This week in Science, Technology, Engineering and Math education, one expert takes a look at how a well-rounded education is a crucial part of a STEM education in guaranteeing career success.

Schools with Highest-Paid Grads Encourage Students to Branch Out of STEM Curriculum

Though investment into STEM equipment and development is important in creating the best STEM-focused colleges and universities, further research has found that the best of the best encourage students to branch out of STEM curriculum.

"A closer examination reveals that what separates the very best STEM-focused colleges from the rest is that they encourage students to branch out beyond a traditional STEM curriculum. By examining what drives the success of the highest-earning college graduates, we can all learn a valuable career lesson and increase our own earning potential,"according to Aubrey Bach of PayScale.com.

The article looks at colleges that boast the highest-paid graduates in the country and found that many of these schools provided students with a well-round curriculum that expanded outside of traditional STEM studies. For instance:

Harvey Mudd College is [a]...dark horse school that regularly makes our list of the colleges with the highest-paid graduates. Fewer than 1,000 students attend HMC, and the school only issues degrees in biology, chemistry, computer science, engineering, math, and physics. But, as it proudly states on its website, Harvey Mudd is "a liberal arts college rather than just a technical school," and requires its students to choose a concentration in the humanities, social science, or arts to complement their chosen STEM major.

Read the full article here. 

Are Job Opportunities for STEM Grads Exaggerated?

John Russo in this week's Working Class Perspectives thinks so. On TheNationalCatholicReporter.com, Russo refers to an argument from Andrew J. Hacker, a political scientist and author who found "that business and higher education leaders have greatly exaggerated the employment opportunities for STEM graduates. For example, he cites a National Science Board study that shows that of the 19.5 million STEM degree holders, only 5.4 million actually work in those fields."

He believes the future will hold a shift in the field for STEM workers, predicting a dismal future for STEM graduates.

"STEM graduates are not inheriting the economic future they envisioned. Some are learning tough lessons about the “race to bottom” and the experiences of the working class."

Read his argument here. 

The Georgia Ballet Merges Theater and STEM

According to GPB Blogs, The Georgia Ballet in its production of Coppélia has found a creative way to merge both the arts and STEM education.

With one entire day dedicated to school field trips, "[t]his ballet centers around an inventor named Dr. Coppélius, his life-sized doll, a village boy named Franz, who believes he has fallen in love with the doll, and Swanhilda, who Franz ultimately realizes is his true love."

For grades K-3, the production includes an enrichment lesson for children to learn about a STEM lesson including robotics.

"This resource is sure to promote critical thinking, creativity, communication and collaboration among your students while simultaneously showing them that STEM is everywhere, including the arts," the article said.

Read the full article here. 

Compiled by Nicole Gorman, Education World Contributor

09/01/2015