TECH4GOOD
In these days of disruptive frontier technologies like artificial intelligence, blockchain, and metaverse beginning to open new economic opportunities, countries have to work double time to become STEM proficient to be more competitive. In fact, governments around the world are making STEM education a top priority today. A UNESCO study says that even Asian countries like Malaysia, China, Korea, and India are among the world’s top 10 producers of STEM graduates. They are seen as positioning themselves to become innovation-based economies and better prepared to compete in the 21st century. Can the Philippines afford to fall behind?
In a culture where both parents and students prefer to take the easiest route to a college diploma, there seems to be fewer Filipinos choosing to pursue degrees in STEM subjects. Generally, many Filipino students are shying away from degrees that involves a lot of mathematics and science subjects. Math was also not my favorite subject when I was still in school but having a civil engineer for a father has exposed me to stuff like calculus even when I was still in grade school. That has allowed me to breeze through my math subjects in college and become infatuated with allied science fields.
Apparently, it is not just about producing more STEM graduates but also about helping students gain the skills required to get ahead in an innovation-based job market. Early STEM education provides the crucial foundation to help the students develop proficiency in critical thinking, problem solving, adaptability, creativity, and collaboration that will help them navigate the job roles of tomorrow.
A strong STEM workforce is essential for any country that aspires to compete in the global economy. It is also seen to foster innovation that helps create new jobs, drive economic growth and vital to our goal to make the Philippines stay ahead of the curve and improve the lives of its citizens. Their familiarity with the latest technologies allows them to easily come up with new ideas and solutions.
Many of the burning issues faced by humanity today such as climate change, energy sustainability, food security, and health pandemics require scientific knowledge and technological solutions. STEM disciplines provide the means and expertise to help solve these complex problems.
We need to start looking at ways to increase our pipeline of STEM competent graduates. Some say that we need to revamp our school curricula to embed STEM elements to expose the students to its basic concepts early on and to implement an assessment system that goes beyond just recall of facts.
We may also have to look at improving teacher training and development to upskill their competencies further and help them to keep abreast of the latest developments and techniques in teaching STEM subjects. They may have to improve their research skills to properly conduct action research and learn how to use innovative approaches to teach STEM including developing low-cost teaching aids.
Mindful of the current low level of interest among students on STEM subjects, it is very important that we develop programs that will make the lessons more interesting, fun and engaging. Students learn best by doing and seeing how the concepts actually work. They have to be provided with opportunities to experiment, build and create. We need to highlight the importance of STEM in the world so they get to understand how it can be used to solve real-world problems. I have seen some schools organize science clubs and supporting their activities so their project works are properly communicated to the rest of the students.
Setting up broadband-enabled shared science centers in state colleges and universities all over the country can help provide the smaller public schools the facility for their students to experience STEM concepts and experiment with them. This will ensure that all students have access to STEM education regardless of their background.
Getting our students exposed to STEM education early will provide them the crucial foundation to pursue degrees and careers in the field later on. But in reality, many Filipino students today lack the resources and opportunities to pursue a STEM degree or are not receiving adequate education in these subject to begin with. A STEM-focused scholarship program may have to be put in place if we really want to catch up with other countries.
By fostering STEM education, the Philippines can empower its future workforce with the necessary knowledge and skills needed to navigate an increasingly complex and technologically-driven world. More importantly, we will have more STEM professionals who can drive the development of a more robust innovation ecosystem and will enable our country to better compete in the global economy. This may entail a renewed investment and a more spirited focus in the nation’s STEM education system. ([email protected])
(The author is the lead convenor of the Alliance for Technology Innovators for the Nation (ATIN), vice president of the Analytics Association of the Philippines, and vice president, UP System Information Technology Foundation.)