Skip to main content

Imagining the Future of Undergraduate STEM Education

Completed

The November 2020 Symposium on Imagining the Future of Undergraduate STEM Education brought together innovators from a diverse range of colleges and universities together with policy makers, funders, and representatives from associations and industry. Symposium participants explored ambitions for the future of undergraduate STEM education, including how we can transform undergraduate STEM education to meet the needs of students, science, and society in 2040.

Information on the 2020 Symposium.

Information about the follow up seminars on technology, student centered, and real world learning experiences can be found at the "past event" links below.

The project is sponsored by the National Science Foundation.

Description

A workshop planning committee will plan and hold a public symposium on the future of undergraduate STEM education and will draw on research and highlight successful programs to engage educators, researchers, higher education administrators, policy makers, funders, and representatives from industry in conversations about how to improve undergraduate STEM learning. The focus will be on undergraduate STEM education in 2040 and beyond in the context of the convergence of STEM disciplines and the changes in the population, goals, and pathways of undergraduate STEM students. The symposium may address the following questions, and may be refined by the planning process.

  • How can undergraduate STEM education respond to the rapidly changing context for higher education – calls for convergence, demographic and societal changes, changes in workforce demands, advances in technology – in ways that anticipate future demands and provide quality education for all students?

  • What changes are needed to undergraduate STEM education in light of the increasing convergence across STEM? What are critical convergent topics and approaches that we urgently need to incorporate into undergraduate STEM education?

  • What are the models, both administrative and financial, that support a convergent learning experience that engages multiple disciplines and overarching concerns such as privacy, security, and ethical behavior of people and systems?

  • Is there a relationship between content, delivery mechanism, use of technology in the classroom/learning environment and success of first-generation and low-income STEM students of any background? Is the relationship different for different groups? What would it mean to design changes based on an equity and social justice mindset from start?

  • How should the STEM education system respond to the changes taking place in the learning pathways of individuals at different points of their lives, including enrolling at different physical and on-line institutions, and/or stacking credentials and experiences from multiple sources? How can we consider learning in contexts other than formal settings, for different cultures, ages, or levels of instruction?

The workshop committee will define the specific topics to be addressed, develop the agenda, and select and invite speakers and other participants. After the workshop, a proceedings of the workshop presentations and discussions will be prepared by a designated rapporteur in accordance with institutional guidelines.

Collaborators

Committee

Co-Chair

Co-Chair

Member

Member

Member

Member

Member

Member

Member

Member

Member

Member

Member

Sponsors

National Science Foundation

Staff

Kerry Brenner

Lead

Lauren Ryan

Leticia Garcilazo Green

Heidi Schweingruber

Beth Cady

Layne Scherer

Tiffany E. Taylor

Subscribe to Email from the National Academies
Keep up with all of the activities, publications, and events by subscribing to free updates by email.