Connecting Classrooms To STEM Careers

Connecting Classrooms to STEM Careers StrongNation.org/ReadyNation Ready_Nation ReadyNation REPORT Addressing the STEM Workforce Skills Gap Through Deeper Learning Acknowledgements ReadyNation leverages the experience, influence, and expertise of over 2,000 business executives to promote public policies and programs that build a stronger workforce and economy. The more than 700 retired admirals and generals of Mission: Readiness strengthen national security by ensuring kids stay in school, stay fit, and stay out of trouble. ReadyNation and Mission: Readiness are a part of Council for a Strong America, the bipartisan nonprofit that unites five organizations comprised of law enforcement leaders, retired admirals and generals, business executives, pastors, and prominent coaches and athletes who promote solutions that ensure our next generation of Americans will be citizen-ready. Supported by tax-deductible contributions from foundations, individuals, and corporations. Authors: Paula Acevedo, Senior Research Associate Merna Ibrahim, Research Intern Susan Bonilla, California State Director Jake Ferreira, California Mission: Readiness State Director Meghan Moroney, California Communications Director Contributors: Sandra Bishop-Josef, Ph.D., Research Director Tom Garrett, Communications Associate Director Nancy Fishman, ReadyNation Director Mariana Galloway, Graphic Designer September 2018 ©2018 Council For A Strong America. All Rights Reserved. READYNATION 03 In just three years (2017-2020), the U.S. will add about one million new STEM (science, technology, engineering, and math) jobs.1 By 2030, California will need 1.1 million workers with at least a bachelor’s degree (BA), but the demand will exceed the supply by 6 percent.2 Currently, California has over 75,000 computing vacancies, with an average salary of $110,078. In 2015, there were only 4,029 computer science (CS) graduates, a missed opportunity of over $8.3 trillion in annual salaries for existing vacancies.3 Business and military leaders in California are calling on policymakers to invest more in high-quality STEM programs that incorporate deeper learning practices in an engaged and collaborative way to provide a strong foundation for postsecondary and career success. 1.1 million the number of job vacancies in 2030 that will require a Bachelor’s degree in California. Dr. Angelov Farooq Partner, The Omnius Group Critical thinking skills combined with technical aptitude are key to getting hired in many workplaces today. COUNCIL FOR A STRONG AMERICA 04 Importance of STEM STEM occupations in sectors like CS and healthcare will drive our economy—growing by as much as 20 to 37 percent nationwide.4 Since 2011, 20 percent (26 million) of jobs require expertise in a STEM field, where jobs are typically higher-paying than jobs in many other fields.5 This holds true for nonBA STEM jobs, which make up half of all STEM jobs and pay 10 percent more than other non-BA jobs, with an average salary of $53,000.6 In California, a third of jobs require at least a BA and another third require some type of postsecondary training.7 Yet in 25 years (from 1990-2015), the share of working adults with a BA has only risen by 7 percent, far short of the 38 percent growth that is needed to have 1.1 million workers with a BA by 2030.8 A number of metropolitan areas in California are booming with STEM jobs. Out of the 100 largest metropolitan areas throughout the country, San Jose was ranked first for having the largest share of workers in STEM occupations (33.2 percent), followed by San Francisco in seventh place (23.9 percent), San Diego at 14th (22.6 percent), Sacramento in 32nd (20.8 percent) and Los Angeles at 67th (19.1 percent).9 Closing the STEM Skills Gap Through Deeper Learning Employers are looking for workers who can apply deeper learning skills such as:10 • A mastery of rigorous academic content; • Critical thinking and problem-solving skills; • Effective written and verbal communication skills; • Collaboration skills, such as interpreting others’ messages and responding appropriately; • The ability to direct their own learning, setting goals and tracking progress toward those goals; • An “academic mindset”: a belief in one’s ability to grow. Deeper learning skills can be taught and reinforced, through hands-on learning and innovative education models. Combining Deeper Learning and STEM in K-12 Access to high-quality STEM programs in grades K-12 is an important part of nurturing a skilled STEM workforce. Unfortunately, far too few of California’s students have access to these programs. In fact, only 25 percent of schools (580) taught Advance Placement (AP) Computer Science in 2016-2017.11 Every child in the