STEM Schools: Where's the Art? One Student Speaks Out
STEM, which stands for science, technology, engineering, and math, is greatly considered the way of the future as both government and industry turn to these fields to help tackle problems like climate change, urban density, and health care. STEM schools like Cleveland High School on Seattle’s Beacon Hill are designed to prepare students for these jobs.
As the U.S. increases focus on STEM schools, arts advocates fear that arts education will be lost. Though art itself may not help solve climate change, advocates argue that the skills and creativity that students learn from the arts exactly what’s needed to develop tomorrow’s leaders.
Where’s the Art?
Ronald, a senior at Cleveland High School, is advocating for more arts programming at his STEM school.
STEM advocates note that the collaborative, project-based nature of STEM education allows for more student creativity in the science classes. At Cleveland, students in Ronald’s biology class made animated flip books to illustrate evolution.
Overall, however, Ronald isn’t happy (“raging,” he says) about the shrinking art offerings at his school.
“They got rid of all our arts except for the band… They got rid of choir, and when we had a drama program last year it didn’t last for longer than that [year]. We do have a film production program, but I feel like that only stayed because it falls under that technology category.”
His friends enrolled in the remaining general arts class have told him “art isn’t fun anymore. It’s not a place where they can just do art like it usually was. It’s more around just doing projects and not expression.”
Ronald’s desire for self-expression is what makes the arts so important in his life. Although creativity makes his science projects more fun, he would prefer it were the focus of more classes at his school rather than a tool to teach another subject.
“I have friends who feel so passionate about the science programs but still get enraged that we don’t have a good arts program.”
That’s why he and his friends are starting a Glee Club after school. If the club is successful, Ronald hopes the administration will consider adding more art classes during the day.
Let’s Change the Game
| There is a new movement brewing around the country called STEAM, an effort to bring the arts back to the table in STEM education. In Rhode Island, state legislators have introduced a bill that recognizes the importance of art and design in STEM fields and encourages K-12 and higher education to include the arts in their STEM programs. It also calls upon federal agencies to “develop a STEM to STEAM Council representative of artists, designers, education and business leaders, and Federal agencies in order to facilitate a comprehensive approach to incorporate art and design into the Federal STEM programs.” |
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This is just one example of what looks like a growing consensus that art and creativity are the key to innovation and thereby essential to the future of science and engineering. Climate change requires creative solutions. The goal should not be to place more importance on art or science, left brain or right brain. We perform best when both sides of our brain are activated.
If the goal of K-12 education is to produce talented, well-rounded youth, we can’t leave one subject out of the equation. The interdisciplinary and collaborative basis of STEM should naturally allow for more creativity and more art. Changing STEM to STEAM will allow us to see not only art’s utilitarian value as a learning tool in the sciences, but also acknowledge the value of art for its own sake. In doing so we challenge ourselves to change our traditional views of what art is, what it looks like, and where it belongs in our society.
When I told Ronald about STEAM, he was delighted.
“I haven’t heard of that! That would sound more interesting than just STEM. It would include all of our interests.”
Related Links
STEM to STEAM
Washington STEM
STEM should be a natural extension of literacy education – The Huffington Post
Editorial: Don’t pit science and math education against the liberal arts – The Seattle Times