How to promote STEMs among primary school students?

Mar 10, 2020News

IN2STEAM Inspiring Next Generation of Girls through Inclusive STE(A)M Learning in Primary Education is targeted to young female students in order to enhance innovative and gender inclusive educational approach that integrates STE(A)M learning (applying art and design principles to science education) in primary schools.

The acronym STEM stands for science, technology, engineering and mathematics, while the A includes visual or performing arts that are used as tools for STEM education.

Therefore, the main idea of ​​IN2STEAM starts from the use of innovative methodologies and an interdisciplinary approach to teach the principles of STEM to children in primary schools, with a focus on girls, and to promote their critical and problem-solving skills.

During the two days of the first meeting, held on the 20th  and the 21st of November 2019 in Palermo, the partners of the six countries involved in the project (Italy, Portugal, Greece, Cyprus, Poland and Turkey) discussed about the future actions foreseen by the project in order to achieve the project’s objectives and about the main activities that will take place over the next three years, which are:

  • the development of innovative tools for teachers and educators in order to increase their skills in teaching STEM to primary school students;
  • the organisation of STEMs courses targeted at young students in primary schools, in particular involving young girls;
  • the creation of useful tools for the promotion of the participation of girls in STEM: in order to close the gender gap in choosing a career in science;
  • the making of a “European Charter for STEAM education”, which aims to highlight the importance of the interdisciplinary approach in teaching STEM in schools.

During  the following months, each country involved in the project will launch a research about the current situation of STEM teaching in primary schools, in order to understand what are the needs of the students and what skills teachers can enhance to increase the effectiveness of the STEM learning approach among young students (and especially female students).