EdTech and soft skills are the critical foundation of STEM subjects

We often talk of ‘bringing learning to life’. This is exactly what technology does – adding context and making learning an active experience, meaning that students can engage with it on a deeper, more meaningful level.

EdTech for STEM

The STEM subjects are where technology is especially beneficial in amplifying teaching and learning – from early childhood education to university-level studies. Without leaving the classroom, educators can use any number of EdTech options to make subjects and the concepts within them accessible and engaging for learners. For example, extended reality technology (XR) can transport students to different locations or immerse them in their study topic by placing them in virtual environments – and teachers can use augmented reality (AR) and virtual reality (VR) applications to simulate and enhance real situations to highlight the impact of students’ work.

For students, part of the appeal of STEM subjects is seeing the relevance: their authenticity encourages engagement. And it’s logical – if you can see how what you’re learning now can be practical and useful in the future, you will be much more motivated to participate. Technology excels at inspiring students, whether it’s in a biology class where they can dissect a flower or a virtual body part, or in an engineering lab where they can use technology to simulate the effects that environmental conditions would have on a high-rise building, learning at any age becomes much more tangible.

Regional focus

In the Middle East, there is an ongoing regional push towards STEM subjects with the future post-oil and gas landscape in mind. The paper, STEM Education in the United Arab Emirates: Challenges and Possibilities , outlines how, as the world changes and the fourth industrial (technological) revolution continues, focusing on STEM careers will help to position the region as a knowledge economy to ensure its future prosperity. For this to happen, there is a requirement for well-qualified teachers in addition to the standard inclusion of STEM subjects from the very start of education, making them a staple in every school and open to every student. A long-term plan for STEM education will give students in the region a real sense of purpose and aspiration – and even provide the chance to work on a country or global level.

In terms of the actual learning, EdTech learning solutions can begin to make this more accessible for staff and students across the STEM disciplines by offering game-based learning and problem-solving activities with wide appeal, while, most importantly, ensuring that students understand the topics and how they can be applied in real life. With possibilities for multimodal learning, students can experience a variety of engaging approaches, whether they’re studying plant cells, gravity, mathematical concepts or applying hard engineering strategies for coastal management.

Moving past ‘knowledge’ to ‘skills’

As critical as STEM subjects are, subject-specific learning should not happen in isolation, and knowledge is not the sole objective. Incorporating soft skills such as problem-solving, interaction and collaboration with technology, alongside direction from the teacher or instructor, prepares students for future careers working in multi-speciality teams.

Let’s look at a few of the areas:

• Collaboration and communication: listening, understanding, speaking, working together. Projects that solve real-world challenges are often across disciplines, bringing together professionals from different areas of expertise. Students will eventually need to collaborate with these peers and colleagues to explain the concepts of their specialism, how they fit in, present their research findings and more.

• Critical thinking: analysing information, drawing conclusions and setting out the next steps. On ground-breaking projects, there is often no precedent. That’s why thinking critically and logically, applying reasoning, analysing data and backing up findings with evidence are so important.

•  Creativity and resilience: thinking differently, revising and reshaping plans. Trying new or different approaches allows us to solve problems, but often, the first iteration doesn’t deliver. Being resilient and trying again and again, analysing what’s happening and what’s going wrong, will help find solutions and meet goals.

•  Ethics. This vast area covers equality, responsibility, honesty, integrity, respect for the environment and its resources, accessibility, independent thinking – and engaging and encouraging others to play their part. As we now begin to introduce artificial intelligence into the mix, retaining the human element becomes increasingly important to ensure that what we do with it is ethical, responsible and fair.

Al Murshidi, Ghadah. (2019). STEM Education in the United Arab Emirates: Challenges and Possibilities. International Journal of Learning, Teaching and Educational Research.

•  Ethics. This vast area covers equality, responsibility, honesty, integrity, respect for the environment and its resources, accessibility, independent thinking – and engaging and encouraging others to play their part. As we now begin to introduce artificial intelligence into the mix, retaining the human element becomes increasingly important to ensure that what we do with it is ethical, responsible and fair.

STEM for the future Taking a broad approach to STEM that incorporates these complementary skills benefits students, whatever subjects they study, and will ensure they have the readiness and necessary capabilities to develop the projects of decades to come.