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So often, students are selected to participate in engineering activities or clubs because of their GPA or satisfactory progress in school. Robotics clubs are often a reward. However, hands-on activities, inquiry-based learning, experiential learning, and project-based learning are all known to be effective ways to engage learners. It's good for students across the spectrum - those that doing good in school as well as at-risk students.
The Lemelson-MIT Invention Index is an annual survey that gauges Americans' perceptions about invention and innovation. The index reported that 77% of teens are interested in pursuing STEM careers. According to the Index, hands-on activities outside the classroom are an effective way to engage teenage youth. Specifically, it reports, "Teens listed activities such as field trips to places where they can learn about STEM (66 percent) and access to places outside the classroom where they can build things and conduct experiments (53 percent) as the best ways to get them interested in these subjects. Highlighting the need for non-traditional learning regardless of setting, two-thirds of teens chose hands-on individual projects and hands-on group projects as the types of classroom-based educational methods they enjoy most." Another insight of the survey was the power of mentors in STEM education to increase youth interest. Students would like to know more about STEM in order to create and invent, and afterschool settings are ideal place to let youth explore and discover on their own. In informal environments, students can engage in STEM learning and meet active STEM professionals.
If 77 percent of all students are interested in pursuing STEM careers, we need to open all the doors so every student has the potential to find their way to a fabulous career. Engineering is not a one-size-fits-all career and the old ways of evaluating student performance and potential to succeed don't always work anymore.
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