Education defines a framework for understanding "success" in K-12 STEM education. The book focuses its analysis on the science and mathematics parts of STEM and outlines criteria for identifying effective STEM schools and programs. Because a school's success should be defined by and measured relative to its goals, the book identifies three important goals that share certain elements, including learning STEM content and practices, developing positive dispositions toward STEM, and preparing students to be lifelong learners. A successful STEM program would increase the number of students who ultimately pursue advanced degrees and careers in STEM fields, enhance the STEM-capable workforce, and boost STEM literacy for all students. It is also critical to broaden the participation of women and minorities in STEM fields. Successful K-12 STEM Education examines the vast landscape of K-12 STEM education by considering different school models, highlighting research on effective STEM education practices, and identifying some conditions that promote and limit school- and student-level success in STEM. The book also looks at where further work is needed to develop appropriate data sources. The book will serve as a guide to policy makers; decision makers at the school and district levels; local, state, and federal government agencies; curriculum developers; educators; and parent and education advocacy groups.




Global Science’s Cooperation Opportunities, Challenges, and Good Practices


Book Description

Science diplomacy gives possibilities for international diplomacy and science policy to collaborate to more directly address social and global challenges, such as successful diplomatic engagement, international scientific coordination, and policy coherence in response to the COVID-19 pandemic. However, most academic scientists lack policy process training, networking opportunities with science policymakers, and the capacity to use their expertise in the field to advance policy or diplomacy. These barriers limit scientists' research impact, inhibit science-policy relations, reduce science recommendations, and restrict university engagement in national and international contexts. The origins of science diplomacy have yet to be closely examined, and its current format does not give a clear understanding of how it concretely translates into science policy actions. Global Science’s Cooperation Opportunities, Challenges, and Good Practices provides a comprehensive overview of science diplomacy and its evolution in history and analyzes the ways in which politics, science, and diplomacy intertwine. The book also provides a critical review of science diplomacy by exposing its limitations in addressing global challenges and by reflecting on the specific questions relating to the adaptation of the science diplomacy concept to the context of the Global South. Covering key topics such as climate change, foreign policy, and energy consumption, this premier reference source is ideal for policymakers, government officials, politicians, industry professionals, researchers, academicians, scholars, practitioners, instructors, and students.




Engineering a Better Future


Book Description

This open access book examines how the social sciences can be integrated into the praxis of engineering and science, presenting unique perspectives on the interplay between engineering and social science. Motivated by the report by the Commission on Humanities and Social Sciences of the American Association of Arts and Sciences, which emphasizes the importance of social sciences and Humanities in technical fields, the essays and papers collected in this book were presented at the NSF-funded workshop ‘Engineering a Better Future: Interplay between Engineering, Social Sciences and Innovation’, which brought together a singular collection of people, topics and disciplines. The book is split into three parts: A. Meeting at the Middle: Challenges to educating at the boundaries covers experiments in combining engineering education and the social sciences; B. Engineers Shaping Human Affairs: Investigating the interaction between social sciences and engineering, including the cult of innovation, politics of engineering, engineering design and future of societies; and C. Engineering the Engineers: Investigates thinking about design with papers on the art and science of science and engineering practice.




STEM Integration in K-12 Education


Book Description

STEM Integration in K-12 Education examines current efforts to connect the STEM disciplines in K-12 education. This report identifies and characterizes existing approaches to integrated STEM education, both in formal and after- and out-of-school settings. The report reviews the evidence for the impact of integrated approaches on various student outcomes, and it proposes a set of priority research questions to advance the understanding of integrated STEM education. STEM Integration in K-12 Education proposes a framework to provide a common perspective and vocabulary for researchers, practitioners, and others to identify, discuss, and investigate specific integrated STEM initiatives within the K-12 education system of the United States. STEM Integration in K-12 Education makes recommendations for designers of integrated STEM experiences, assessment developers, and researchers to design and document effective integrated STEM education. This report will help to further their work and improve the chances that some forms of integrated STEM education will make a positive difference in student learning and interest and other valued outcomes.




Cross-disciplinary STEM Learning for Asian Primary Students


Book Description

Given the importance of student learning in the various types and integration of STEM education, this book provides a landscape of cross-disciplinary STEM learning in Asian primary schools, and a systematic overview of design, practices, and outcomes of STEM learning implementation. Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics (STEM) has continued to attract attention worldwide, and there have been calls for the promotion of STEM education in primary schools to nurture students to meet the needs of societies in terms of innovation and technology development. Since STEM is complex in nature and is related to various disciplines, the effort of a single discipline may not be as effective as cross-disciplinary efforts. This edited volume, involving an Asian team of authors, examines how cross-disciplinary STEM learning can be designed for students to achieve viable outcomes, and what opportunities and challenges have been offered to the next generation to equip them with the necessary skills, knowledge, and ways of thinking, as well as attitudes and values for lifelong learning. A resourceful text for students, researchers, and practitioners interested in the rich development of STEM education and practical methods for a variety of learning approaches from elementary to secondary education has been provided.