The Recovery Report highlighted projections of jobs and education requirements through 2020 and published some interesting findings that solidify the importance of STEM education in the future of the United States.

Recovery Report 2020 Highlights:

Regarding Education and the Workforce, this report projects that by 2020 a whopping 65% of all jobs in the United States will require an education beyond the high school level. It is projected 35% of jobs will require at minimum a bachelor’s degree, 30% will require an associate’s degree or some college leaving 35% that will not require education beyond high school.

Demanded Skills that will be keys to success. It is projected that cognitive skills will be more popular skills sought after by employers while the demand for physical skills will diminish. These skills include analytics, communication and evaluation among others. These are the same skills that STEM education programs are working to build in students.

Top Job Growth Industries identified. The industries that are expected to have the highest amount of employment opportunities include community service and STEM. STEM encompasses the fields of science, technology, engineering and mathematics. However, people don’t always understand that it is how these fields and how they interconnect with each other that make STEM education so important.
With the most in demand competencies becoming analysis, administration, communications, decision making and judgment; the pressure is on the education system to produce students that hold these skills.  STEM education teaches students the application and integration of these four fields of studies. There are several different methods to accomplish this however project-based learning seems to be a leading option for STEM education. As esteemed educator, Tom White explains you need to help students understand “Why do I need to know this?” and “How will I ever use this?”

STEM Education Solutions

There are many excellent resources to guide teachers and schools with the creation and implementation of STEM curriculum. One of which is the fischertechnik STEM Lab program that was developed by Tom White and includes curriculum that addresses both the needs of middle schools and high schools. Another up and coming solution is through game design. Due to the fact that students are so passionate about gaming these days, game development programs such as Unity and GameSalad are another avenue for reaching students. For more information on STEM education resources, check out these on Demand webinars.