STEM
Education:
Setting kids up for life
By Angela Baura
A
s a young boy, Timothy Stuart was
always building things. From moulding
toy soldiers by extracting the lead
in car batteries to creating model
villages and steam engines, he was inspired
by his father – an engineer and innovator – to
be curious, to think creatively and to create
solutions. It was this approach to real-life
learning that later drew Timothy to unit blocks –
humble wooden blocks which, he recognised,
presented infinite opportunities to engage and
educate young minds. After years of research,
design and testing, Timothy developed his own
range of blocks which he named UnitBricks – a
variety of realistic blocks in different shapes
and sizes that surreptitiously promote early
mathematics and engineering skills while
children build bridges, skyscrapers, roller
coasters or anything their inspiration desires.
Praised by schools and universities the world
over, UnitBricks embodies STEM education:
an integrated approach to learning that draws
upon Science, Technology, Engineering
and Mathematics to foster problem-solving,
discovery, critical thinking and innovation in
students.
Why STEM?
Until the 1990s, students in the US were
taught science, technology, engineering and
mathematics independent of one another.
But after years of research, the National
Science Foundation concluded that these
subjects should not and could not be taught
independently, given that they co-exist in the
real world. Determined to equip the next
generation with the skills to innovate, the
Foundation married the four subjects under
the acronym STEM. The STEM movement
soon gained traction as the rest of the world
recognised its competitive potential.
In countless ways, we experience
the powerful amalgamation of science,
technology, engineering and mathematics
every single day. STEM is omnipresent in our
lives. From the fuel that heats our homes,
the smartphones and laptops we use, the
apartments we live in, the airplanes we fly in,
the cars that we drive, the roads and bridges
we cross, the hospitals we receive treatment
in, and the budgets we implement for our
families, every aspect of our lives is touched
by STEM innovation.
In this ever-developing world, our
children need the skills to embrace and
even create change. We don’t really know
the kind of world our children will live in 30
years from now, says Maly Pena, Marketing
and Communications Manager at The
International Montessori School (IMS).
“The best way to support and help their
development and happiness is to create
children that are positive, resilient, adaptable,
curious and even passionate about the new
challenges that will happen around them – in
fact, they should be the ones creating them.
Maria Montessori, who was a scientist, said
‘Imagination does not become great until
human beings, given the courage and the
strength, use it to create.’”
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