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STEM, CTE, and WY: Now and the Possible

STEM, CTE, and WY: Now and the Possible. STEM = Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics CTE = Career Technical Education. Raj Pandya , NCAR Director of Science Education. Overall Message. Science and technology provide economic opportunity for the nation, Wyoming, and individuals

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STEM, CTE, and WY: Now and the Possible

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  1. STEM, CTE, and WY: Now and the Possible STEM = Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics CTE = Career Technical Education Raj Pandya, NCAR Director of Science Education

  2. Overall Message • Science and technology provide economic opportunity for the nation, Wyoming, and individuals • Capitalizing on those opportunities requires an new approach to science and technology education The way we do and use science is changing, and STEM and CTE education must keep pace

  3. A History of Innovation • More than half of our economic growth since World War II can be traced to science-driven technological innovation • Much of that innovation was possible because of research on university campuses Source: the Science Coalition

  4. EMPLOYEES:11080 • HEADQUARTES: Cary, NC • FOUNDED:1976 • REVENUE:$2.26 billion FY08 “SAS was originally created to analyze crop data through a grant from the Department of Agriculture to North Carolina State University… federal funding for university research is vitally important to keeping America at the forefront of technology innovation.”

  5. Happy Jack Software • Founded by Jeff Van Baalen(Professor, UW Department of Computer Science) and Mona Gamboa(MS eBusiness from UW) • 30 employees, 12 from UW, only 4 with PhDs • Grew out of the Wyoming Business Technology Center • Originally founded to do shared calendar, now software for medical records, faculty searches, and custom design “The state has the people and resources available to build its own high-tech industry”

  6. An Opportunity for the US

  7. An Opportunity for Wyoming • Wyoming will demand a total of 14,200 STEM jobs by 2018 • This represents a 24% increase in STEM jobs, 7% above the national average • 34% of those jobs will be in engineering and technical operations. • Most, will require a college degree, including 2-year degrees.

  8. An opportunity for students Source: American Community Survey, 2009

  9. An opportunity for students, even if they don’t work in STEM

  10. Science 1.0 “The centers of basic research are the wellsprings of knowledge and understanding… there will be a flow of new scientific knowledge to those that can apply it to practical problems in government, industry, or elsewhere”–Vannevar Bush, Science, The Endless Frontier

  11. AC Where A = basic research C = innovation, improved lives, and economic growth

  12. Science 1.0 was… • Blue-sky • Federally-funded • Discipline-based • Focused on an elite workforce • Emphasized theory and observations

  13. A loading dock is no longer enough • Declining research budgets • Growing demand for return on investment • A growing disconnect with society, shown by • Declining science literacy • Declining public esteem for science • Students, especially from diverse backgrounds, are choosing other careers and majors • Science isn’t being applied to pressing problems, including natural disasters

  14. In this test, Science Literacy includes understanding uncertainty and how science generates, evaluates, and revises information – not just content knowledge 14

  15. And Wyoming? Wyoming ranks 28th in science scores, according to the Science and Engineering Readiness Index (SERI) ranking system , which preferentially focuses on upper-high-school level math and science courses associated with college STEM majors.

  16. Seventy percent of Americans cannot read and understand the science section of the New York Times. Jon Miller, Hannah Professor of Integrative studies at Michigan State University, Division of Mathematics and Science Education and the Department of Political Science

  17. Where do you get your news…

  18. Our trust in science may be eroding • Trust is especially important in critical civicissues like revitalizing forests, managing water, and preparing for hazards, but • Only 17% of the public thinks that U.S. scientific achievements rate as the best in the world • Only 27% of Americans offer scientific achievements as one of the country's most important achievements (47% did so a decade ago) • The percentage of people holding scientists in very great prestige has declined from 66% to 57% from 1977 to 2009

  19. Students (especially from diverse backgrounds) aren’t entering science US citizens from under- Represented groups Temporary Residents US citizens - majority [1] Chart made from data at National Science Foundation, Division of Science Resources Statistics. 2010 Science and Engineering Degrees, by Race/Ethnicity of Recipients: 1997–2006. Detailed Statistical Tables NSF 10-300. Arlington, VA. Available at http://www.nsf.gov/statistics/nsf10300/.

