Over the last decade, the world’s education system has turned favourable towards the integration of Arts within Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics (STEM). This integration has turned STEM into STEAM (Science, Technology, Engineering, Arts, and Mathematics) ensuring the study of Arts is gaining preference. This new found preference for Arts is bound to make education interesting with innovation & creativity.
- Making learning interesting and inclusive – Arts has undeniably been treated as a standalone stream of study having its own scope with respect to career/higher education/entrepreneurship. Integration with engineering-related domains was considered as “critical thinking” a decade ago. Now, with the world’s education system (and educators) having integrated Arts within STEM and have made it STEAM education, that’s inclusive and interesting at the same time.
- Opening up newer dimensions – Inclusion of Arts (and related branches of study) is also slated to open up newer dimensions to both studies as well as careers making it a more human centred education. Augmentation of fields of study and career options is also a potential enhancement of STEAM. This, in turn, with emerging technologies is believed by experts across the globe to lead to increased research and thereby opening up newer and unconventional opportunities for careers/higher studies/entrepreneurship.
- Problem solving – STEM is known to result in the development of solutions to solve at least one layer of problems plaguing society. With the inclusion of Arts into STEM, the human/emotional touch also comes into the picture; thus creating a new education system and moving in the direction making it the best education system in the world. This could serve as the potential “X-factor” required for the development of smart solutions.
- Enhancing people’s capability – “The world is yours to explore,” quotes an anonymous saying. Arts lays significant focus on exploring the unknown. STEM focuses on exploring newer things through the technical realm. Hence, integration of Arts and STEM subjects is slated to lead to newer avenues. This might prove to be the best education in the world helping human societies turn smarter. As we know, the best enabler for a smart society is smart education, STEAM is bound to make education/future educators smarter.
