Spollen says that the Science Careers area at Science Buddies was a good fit for her project. Career profiles also include videos, photos, and interviews with employees in the field to help illustrate the career. Career profiles provide salary projections, a short list of companies that hire in that area, education requirements, and "a day in the life" summaries to help students better understand what someone in a specific job does. Each profile has been developed to maximize student understanding of what the job entails and the educational path that leads to that career. The career section of the Science Buddies website features more than 150 popular careers in a range of STEM fields. In preparing this year's STEM-focused career assignment, Spollen integrated Science Buddies' Careers in Science profiles into the project. STEM careers "provide excellent future opportunities," says Spollen, and in the introduction to the STEM Career assignment, she tells her middle school students, "STEM jobs are expected to be plentiful in the future, so it is beneficial for you to understand the type of STEM job that best fits your interests and strengths." STEM Career Information at Science Buddies Shifting the assignment to have students narrow in on options in science, technology, engineering, and math was a change that supports district-wide educational goals and her own desire to expose students to the wide range of STEM careers available. Spollen says she has been assigning a career project for eight years, but this was the first year that she focused the project on STEM careers. As part of the project, her sixth-grade students do a personal interest assessment, survey careers, and choose a career to report on. One of the computer-based projects Spollen does with students each year focuses on careers.
Students passing through Spollen's lab learn and practice keyboard skills, get exposure to computer science, and work on projects that synthesize and reinforce other areas of academic learning, like writing, research, and communication skills. Every week, Spollen works with 270 sixth-grade students in the school's computer lab, where they focus broadly on computer and digital literacy skills. Spollen is a dedicated computer teacher for sixth grade at John F. Career-focused school projects like that of Sue Spollen, a computer teacher in Tewksbury, MA, have the potential to engage students at a pivotal point in their education and may make a real difference in how students think about their future. Middle school is not too early to encourage students to survey STEM career paths and explore possibilities that may still be years away. Kids are asked from the time they are little what they want to be when they grow up. Sparking student interest in STEM careers is key, and the earlier students start thinking about the wide range of STEM careers, the better. Creating Opportunities for Students to Explore STEM Careers STEM workforce depends upon schools, teachers, programs, and organizations reaching students in meaningful ways with career information that both sparks interest and enables students to see themselves with a future in STEM.
Department of Education's claim that only 16 percent of high school students are interested in STEM-related careers. Sources continue to predict a significant shortage of STEM employees to meet growing workforce demand, particularly in computer science and health fields. economy" between May 2009 and May 2015, and "ninety-three out of 100 STEM occupations had wages significantly above the national average wage." It is clear that there is considerable opportunity for students who pursue STEM, but will there be enough interested students? Bureau of Labor Statistics, "over 800,000 new STEM jobs were added to the U.S. The Future STEM WorkforceĪccording to the U.S. This year, her students used the Science Buddies website as part of their exploration of careers in STEM. Above: Sue Spollen's sixth-grade students do a career research project each year.
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