STEAM

Science, Technology, Engineering, Art & Math (STEAM)

Mankato Area Public Schools are proud to offer a strong STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, Math)/STEAM (Science, Technology, Engineering, Art and Math) education for students from kindergarten through grade 12.  Mankato is committed to using innovative, cooperative methods and interdisciplinary curriculum that embrace creativity as expressed through multiple intelligences students will become scientifically, technologically, and mathematically literate.

What is STEM or STEAM?

STEM education focuses on students' engagement and skills from the earliest grades in science, math, engineering and technology.  STEAM incorporates art into those skills.  The ultimate goal is to grow students’ proficiency levels and demonstrate how these skills are used every day in every subject, every class, and every career.  A comprehensive STEM/STEAM education includes a strong emphasis on hands-on, experiential and inquiry based student experiences and activities.

Why focus on STEM/STEAM?

According to a recent U.S. Department of Commerce report, "The greatest advancements in our society from medicine to mechanics have come from the minds of those interested in or studied in the areas of STEM." STEM/STEAM education has become increasingly popular as parents and policymakers realize the critical role it plays in enabling the United States to remain the economic and technological leader of the global marketplace

"To invent, you need a good imagination and a pile of junk."Thomas A. Edison

Project Lead the Way

The Project Lead the Way (or PLTW) mission is "to prepare students for the global economy".  PLTW’s world-class, activity-, project-, and problem-based curriculum and high-quality teacher professional development model, combined with an engaged network of educators and corporate partners, help students develop the skills needed to succeed in today's world.

Middle School is the perfect time for students to explore and learn that there is more than one way to reach a solution.  PLTW Gateway provides engineering and biomedical science curriculum for middle school students that challenges, inspires, and offers schools variety and flexibility.  Students get rigorous and relevant experiences through activity-, project-, and problem-based learning.  They use industry leading technology to solve problems while gaining skills in communication, collaboration, critical-thinking, and creativity.

The U.S. Department of Commerce estimates that jobs in science, technology, engineering, and math (STEM) will grow 17 percent by 2018—nearly double the growth for non-STEM fields. By 2018, the U.S. will have more than 1.2 million unfilled STEM jobs because there will not be enough qualified workers to fill them. STEM is where jobs are today and where the job growth will be in the future.