S.T.E.M Education Transformation Through I.C.T

As we get to the last quarter of 2020, allow me share a little food for thought regarding STEM education transformation through the use of I.C.T .It is true and many of us understand that, the products and services of the future will depend on engineers, scientists, and technology experts creativity to invent them.This will only happen when all our learners will embrace and appreciate I.C.T and its integration especially in the STEM subjects. However, we may ask how I.C.T fits into this increasingly significant role of STEM education? Nowadays, teaching activities include Information and Communication Technology (I.C.T) in all of its aspects due to their implementation in everyday life. The integration of diverse digital tools into traditional educational process changes it and enables its transformation. The understanding of these digital tools is essential for their effectiveness in all school subjects but more so in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM).

So far, it is evident that I.C.T helps learners in collaborating with peers and experts, in creating and designing products as well as in collecting and analyzing performance data. In some cases, if the learners are well supported, they could actually build products. The use of I.C.T enhances both the practical and theoretical aspects of STEM teaching and learning.

Let us highlight some of the potential contributions of I.C.T in the STEM subjects below:

1.) Increased productivity through I.C.T tools that hasten lengthy processes common with STEM subjects, leaving more time for critical thinking, discussion, and data interpretation.

2.) Assist with collecting and analyzing of data, particularly through the use of digital and mobile fieldwork tools.

3.) Raise the attractiveness of these subjects (especially for girls) as well as the scope of relevant information by linking STEM learning to the world and providing access to experiences not otherwise feasible.

4.) Enhance educational outcomes through individualized and collaborative learning that increases student motivation and engagement.

5.) Improve worldview/ awareness through global citizenship skills with field experts and international classrooms.

6.) Encourage exploration and experimentation by providing immediate and visual feedback.

7.) Concentrate on real-world applications of STEM concepts through relevant technologies.

So we ask, what is the impact of I.C.T in STEM education? Well, there is growing consensus that progress in the integration of technology in education should be guided by research evidence. What is mainly discussed here is applicable to primary and secondary education and even higher education .In addition, many of the effects of I.C.T in STEM education mentioned in this article could be categorized into the following main areas namely:

i.) Students’ skills and learning outcomes.

ii.) The effects of I.C.T use in terms of contents.

iii.) The magnitude of aspects like (motivation, attitudes, interest, confidence, self-esteem and perceptions and gender.

iv.) The risks and limitations involved in the use of I.C.T.

In consideration to the reasons indicated above, teachers, schools administrations and policy makers should explore the development of STEM curricula that meaningfully integrate technology into as many curricula areas as possible. This could be done, for instance, with original and authentic projects, in which learners’ engagement occurs when the project resonates with their daily lives.

It is worth noting that the promotion of I.C.T literacy through integrated, authentic STEM instructions is in particular beneficial for learners with disabilities as well as other struggling learners. Age appropriate I.C.T designed interventions are generally tailored towards use of technology in school that is exciting and stimulating compared to out-of-school I.C.T applications. I.C.T. Skills and competences improvements can be observed over time in STEM related skills like problem solving and data analysis. For example, to develop learners’ investigative and higher order thinking skills, simulations need to be interactive, and these skills are mastered with time.
Excellent results occur when I.C.T is used across the whole curriculum. So, applying I.C.T-STEM related skills over a given period of time, will ensure that students have digital skills and competences when leaving school. In addition, technology has a generally positive effect on extended dimensions of STEM education. These may include, motivation, attitudes, perceptions, self-confidence /esteem. This works even better if the learners are involved in choosing the technology and digital tools that they use .Educators and teachers must pay special attention to factors that may have an influence on learners’ attitudes in I.C.T use in STEM, like teachers’ status and experience, student background and gender, etc. Specifically, when students are not clear enough about how they learn, this can impact upon both their motivation and their self-esteem as learners. As a matter of principle, learners should not be subjected to new learning situations that use new and unfamiliar I.C.T tools without their
learning process being guided.

Is there any relationship between I.C.T /STEM education and gender ?It would be interesting to note that, positive gender effects for girls are found as they progress further in school and they are increasingly challenged by the boys academically: girls enjoy the challenge and gain self-esteem. For instance, in robotics or video-game design projects, very little difference in commitment and interest between boys and girls is observed. Teachers might take advantage of the girls’ increased interest in I.C.T and STEM to encourage them more into STEM subjects.This is because of a more female friendly evolution of technology for example, less technical, more channels for communication, collaboration and creativity.

A lot of recent researches explore on technology-enhanced teaching, but there is a need to carry out an extensive study on its impact at the school level. Therefore, we may need to conducted comprehensive surveys among teachers and students in Kenyan schools to examine the actual use of I.C.T resources in teaching and learning processes in the different school subjects. The specific focus would be on the multiple aspects of the application of I.C.T resources and learning in STEM subjects. From such researches, the policy makers and educators would assess and evaluate the main aspects that refer to the use of new technology in the educational process.

Such investigations would provide useful information on the frequency of use and usefulness of different technology-supported teaching aids such as videos and presentations, digital textbooks/E-books, specialized learning applications (Apps) and learning games. This information is likely to serve as the basis for further statistical and logical processing for future evaluation and analysis of the personalized preferences of teachers for using these resources in their classrooms.
The investigations would also help determine the preferred degree of technology integration for effective achievement of teaching objectives by the individual teachers. In addition ,it would also assist in pinpointing workable combinations of various I.C.T resources and learning games, which allow best learning outcomes in educational activities in STEM subjects. The new knowledge resulting from undertaking such assessments and evaluations would be useful in the future development of  methodologies for application of I.C.T in Kenyan schools .This would come in handy as educators and policy makers work towards the development of future models for the use of innovative tools for educational purposes in the STEM subjects.

As I conclude, it is very clear that I.C.T offers access to a wide variety of internet resources and tools that facilitate and extend opportunities for STEM learning both inside and outside the classroom. In my opinion, I think that we are only just starting to see the effect. As new technologies develop around education transformation, I believe the effect will be even greater.