How to Implement STEM in Schools STEM continues to be a hot topic in education. Last week was the Conference of the Australian Science Teachers Association which had Australia's Chief Scientist deliver an address. In it he said "The time to ask and expect bold things from students is not at the end of the school education process – but from primary school." So the focus remains on primary schools to start doing their part in addressing this national issue. Of course the question for just about all schools is what should they do and how should they go about it. I recently discovered Western Australia has put up four videos on YouTube which go through four different schools journey and each is slightly different so this is a great start for schools to get some ideas. The schools are Esperance Primary School, Parkwood Primary School, Margaret River Primary School and Pannawonica Primary School. Also I have just listened to an excellent podcast entitled "Implementing the Digitech Curriculum" which details how some schools have gone about gearing up to deliver the Digital Technologies subject - I highly recommend listening to this. One theme that I heard in some of the videos and the podcast is that schools used the new Digital Technologies subject to leverage off to build their STEM offering. Essentially the schools found that once the teachers started becoming confident with the coding aspect of the curriculum they could start to integrate this across other subjects and then with continued professional development become confident with the Design and Technologies subject which covers various engineering related areas. Once the teachers are building their T for technology and E for engineering knowledge and skills I believe schools should then embark upon a program to upskill the teacher's knowledge and confidence in Maths and Science. Simultaneously, start to move towards more project based learning and you will find you have a school embracing STEM. This would likely be a two to three year process and will cost money for teacher training and resources. However, it is a necessary investment to deliver the current curriculum well let alone meet the requirements that the STEM acronym stands for.

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Stuff in the News STEM plan: Why our kids need maths and science to thrive - Simon Birmingham, the Federal Education Minister, may not be a movie star or an astrophysicist but he has set a big goal for himself and the Government — lifting the standard of science and maths teaching across the nation’s schools and, by extension, the intelligence of our kids. An article from the West Australian 16 July 2018 SPEECH: Raising 21st Century Citizens - Australia's Chief Scientist spoke at the Conference for Australian Science Teachers and in his speech he said "The time to ask and expect bold things from students is not at the end of the school education process – but from primary school." Julie Bishop on women’s empowerment, role models and the future for Australian Girls - Julie Bishop spoke at the Vogue Codes event and said in part "There is a lack of science teaching in primary schools, which leads to less focus on science and maths in secondary and tertiary education." An article from Vogue 22 June 2018

Stuff to buy Robotics Engineer Barbie - Aims To Inspire Girls To Pursue STEM Careers. *At this point in time I earn no money from any product I list and I am not affiliated with any other company.

Stuff in education STEM - What is it for? - A great video from the SA Education Department explaining their view of what STEM in the classroom looks like Implementing the Digitech Curriculum - How can teachers implement the digital technologies curriculum and apply it to the context of their school? Leading Change: The Technology in Schools podcast 12 July 2018 Teacher Q&A: Early years STEM project - Some positive results from the Early Learning STEM Australia project! An article from Teacher Magazine dated 27 June 2018

Stuff to do Australia Wide 2018 Australian STEM Video Game Challenge - The Australian STEM Video Game Challenge is completely free to enter. This year’s competition will run from Tuesday 20 Feb – Friday 3 August 2018 CSIRO CREST Program - CREativity in Science and Technology. Engage your students with open-ended science investigations and technology projects through the CREST program. - - - Fizzics Education - Mobile workshops & shows by dedicated science educators NSW, VIC & QLD & ACT Bricks 4 Kidz® | Awesome Fun With LEGO® Bricks  Young Engineers Australia - Provides an engaging, hands-on learning platform using LEGO® and K’nex® assembly kits CoderDojo - A volunteer run programming club Code Club Australia - A global network of coding clubs for kids aged 9 to 11.

Stuff to do in Brisbane RoboGals Brisbane Robotics Days - Robogals has various workshops programmed throughout the year. - - - Street Science - Street Science provides captivating and curriculum aligned school Incursions and community entertainment, to excite and engage Australia's youth! STEM in a Box has ongoing coding, robotics and 3D printing activities Brisbane Library Service has purchased the very flash NAO Robot and is showing it off in various libraries. The Cube at QUT has a number of changing programs.  Brisbane Planetarium - Features entertaining and informative shows for adults and children STEMPUNKS STEM classes for kids in Brisbane STEAMPUNX - Not to be confused with the organisation above! Offers in-school and out of school workshop programs Flying Fox Studios - A studio offering programs in the arts, music and construction areas from babies to teenagers in Brisbane Building Block Studio | Learning Activity Centre in Brisbane For Budding Coders And Engineers Fun Chess Classes For Kids in Brisbane | Chess Mates Red Cat Science | Kids get to do what they can't at school It's Rocket Science School Incursions - Educational and fully interactive project based rocket science incursions for primary and secondary schools in a safe and empowering learning environment.

