PROMOTING INCLUSIVENESS & EQUITY IN STEM
By Ido Yerushalmi
Practically every industry will be impacted by automation in the next 10 to 15 years (or even sooner). So, it is vital to prepare students for the science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) jobs that this change is bringing about. One of the major challenges for modern educators is increasing reach of STEM learning, inclusiveness and equity. Put simply: getting access to STEM learning to more students of all backgrounds, levels, genders, and in all types of schools. Only a few fortunate students -- about one percent -- have access to robotics clubs. The other 99 percent are held back by a number 36
of constraints: the prohibitive cost of hardware kits, a shortage of teachers with training in technology education, and a lack of schedule time for implementing such programs. Another cause for concern is a shown in a 2018 survey from Junior Achievement USA and Ernst & Young that found only 11 percent of 13-to-17-year-old girls were interested in STEM careers. Forbes reports that girls regularly outperform boys in exams for STEM subjects, but they are half as likely as boys to think that their best subject is a STEM subject. Incidentally, the biggest gap is in technology education, which 14 percent of boys and just ďŹ ve percent
The American Consortium for Equity in Education
