An effective STEM mindset for early elementary educators includes the belief that both they and their students are capable of critical and creative thinking in all areas of science, technology, engineering, and mathematics. By having an effective STEM mindset, these educators understand the value, relevance, and potential of STEM in their world, and their students’ world, and understand that classroom teaching and learning must model the questioning and risk-taking necessary to embrace opportunities and challenges to solve complex real-world problems.
Goals, outcomes, and products created by the “Developing and Supporting STEM Mindsets in Early Elementary Educators” project team will target influencers of current educators. Specifically, the work will support professional development providers, district administrators, school leaders, and teacher leaders. Products may be adapted for each specific audience and will not preclude additional audiences from use.
The intent of this work is to share the research, resources, and tools assisting with the development of STEM mindsets in teachers.. We created a website to share these tools and strategies.
Our belief is that one important way to increase the amount of time learners spend engaging with science, technology, engineering, and mathematics is by developing and nurturing STEM mindsets.
Everyone will identify themselves as scientists, technologists, engineers, and mathematicians so that they can then have authentic STEM experiences.
“Mind-sets are collections of beliefs and thoughts that make up the mental attitude, inclination, habit or disposition that predetermines a person’s interpretations and responses to events, circumstances and situations.”
For our purposes, STEM Education is defined as real-world problem/project-based interdisciplinary learning that is focused on developing lifelong learners by cultivating student’s curiosity about the world and encouraging students to use inquiry to solve complex challenges. Our goal with STEM Education is for all students to see themselves as lifelong learners, scientists, technologists, engineers, and mathematicians through cultivating learning experiences that develop these beliefs.