state should have the opportunity to learn these skills in their local school. This fall, California’s State Board of Education will be adopting CS standards for the first time and it will be developing recommendations for how to implement CS in an equitable way throughout the state.12 The use of deeper learning strategies to develop these standards is essential in developing a CS curriculum that builds students’ computational and critical thinking skills to the point where they can understand and create the next generation of technological tools.13 STEM in the Military Meeting the demands for a STEM workforce is also critical for preserving our national security, especially considering America’s largest employer is the U.S. Government. For example, the Department of Defense (DoD) consists of numerous agencies that READYNATION 05 require STEM expertise. In fact, the DoD’s legacy of STEM innovations include the Internet, cloud computing, virtual reality, autonomous vehicles, and the Global Positioning System (GPS) to name a few. In order for the United States Armed Forces to maintain a competitive advantage over adversaries, it requires a STEM-skilled uniformed military and civilian workforce capable of developing leading-edge technologies such as long-range strike capabilities, hypersonics, and artificial intelligence. Across each branch of the U.S. Armed Forces, STEM learning is omnipresent. For example, the U.S. Army operates 16 laboratories and research centers employing over 16,000 world-class scientists and engineers.17 The Navy and the U.S. Air Force, both have departments dedicated to helping educate students to be well prepared for employment in STEM careers.18 In order to keep pace with innovation and engage commercial technological expertise, the DoD created the Defense Innovation Unit Experimental (DIUx). Headquartered in Mountain View (CA), DIUx aims to establish innovative public-private partnerships in order to leverage emerging commercial technologies and address shared military challenges.19 DoD also leads the STARBASE Program, which provides 4th through 8th grade students the opportunity to spend 25-hours learning “hands-on, mind-on” curricula where they use STEM principles to analyze and solve real-world problems.20 Three of the 66 nationwide programs are located on California bases in Edwards, Los Alamitos, and Sacramento.21 TEALS Expanding High Schoolers’ Access to Computer Science Ensuring students are getting access to CS learning is vital to meeting current and future demand. A group of teachers and tech industry volunteers are taking the matter into their own hands by teaming up with TEALS (Technology Education and Literacy in Schools) to provide high school students exposure to CS. TEALS was founded in 2009 by a former CS teacher and software engineer Kevin Wang, with the support of Microsoft Philanthropies.14 The program provides high schoolers with beginner friendly and college equivalent courses that consist of 15 minutes of lecture and 35 minutes of hand-on learning. The program is currently offered across 29 states in 342 high schools.15 Giving students the ability to think outside the box and solve problems at a young age piques their curiosity and aspiration to be innovators of the future. …We need to do our part to ensure that we are educating and inspiring the youth of America to aspire to join the STEM workforce. — Lieutenant General Lee K. Levy, II Commander, U.S. Air Force Sustainment Center16 COUNCIL FOR A STRONG AMERICA 06 Achieving Equity Requires a Statewide Commitment to Deeper Learning As technology rapidly advances and has an increasing impact upon professions and business sectors, it is imperative that all children have the opportunity to experience and engage in an educational environment committed to deeper learning. Building students’ critical thinking and problem solving skills will help prepare them to become part of the highly adaptable workforce that our nation needs to keep pace and lead in the global marketplace. Every child needs access to instruction and resources that will help develop the deeper thinking skills that will expand their future opportunities. It is imperative that leaders in California persevere in ensuring that no student, school, or district continues to lag behind in educational attainment. Policymakers Can Advance Deeper Learning Our business and military leaders call on policymakers to ensure all of our students have the opportunities to benefit from deeper learning through: 1. Adequate resources for our students in the classroom such as updated textbooks, computers and internet access. 2. Access to STEM courses that are aligned with the state’s new CS standards. 