Gonski 2.0 The recent release of David Gonski's second report into education notes that Australian student's performance in reading, science and maths has been declining for years. Many of the recommendations were particularly interesting from a STEM perspective as they called for many things that STEM proponents have been saying for some time. For example one recommendation is to strengthen the development of the "General Capabilities" which is directly related to the STEM proponent's call to improve student's ability to use the 4Cs of 21st Century Learning of Collaboration, Communication, Critical Thinking and Creativity. Two other standout recommendations were for more individualised learning and use of technology to help children achieve their full potential. Flipped Learningand Project Based Learning are two approaches that could help meet these objectives.  The report noted that there were too many "cruising schools" which weren't being innovative in their teaching practices nor in the way they delivered the curriculum. School's have to be nimble in what they teach children about technology as this is a rapidly changing field. This is one of the Gonski report's priorities "Equip every child to be a creative, connected and engaged learner in a rapidly changing world". Clearly a pre-requisite for this is comprehensive and ongoing teacher training and this was called for when the "Innovation committee recommends teachers get schooled on STEM".. Articles such as "STEM needs all the help it can get" and "STEM education in primary schools will fall flat unless serious issues are addressed" have previously highlighted issues with the education system that hopefully will get some attention as a result of this landmark report, Sir Ken Robinson in the followup to his fabled 2006 talk called for us to Bring on the Learning Revolution! We simply must move away from the way we have always done things and get creative. Make learning real world and integrate the subjects instead of teaching in a siloed manner. All of these ideas were covered in this video from 2014 "STEM Education Overview" This isn't new stuff yet traction is anaemic. David Gonski said in an interview "There is never time to waste and I think it would be wonderful if we could get cracking with it straight away." I think so too.

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Stuff in the News Science-nonfiction: Robotics author says AI will affect all children - It is important for young children to be familiar about big changes that may occur during their lives. An article from the Brisbane Times 14 May 2018 Re-envisioning NAPLAN: use technology to make the tests more authentic and relevant -  Experts look at options for removing, replacing, rethinking or resuming NAPLAN. An article from The Conversation 14 May 2018

Stuff to buy STEM Story Books - Queensland University Professor and father Michael Milford has been producing a number of story books for children with different STEM themes. Great for presents! *At this point in time I earn no money from any product I list and I am not affiliated with any other company.

Stuff in education Gonski review attacks Australian schooling quality and urges individualised teaching approach - The Gonski review into the quality of Australian schooling has highlighted declining academic performance and recommended school education be radically reformed to tailor teaching and assessment to individual students. An article from The Conversation 30 April 2018 How Victorian principals responded to the Gonski 2.0 report - Critical thinking and STEM skills are vital for survival in the future workforce and can not simply be tacked onto the existing education system. An article from the Sydney Morning Herald 30 April 2018 Two articles from the Sydney Morning Herald highlighting schools which are embracing STEM: Belle Vue Park Primary Merrylands East Primary

Stuff to do Australia Wide 2018 Australian STEM Video Game Challenge - The Australian STEM Video Game Challenge is completely free to enter. This year’s competition will run from Tuesday 20 Feb – Friday 3 August 2018 CSIRO CREST Program - CREativity in Science and Technology. Engage your students with open-ended science investigations and technology projects through the CREST program. - - - Fizzics Education - Mobile workshops & shows by dedicated science educators NSW, VIC & QLD & ACT Bricks 4 Kidz® | Awesome Fun With LEGO® Bricks  Young Engineers Australia - Provides an engaging, hands-on learning platform using LEGO® and K’nex® assembly kits CoderDojo - A volunteer run programming club Code Club Australia - A global network of coding clubs for kids aged 9 to 11.

Stuff to do in Brisbane RoboGals Brisbane Robotics Days - Robogals has various workshops programmed throughout the year. QLD Premier's Coding Competition - Students need to create a digital solution that meets the theme of ‘stand up to cyberbullies’ using Anti-Bully Girl - one of the Cyber Heroes. Closes 19 June 2018 - - - Street Science - Street Science provides captivating and curriculum aligned school Incursions and community entertainment, to excite and engage Australia's youth! STEM in a Box has ongoing coding, robotics and 3D printing activities Brisbane Library Service has purchased the very flash NAO Robot and is showing it off in various libraries. The Cube at QUT has a number of changing programs.  Brisbane Planetarium - Features entertaining and informative shows for adults and children STEMPUNKS STEM classes for kids in Brisbane STEAMPUNX - Not to be confused with the organisation above! Offers in-school and out of school workshop programs Flying Fox Studios - A studio offering programs in the arts, music and construction areas from babies to teenagers in Brisbane Building Block Studio | Learning Activity Centre in Brisbane For Budding Coders And Engineers Fun Chess Classes For Kids in Brisbane | Chess Mates Red Cat Science | Kids get to do what they can't at school It's Rocket Science School Incursions - Educational and fully interactive project based rocket science incursions for primary and secondary schools in a safe and empowering learning environment.

