Discussion Thread 2: How Can We Encourage Greater Engagement of Students in Middle-skill STEM fields?
Our research has found that workforce educators face students who are diverse in preparation, background, and goals, and so engaging such a diverse group poses a constant challenge. In our work, we have found:
- Students crave opportunities to try out their technical skills in “real world” ways
- Much course time is devoted to the basics, and about half the time in advanced classes gives students practice in more complex troubleshooting skills
- Relatively little time is devoted to letting students reflect on how they solve problems and weave together all the technical knowledge they are absorbing
What Do You Think?
What innovations are out there? What changes need to happen to improve the future of technician instruction? Please share your comments below.