  20. And the demographics of the field reflect that

  21. Why worry about diversity? Given that: • The US will be a majority-free nation by 2050 • Wyoming’s Latino population will double by 2025 • Wyoming has a large percentage of first-generation college students Ignoring diversity means: • Ignoring half your talent pool • Being unable to sell to a market you don’t know • Denying the best jobs to large group Also: • Encouraging Diversity helps innovation by discouraging group-think and promoting creativity • Finally, knowledge is power, and power-sharing is the hallmark of democracy

  22. Drought in the Sahel Held et al, 2005.

  23. Simulating (understanding) drought in the Plains Great Plains Drought in Simulations of the Twentieth Century McCrary and Randall

  24. Victor H. Rivera-Monroy and Robert R. Twilley

  25. AC Where A = basic research C = innovation, improved lives, and growth

  26. A + B C A = basic research B = the effort to connect to society C = innovation, improved lives, and growth “A+B = C” is borrowed from Michael Crow

  27. Science 2.0 • Science is tied to problems, not disciplines • Communities participate in all stages, from setting priorities to applying results • Computers & networks enable investigation and communication • Needs a variety of skills and capabilities • “linear conception of the relationship between science and innovation . . . needs to be replaced by an inter-active, dynamic, networked . . . understanding that emphasizes learning” • (Hansson, Husted, and Vestergaard 2005, 1041).

  28. Participatory Research

  29. Participatory Research

  30. Science2.0 Science Education 2.0 • Integrate disciplines • Prepare for multiple career paths (not just PhD) • Emphasize process over content • Include computational thinking • T-shaped students • Reach diverse students • Connect to problems (especially local /regional problems)

  31. STEM isn’t just for PhD’s anymore

  32. Employers want process, not content

  33. A new framework for science standards

  34. T-shaped Students • Disciplinary expertise must be connected to a broad set of skills that enable interaction, collaboration and integration • This is equally true for both science and non-science majors.

  35. Reaching Diverse Students GEAR UP increases the number of students who are prepared to enter and succeed in college with academic support, family services, college prep, and teacher training. Science Posse builds link across the educational spectrum, by bringing science graduate students into K-12 classrooms.

  36. Computational Thinking • abstractionto understand and solve problems • algorithmsand application of mathematical concepts to develop more efficient, fair, and secure solutions. • understanding the consequences of scale

  37. Thunderstorms

  38. Problem and Place-based Education • Pointe aux Chene, LA: Two summer interns will work with the community on issues associated with saltwater intrusion and plant ecology.

  39. NCAR Wyoming Supercomputing Center (NWSC) A partner in integrating computational thinking into Wyoming’s Science Education 2.0

  40. Build cyberinfrastructure and computational science in the region Integrate Research & Education Enhance programs at community colleges Train the next generation of computer scientists Broaden participation Enhance diversity Improve K-12 Computational Thinking Engage the public NWSC STEM CTE GOALS

  41. Main Points • Science will continue to offer growth, innovation, and jobs. • Science is becoming more participatory, inclusive, and computational • Preparing students for science 2.0 requires rethinking science education and its goals • Process over content • Preparing multiple career paths • Emphasizing solutions, not disciplines • Inclusion • Wyoming can be at the leading edge, and NCAR can be a partner

  42. “It’s wonderful to have the opportunity given us by society to do basic research, but in return, we have a very important moral responsibility to apply that research to benefiting humanity.” Walter Orr Roberts

  43. Thank Youpandya@ucar.edu

  44. SUMMER 2012 Internship Opportunities

  45. SUMMER 2012 Internship Opportunities • December 2012 • Rocky Mountain Celebration of Women in Computing

  46. Some Activities to build on… • UCAR/NCAR participation in Wyoming Science Fair • Work with Laramie County Community College on curricula • Student Internships for high school and college • A new visitor center and traveling exhibits

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