Premium
Assessing the Impact of a Statewide STEM Investment on K –12, Higher Education, and Business/Community STEM Awareness Over Time
Author(s) -
Sondergeld Toni A.,
Johnson Carla C.,
Walten Janet B.
Publication year - 2016
Publication title -
school science and mathematics
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.135
H-Index - 2
eISSN - 1949-8594
pISSN - 0036-6803
DOI - 10.1111/ssm.12155
Subject(s) - preparedness , grassroots , general partnership , prosperity , sustainability , public relations , investment (military) , business , marketing , political science , management , economics , ecology , finance , politics , law , biology
Despite monetary and educational investments in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics ( STEM ) being at record high levels, little attention has been devoted to generating a common understanding of STEM . In addition, working with business, K –12 schools, and/or institutions of higher education to establish a grassroots effort to help community members understand the importance of STEM regarding the future prosperity of the U nited S tates in general, and specifically the preparedness of children for careers of now and the future, has been nonexistent. The purpose of our study is to assess the impact of a statewide STEM professional development program implemented for two years on STEM awareness over time among various community stakeholders (i.e., K –12 teachers, higher education faculty, and business members). STEM awareness and beliefs about STEM engagement, resources, student preparation, and careers all improved over time for all groups. However, business members had the greatest growth over time and held significantly higher awareness compared with the other groups in most areas. Our findings suggest that a statewide STEM partnership/network model is a viable option for growing collective impact and sustainability of STEM K –12 education.