SYRACUSE — A conference that took place in July at Syracuse University could become an annual event focused on helping teachers train students in the STEM disciplines.

Those disciplines — science, technology, engineering, and math — are critical to the nation’s future, says Margaret Ashida, director of the Empire State STEM Learning Network and co-chair of the New York State STEM Education Collaborative second biennial Summer STEM Institute. She notes that the economic-development plans developed by 10 regional councils around the state last year are dominated by projects with connections to STEM disciplines.

Nationwide, the U.S. needs 1 million more STEM graduates to fill current projections of demand, Ashida says.

“It’s a real economic opportunity in New York state,” she adds.

The summer institute took place from July 8 to July 11 at SU. It provided professional development for teachers in the interdisciplinary teaching and learning of STEM from the elementary level through higher education, according to organizers.

The program included more than 75 workshops, a plenary panel of state and national leaders in the field, and a keynote speaker, Bharat Soni, chairman and professor of mechanical engineering at the University of Alabama at Birmingham.

The first institute took place in 2010 and organizers say they may try to turn it into an annual event given its success.

A major focus was breaking down silos across disciplines, says Chuck Goodwin, chairman of the New York State Technology and Engineering Educators’ Association advisory council. To best prepare students for what’s ahead, education in STEM fields and elsewhere needs to be integrated and interconnected.

That will help students become true problem solvers, Goodwin says.

“We want problem solvers who can look at a real-world problem and be able to draw naturally and comfortably from all of the resources that they have been building throughout their educational career,” he says.

That might mean giving students longer periods with lab experiences and implementing interdisciplinary teaching and learning techniques throughout a school, Ashida says.

Such an approach can help prepare students for careers that don’t even exist yet, says Gwendolyn Maturo-Grasso, a teacher in the Syracuse City School District and co-chair of the summer institute. She notes that young people can start to focus on career clusters as early as fourth or fifth grade.

The nation’s current education system has problems throughout, Ashida notes. Students entering two- and four-year colleges often require remediation work. Some 20 percent of the nation’s students don’t even graduate high school, she adds.

“So when you look at our system of education, we’ve got leaks from beginning to end,” she says.

Helping students understand the relevance of what they’re learning could change that, Goodwin says. If they can see the real-world applications of what they’re studying, the subject will be more exciting and they’ll remain engaged.

It’s also important, he adds, to overcome the misconception that STEM training is just for students planning on careers in science or engineering.

“STEM education provides relevance,” he says. “It’s truly our philosophy that STEM education is for all students.”             

Contact Tampone at ktampone@cnybj.com