What has England learned (Part 2)? Last week I started a summary of a talk Miles Berry gave in Madrid last October. This week I will cover what he said England has learnt from teaching coding to kids over the last three years in terms of what teachers need and what kids have been learning. Miles Berry made an interesting observation about the development of computational thinking skills and the relationship to coding skills. A research experiment was conducted whereby a group of students was split in half and one half did extra coding classes after school. At the end of the year both groups computational thinking skills were evaluated. There was NOT a significant increase in computational thinking skills by those students who did extra coding. What this showed is that whilst coding is probably the best way to build computational thinking skills if those skills are not being explicitly taught then they wont magically appear. This also reinforced the fact that it is possible to develop computational thinking skills without using computers.  This points to the absolute importance of properly training teachers in not only how to program with something like Scratch but also what are the facets of the skill of computational thinking and how might they be taught. Miles suggested that "Outstanding teaching of computing" = Pedagogy + ICT Skills + Computer Science Knowledge. The English experience was that although teachers ICT skills were OK their CS Knowledge was very low which is likely a situation mirrored all over the world. Thus a lot of support was required and England has started to deliver that through the Computing at School organisation, the use of master teachers and the provision of dedicated professional development. Australia has provided some similar resources such as the free Digital Technologies courses through Adelaide Uni. There are many other resources that schools can avail themselves of which are very cost effective or free (and that interestingly England has in many cases created!). For example: The Computing at School resources are free for all The BBC created the MicroBit was gave them to all years 7 students for free in 2016 (they remain cheap to purchase) The Raspberry Pi is an incredibly powerful, cheap and widely used micro computer.  Whilst England has made great progress a report in November 2017 found that they still had a long way to go to ensure all teachers have the skills and confidence to deliver the computing curriculum. We are three years behind them so it is even more imperative that Australian schools get planning and training now. So in summary, there were three standout messages from England's experience. Schools have to plan to deliver these new subjects, they must provide comprehensive teacher training not just in coding but also in computation thinking and lastly teachers must be given the resources they need to deliver the subject adequately. How is your school going?

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Stuff in the News Promoting STEM isn't a fad - it's a necessity - The promotion of science, technology, engineering and mathematics education is more than a fad: it is a much-needed movement to encourage a well-rounded education that is essential to Australian students.An article from the Brisbane Times 22 March 2018. Eight ways to introduce kids to STEM at an early age - New report finds that even preschoolers are capable of understanding basic science and math concepts. An article from The Hechinger Report 5 March 2018. Realising the promise of STEM education - The lack of students studying the so-called STEM subjects  is a perennial issue in Western countries – and Australia in particular. An article from EducationHQ Australia 25 September 2017.

Stuff to buy These 8 Toys Can Make Your Kids Smarter - Well maybe but they are cool regardless! *At this point in time I earn no money from any product I list and I am not affiliated with any other company.

Stuff in education How Do Teachers Integrate STEM into K-12 Classrooms? - New teaching standards call for weaving science, technology, engineering and math (STEM) into classrooms better. What makes this integration effective? An article from Michigan Tech 27 February 2018 Science experts 'walk the talk' to improve primary STEM learning - The involvement of “community science experts” in primary school classrooms can transform students’ views about and understanding of science, a leading STEM researcher says. An article from EducationHQ Australia 6 November 2017.

Stuff to do Australia Wide 2018 Australian STEM Video Game Challenge - The Australian STEM Video Game Challenge is completely free to enter. This year’s competition will run from Tuesday 20 Feb – Friday 3 August 2018 CSIRO CREST Program - CREativity in Science and Technology. Engage your students with open-ended science investigations and technology projects through the CREST program. - - - Fizzics Education - Mobile workshops & shows by dedicated science educators NSW, VIC & QLD & ACT Bricks 4 Kidz® | Awesome Fun With LEGO® Bricks  Young Engineers Australia - Provides an engaging, hands-on learning platform using LEGO® and K’nex® assembly kits CoderDojo - A volunteer run programming club Code Club Australia - A global network of coding clubs for kids aged 9 to 11.

Stuff to do in Brisbane RoboGals Brisbane Robotics Days - Robogals has various workshops programmed throughout the year. QLD Premier's Coding Competition - Students need to create a digital solution that meets the theme of ‘stand up to cyberbullies’ using Anti-Bully Girl - one of the Cyber Heroes. Closes 19 June 2018 - - - Street Science - Street Science provides captivating and curriculum aligned school Incursions and community entertainment, to excite and engage Australia's youth! STEM in a Box has ongoing coding, robotics and 3D printing activities Brisbane Library Service has purchased the very flash NAO Robot and is showing it off in various libraries. The Cube at QUT has a number of changing programs.  Brisbane Planetarium - Features entertaining and informative shows for adults and children STEMPUNKS STEM classes for kids in Brisbane STEAMPUNX - Not to be confused with the organisation above! Offers in-school and out of school workshop programs Flying Fox Studios - A studio offering programs in the arts, music and construction areas from babies to teenagers in Brisbane Building Block Studio | Learning Activity Centre in Brisbane For Budding Coders And Engineers Fun Chess Classes For Kids in Brisbane | Chess Mates Red Cat Science | Kids get to do what they can't at school It's Rocket Science School Incursions - Educational and fully interactive project based rocket science incursions for primary and secondary schools in a safe and empowering learning environment.