This week in education news, new analysis of college-level STEM classes found that lecture instruction still remains as the dominant form of teaching; report that launched the modern education reform movement turns 35; schools and districts across the country invest in STEM labs to help motivate students and stimulate innovation; and NASA astronaut says you don’t have to be a genius to have a career in science; and Hawaiian robotics teacher inspires a generation of STEM students.

Teacher Pay: How Salaries, Pensions, And Benefits Work In Schools

Teacher pay has been in headlines across the country recently: Educators in Oklahoma and West Virginia successfully forced the legislature to pass pay raises in early 2018, and teachers in Arizona were demanding lawmakers there do the same. Teaching has long been viewed as a low-paid job, but much more goes into teachers’ compensation than just the take-home paychecks. Read the article featured in Education Week.

Lecture Instruction: Alive And Not So Well

You’ve heard about the revolution in STEM teaching? About how professors are retooling their courses to focus on active learning? About how the flipped classroom has made the traditional lecture obsolete? It turns out that the revolution hasn’t quite taken place, at least broadly, in higher education. Read the article featured in Inside Higher Ed.

A Nation at Risk’ Turns 35: School Leaders, Including Five Former Education Secretaries, To Headline Summit On Report That Launched A Movement

“A Nation at Risk”, the damning report that sparked the modern education reform movement, turns 35 this year. The report, released during Ronald Reagan’s presidency, warned of a “rising tide of mediocrity” in American schools that demanded national attention. Read the article featured in The 74.

School STEM Labs Inspire Students, Power Innovation

Schools and districts are investing in STEM education to provide students the skills they need to thrive in their future careers, from technical skills to critical thinking, ­problem-solving, creativity, communication and collaboration. Many schools are building dedicated high-tech learning spaces to start or invigorate their STEM programs. Advanced manufacturing labs, for example, provide hands-on learning experiences where students can design products on computers and build those products with 3D printers, laser cutters and other computer-connected equipment. Read the article featured in Ed Tech.

I Was A Bad Student Who Became An Astronaut. Let’s Stop Telling People They Can’t Be Good At Science

Since I’ve returned from spending a year in space, I’ve been traveling the world sharing my experiences. I’ve been surprised by one of the things I’ve heard from audiences: that they believe science is too difficult, too complex for a normal person to comprehend. Apparently, over one-third of the world thinks I’m a genius, because according to them 3M State of Science Index, 36% of people around the globe think you need to be a genius in order to have a career in science. I’m here to tell you that’s not true. Read the article featured in TIME magazine.

Are Science Fairs Unfair?

Springtime is science fair season. Thousands of kids across the country, from elementary through high school, spend weeks or months coaxing seedlings to grow, building devices to harness solar energy and carefully mixing acids and bases. Read the article featured in The Hechinger Report.

Meet the Hawaiian Robotics Teacher Inspiring a Generation of STEM Students

The Waialua High School robotics team was just named regional champ, beat 54 teams at the international Festival de Robotique in Montreal last month and they will be traveling to Houston in April for the world championship. In fact, this team has qualified for the world championship every year since 2001, and they’ve won robotics competitions all over the U.S. and in Australia, China and Japan. Credit for the team’s glory goes to Glenn Lee, an affable electrical engineer who originally took a teaching job as a way to support himself through business school. Read the article featured in People magazine.

Stay tuned for next week’s top education news stories.

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