3. Teacher preparation through professional development, classroom support and adequate salaries. Conclusion If California does not produce enough young people who can meet the STEM needs of both the private sector and the military, our economy and our national security could suffer. California policymakers can help develop a skilled workforce for the future by investing in broader access to high-quality STEM programs today. We must continue to build strong industry-institution partnerships, increase postsecondary access and success for our fastest-growing demographic groups, and provide students and their families with the knowledge to make informed educational decisions. Access to Digital Resources and Internet Access While deeper learning is an excellent approach to learning, students also need digital resources at home to reinforce the STEM skills they’re learning in school. An analysis of nationally representative survey data revealed that, in 2015, 94 percent of youth from the ages of three through 18 had a computer and 61 percent had internet access at home, with percentages being higher among older children, parents with higher levels of academic achievement, and families with higher income.22 The 88 percent of 8th graders who either used a computer at home or had internet access had higher NAEP reading scores.23 Eighty percent of these 8th graders used a computer on weekdays to complete their homework.24 Access to a computer and internet are essential for the success of all of our students, but from 2010 to 2015, at home highspeed internet access decreased from 89 to 78 percent, and increased for mobile internet service or data plan access from 9 to 64 percent.25 READYNATION 07 Endnotes 1 Donachie, P. (2017). Armed Forces see STEM education as ensuring a bright future. Education Dive. https:// www.educationdive.com/news/armed-forces-see-stem-education-as-ensuring-a-bright-future/443084/ 2 Public Policy Institute of California (PPIC). (2017). Addressing California’s Skills Gap. PPIC Higher Education Center. http://www.ppic.org/wp-content/uploads/r_0917hj2r.pdf 3 Ibid. 4 Vilorio, D. (2014). STEM 101 Intro to tomorrow’s jobs. Washington, DC: Bureau of Labor Statistics. http:// www.bls.gov/careeroutlook/2014/spring/art01.pdf 5 Rothwell, J. (2013). The hidden STEM economy. Washington, DC: The Brookings Institution. http://www. brookings.edu/research/reports/2013/06/10-stem-economy-rothwell; Vilorio, D. (2014). STEM 101 Intro to tomorrow’s jobs. Washington, DC: Bureau of Labor Statistics. http://www.bls.gov/careeroutlook/2014/spring/ art01.pdf 6 Ibid. 7 Public Policy Institute of California (PPIC). (2017). Addressing California’s Skills Gap. PPIC Higher Education Center. http://www.ppic.org/wp-content/uploads/r_0917hj2r.pdf 8 Ibid. 9 Rothwell, J. (2013). The hidden STEM economy. The Brookings Institution. http://www.brookings.edu/ research/reports/2013/06/10-stem-economy-rothwell 10 The William and Flora Hewlett Foundation (n. d.). Deeper learning. https://hewlett.org/strategy/deeperlearning/ 11 Code.org. (2018). Promote Computer Science: California state fact-sheet. https://code.org/promote/ca 12 Berman, M. (2018). Legislative Counsel’s Digest. Assembly Concurrent Resolution No. 265: California Computer Science Education Month. California State Assembly. http://leginfo.legislature.ca.gov/faces/ billTextClient.xhtml?bill_id=201720180ACR265 13 Ibid. 14 Ibid. 15 Ibid. 16 Lieutenant General Lee K. Levy, II Commander, Air Force Sustainment Center. (2018). Department of the Air Force, Presentation to the Subcommittee on Readiness and Management Support, Committee on Armed Services, United States Senate. https://www.armed-services.senate.gov/imo/media/doc/Levy_04-11-18.pdf 17 Singleton, J., & Worthen, A. (2014). How the U.S. Military fosters future research leaders. http://www. livescience.com/45870-military-recruiting-future-scientists.html 18 U.S. Navy. (2016). Naval STEM Strategy. https://www.usna.edu/STEM/_files/documents/Naval%20 STEM%20Strategy_2016_final_reduced%20size.pdf; Air Force STEM. (2018). Air Force K-12 STEM Outreach. https://afstem.afciviliancareers.com/k-12-programs 19 Defense Innovation Unit Experimental. (n.d.). Accelerating Commercial Innovation for National Defense. https://www.diux.mil/ 20 DoD STARBASE. (n.d.) STARBASE Program Description. https://dodstarbase.org/program-description 21 DoD STARBASE. 2017 Annual Report: OUTREACH = invest. inspire. Ignite. https://dodstarbase.org/system/files/resources/2017%20STARBASE%20Annual%20Report_0.pdf 22 IES. (2018). Report: Student Access to Digital Learning Resources Outside of the Classroom. NCES. https:// nces.ed.gov/pubs2017/2017098/index.asp 23 Ibid. 24 Ibid. 25 Ibid. ReadyNation | Business. Kids. Workforce. 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