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STEM Integration to Support 21st Century Skills
In today’s classrooms, you’ll see an emphasis on science, technology, engineering, and math (STEM). Educators and administrators are having discussions about how to prepare their students and ensure they have the skills to be successful in our technology-driven world. There’s no denying that technology has changed the workforce and classroom. A report from the Institute for the Future and Dell Technologies estimates that 85% of the jobs that today’s students will be doing in 2030 haven’t been created yet. Currently, 20% of U.S. jobs require significant STEM knowledge and skills, according to STEMconnector. While students are still in the classroom, it’s important that they’re provided the opportunity to learn the skills they need for the growing and changing demands of the future.
Incorporating STEM in the 4 Cs
The four Cs of 21st Century Skills have been making their way through classrooms as the key pillars that students must know how to do in order to be successful in today’s workforce. It’s especially important that students engage in activities that require skills they may need for jobs in the local workforce.
1. Critical Thinking
You can promote critical thinking by presenting a science problem to your students, such as a phase change of a substance. Ask them to predict the temperature change during the phase change and to explain why they made that prediction. By having students observe a scenario and predict the outcome, they can form hypotheses about what they think will happen based on prior knowledge. Using data-collection technology, students can collect and analyze data to test their hypotheses and plan their next steps.
2. Creativity
Encourage students to think differently. First, ask students questions about science phenomena and discover what prior knowledge they already have. Ask them to apply that prior knowledge to a different reaction or phenomena and test their ideas. With data collection students can use their creativity in a more efficient way. They can gather data quickly and repeatedly in order to compare the data and test their ideas.
3. Collaboration
These days it is rare for individuals to work alone, whether it’s in school or in their future careers. Science labs and experiments are a perfect opportunity to have students work together in groups to solve a problem. Assign roles within a group, or have the group determine how they’d like to solve an experiment. Foster a collaborative environment and encourage students to learn skills from others to help them complete the task at hand.
4. Communication
Create opportunities for students to present their findings to the class. Have them clearly communicate what they thought would happen, the steps they took during their investigations, and what they discovered, along with the data to back up their findings.
At Vernier Software & Technology we know that dedicated, passionate leaders inspire the STEM leaders of tomorrow. Our affordable, easy-to-use technology and unparalleled support empower you to do just that. To learn more about how Vernier Software & Technology solutions can help you prepare students for their future, visit us here.
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“Let’s break some stuff, shall we?” Martin excitedly proclaims during his recent review of the Vernier Structures & Materials Tester (VSMT) on NSTA Recommends.
Martin and his physics students at Hellgate High School in Missoula, Montana, used the VSMT to investigate the tensile strength of a variety of different pencils, as well as different kinds of popular fishing knots. Martin decided to use the local interest for fly fishing to introduce engineering applications for testing and design. After collecting data with the VSMT, students determined which knots for fishing were best to use in terms of strength.
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“Vernier Structures & Materials Tester is truly a piece of engineering elegance. It looks amazing sitting in the classroom and no doubt will inspire innovation and creativity by its mere presence. And its good looks are just the beginning. The dynamics of operation also share the elegance. Using two sensors in tandem, the Vernier Structures & Materials Tester measures both force and displacement. The force sensor has a range from zero up to 1000 newtons with 1 N resolution. And the displacement sensor will measure at tenth-millimeter resolution a distance up to seven centimeters.”
Hands-On Spectroscopy Experiments Encourage Student Engagement
In a recent two-part review on NSTA Recommends, reviewer and educator Martin Horejsi used the to describe his experiences with his high school chemistry and physics students throughout multiple investigations. During one of the investigations, he used the spectrophotometer and a compatible optical fiber to explore various spectrum-specific light bulbs, including both frosted and clear bulbs with different wattages. He was able to use the spectrophotometer to measure the wavelength spectrum and draw conclusions about the types of bulbs on the market today. He said:
“So now when I see interesting light bulbs and light sources, I try to imagine what the wavelength spectrum looks like. And given the rapid evolution of LED lights and light applications, I cannot easily think of a limit to the educational applications of the Vernier Go Direct® SpectroVis® Plus Spectrophotometer.”
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“While running this analysis projected onto a large screen with a classroom full of students, I posed the question of what would the spectrum curve look like for transmittance, or reflectance, as we like to think of it. A student slowly approached the whiteboard with the giant projected absorbance spectrum curve and tentatively plotted some data points opposite the existing graph. As the mental gymnastics went into overtime, it was clear that the undeniable inverse within science was inescapable. The reflectance could be nothing other than the opposite of the absorbance.”
With the Go Direct® SpectroVis® Plus Spectrophotometer, students can easily and wirelessly collect a full wavelength spectrum—absorbance, percent transmission, or intensity—in less than one second. The spectrophotometer can be used in a variety of spectroscopy experiments including determining the peak wavelength to collect data on solution concentration for studies of Beer’s law or to monitor rates of reaction; collecting a full wavelength spectrum to measure absorbance, percent transmittance, fluorescence, or emissions; conducting enzyme kinetics experiments; and more.
Learn more about the Go Direct SpectroVis Plus Spectrophotometer »