Advancing STEM Education:
A 2020 Vision
By Rodger W. Bybee
Now is the time to move beyond
the slogan and make STEM
literacy for all students an
educational priority.
(Keefe, 2010). Once again, the education community has
embraced a slogan without really taking the time to clarify
what the term might mean when applied beyond a general
label. When most individuals use the term STEM, they
mean whatever they meant in the past. So STEM is usually
interpreted to mean science or math. Seldom does it refer
to technology or engineering, and this is an issue that must
be remedied.
W
If STEM education is going to advance beyond a slogan,
educators in the STEM community will have to clarify
what the acronym actually means for educational
policies, programs, and practices. The following
discussion presents several things that STEM might
mean for contemporary education. First, it may mean
recognition that science education has been diminished
during the No Child Left Behind era, which is ending.
The reauthorization of the Elementary and Secondary
Education Act (ESEA) could underscore the importance
of science, and by their close association, technology and
engineering, in school programs.
STEM had its origins in the 1990s at the National Science
Foundation (NSF) and has been used as a generic label
for any event, policy, program, or practice that involves
one or several of the STEM disciplines. However, a
recent survey on the “perception of STEM” found that
most professionals in STEM-related fields lacked an
understanding of the acronym STEM. Most respondents
linked the acronym to “stem cell research” or to plants
Second, based on the observation that STEM is often a
term for science or mathematics, STEM should mean
increased emphasis of technology in school programs. With
reference to technology, there are very few other things that
influence our everyday existence more and about which
citizens know less. It is time to change this situation. I am
referring to a perspective and education programs larger
than Information Communication Technology (ICT). ICT
is, of course, part of technology programs. Third, STEM
could mean increasing the recognition of engineering in
K-12 education. Engineering is directly involved in problem
solving and innovation, two popular themes (Lichtenberg,
Woock, & Wright, 2008). Engineering has some presence in
our schools, but certainly not the amount consistent with
its careers and contributions to society. If the nation is truly
interested in innovation, recognizing the T and E in STEM
hen STEM education first appeared, it caught
the attention of several groups. Botanical
scientists were elated, as they thought educators
had finally realized the importance of a main
part of plants. Technologists and engineers were excited,
because they thought it referred to a part of the watch.
Wine connoisseurs also were enthusiastic, as they thought
it referred to the slender support of a wine glass. And,
political conservatives were worried, because they thought
it was a new educational emphasis supporting stem cell
research. Actually, none of these perceptions of STEM meet
the current use as an acronym for Science, Technology,
Engineering, and Mathematics education.
30 •
Te c hnolo gy and Engineering Te ac her
• September 2010