STEM — science, technology, engineering and math — is at the center of the Mayor Bloomberg’s efforts to diversify the city’s economy following the financial crash of 2008.
By Ben Chapman / NEW YORK DAILY NEWS
Monday, February 4, 2013, 9:16 PM
Ben Chapman/New York Daily News
Fourth-graders Gabriela Franco (left) and Briana Luna learn science concepts at Public School 15 in the Bronx.
A class of 28 first-graders at New Explorations Into Science, Technology and Math School in Manhattan stood next to their desks Thursday morning and karate-chopped the air as they counted to 100 by 10s.
“Ten!” Punch!
“Twenty!” Punch!
“Thirty!” Punch!
The gifted kids in the class attacked their math lessons with enthusiasm, taking a quiz of 40 additional questions in one minute before tackling the counting drill.
NEST teacher Jennifer Rosenfeld said stoking the kids’ manic energy by getting them moving during math lessons keeps their interest in the subject high.
“Kids do better in math when they move around,” said Rosenfeld. “It warms up their brains and they perform better on tests. It keeps them excited.”
These children are barely old enough to tie their own shoes, but city elementary school kids are foot soldiers in the high-tech STEM revolution.
STEM — science, technology, engineering and math — is at the center of the Mayor Bloomberg’s efforts to diversify the city’s economy following the financial crash of 2008.
It’s also the basis of a nationwide push to transform education, from the primary grades to graduate school, away from the humanities and toward the sciences.
New York City’s public schools are leading the way — and elementary students are where the transformation begins, said the Education Department’s chief academic officer, Josh Thomases.
“The early grades lay the groundwork for the future,” said Thomases. “It’s best to get students comfortable with science and math from a young age.”
At all levels, city schools are beefing up their offerings in math and science.
The city has created 22 new technical education high schools, with seven more coming next year. Officials also plan to transform 20 additional high schools and middle schools into specialized STEM academies.
And at the elementary school level, officials have rolled out hundreds of STEM programs at elementary schools, including dozens where laptops have gone out for free.
Read more: http://www.nydailynews.com/new-york/education/stem/stem-future-article-1.1255407#ixzz2SWZCRlQZ