Interdisciplinary and applied learning
It’s difficult to contemplate that in a country where there are some 18,000 students registered at the St. Augustine campus each year, that we will have a shortage of skills in key traditional disciplines. In March of 2016, Minister of Education, the Hon. Anthony Garcia, announced in a post-cabinet briefing that since its introduction in 2004, over 190,000 persons have benefitted from the Government Assisted Tertiary Education (GATE) programme at a cost of $5.5 billion. In 2016, according to the Minister, $650 million has been allocated to GATE.
The challenge faced by GATE is whether or not the investments in education are being properly aligned to economic development.
Education and Skills Misalignment
Leslie Bowrin is Head of Social Performance at Shell Trinidad (formerly BGTT) and has led that portfolio since 2008. He doesn’t have to look far to affirm this apparent misalignment. In his own company, like many of the other energy operators, there exists a paucity of engineers in specific disciplines such as well-engineering, process safety, electrical and instrumentation engineering among others.
This growing disaffection for studies in the sciences is not peculiar to Trinidad and Tobago. It is a global issue that many corporations are paying attention to, since it presents a real risk to business continuity over the medium to long term. Trinidad and Tobago drastically needs to enhance its critical thinking and problem solving skills. Bowrin believes that here at home, it is essential that the government sets criteria for eligibility of programmes and institutions to be more in tandem with business needs and realistic job opportunities for new graduates.
Fixing the problem is not an easy task, but a global project aimed at addressing the gaps was first launched by BG Group in 2011; and Shell Trinidad is a part of the initiative which aims to build renewed interest in the areas of Science Technology, Engineering and Mathematics (STEM), along the education value chain. The interventions aim to refocus the curriculum and academic interest in creating a cadre of youth who will be able to satisfy the technical competencies needed in a number of institutions and firms who rely on scientific knowledge application to stay competitive and in business.
What is STEM?
So what exactly is the STEM initiative? STEM is a curriculum based on the idea of educating students in four specific disciplines — science, technology, engineering and mathematics — in an interdisciplinary and applied approach. So, rather than teach the four disciplines as separate and discrete subjects, STEM integrates them into a cohesive learning paradigm based on real-world applications. This blended approach to study is what distinguishes the programme and what facilitates the different kinds of learning and practical approach to education.
According to Teach for America (TFA), some eight million STEM jobs will become available in 2018 but there will be no one to fill these vacancies because of the lack of graduates. TFA and the Amgen Foundation launched the STEM initiative in 2004.
Recent research by the U.S. Department of Education, shows that “only 16 percent of high school students are interested in a STEM career and have a proven proficiency in mathematics.”
In the United Kingdom, there is a predicted shortfall to adequately fill vacancies in about 100,000 STEM jobs. In Germany, it is estimated at about 210,000. Comparatively, the peer country with the greatest proportion of STEM graduates, Finland, has over 30% of their university graduates coming from science, mathematics, computer science, and engineering programmes.
STEM academic disciplines include :
physics, actuarial science, chemistry, biology, mathematics, applied mathematics, statistics, computer science, computational science, psychology, biochemistry, robotics, computer engineering, electrical engineering, electronics, mechanical engineering, industrial engineering, information science, civil engineering, aerospace engineering, chemical engineering, astrophysics, astronomy, optics, nanotechnology, nuclear physics, mathematical biology, operations research, neurobiology, biomechanics, bioinformatics, acoustical engineering, geographic information systems, atmospheric sciences, educational/ instructional technology, software engineering, and educational research.
The STEM initiative aims to cultivate an interest in the natural and social sciences immediately upon entry into the school system for primary or preschool students.
Early engagement is seen to promote increased interest and success in STEM subjects in high school and increased enrolment into these disciplines at universities.
Shell Trinidad invests in STEM
Leslie Bowrin explains that his company’s interest (then BG Group), began in 2011 and was driven by a collective concern within the energy sector in assessing its skills demands and the supply variance in the local labour market. Based on global needs, the only market mass producing these skills was India. By investing in STEM education, the company aims to:
- Deliver enduring and wider socio- economic benefits;
- Contribute to government priorities for employment and economic development; and
- Develop the long-term skills needed for the energy industry.
Shell Trinidad’s interventions within the schools is to build awareness, create excitement and more importantly, to inspire teaching interests to produce a cadre of scientists who are educated in an integrated science environment. In a pilot launched in 2014, Shell set out four clear objectives. These are to:
- Build teacher capability in STEM related subjects;
- Support young people to develop their confidence and self-belief in STEM subjects;
- Enhance interest and performance in STEM subjects at secondary school;
- Build awareness of careers in the oil and gas sector.
Bowrin explains, “This approach is structured to engage problem solving skills, critical thinking and innovation.” While he sees the benefits to the energy sector, he believes that “the manufacturing, agriculture and service sectors all need an injection of critical thinking to resuscitate and become competitive.”
In a bold initiative with the University of the West Indies School of Education, Shell embarked on a pilot programme to train teachers to deliver STEM education using concepts and principles of integrated learning and teaching techniques. The strategy in this, says Bowrin, is to “focus on the schools that are under-represented as graduates in the disciplines but to provide a mix with those who are more success-ready.”
Shell contracted project management and research firm Sacoda Serv to assess the pilot, inclusive of its impact in the schools and the programme’s design in order to use those findings to implement a national programme. With the approval and support of the Chief Education Officer, under the Schools’ Supervisors for Victoria District and Port of Spain, they have invested in the upgrade of labs of the two schools identified at the start of the project. The company has also struck a number of critical partnerships to ensure that the programme lands right and that the learnings can be utilised to expand the programme to other schools. In this regard, two key partners are the National Institute for Higher Education and Research in Science and Technology (NIHERST) and the UWI Arthur Lok-Jack Graduate School of Business (ALJGSB).
Sacoda’s role is to facilitate the following:-
- Rapid assessment of the impact of the first pilot programme, implemented by the School of Education UWI, on utilisation of knowledge and skills gained during the training programme;
- Development of a Science/Math teacher training programme that is geared towards continuous professional development (UWI, UTT and Master Teacher programme);
- A Student Support programme that would garner interest for STEM education and STEM careers- both at the professional and technical levels;
- A Science Award Competition and Exhibition;
- Development of a Technology, Innovation and Communication Plan to Embed a STEM Culture in the school aged population; and
- Performance Management for the STEM Programme
Shell has also partnered with NIHERST to socialise science through personal experience. The NIHERST’s Eureka camps cater for students in the 10-12 age group who have an interest in science, challenging the students to explore careers in scientific fields, conduct labs and field work in addition to free time activities.
In response to Shell’s needs to build capability in some of the important areas needed for STEM delivery, the UWI-ALJGBS has developed a three-day programme called a ‘Strength in YOU-th Programme, which is a highly interactive youth development programme that encompasses leadership simulation games and exercises designed to enable participants to identify their own particular leadership strengths. In addition, the School of Business has also launched a two-day programme, ‘Critical Thinking and Creative Problem Solving Skills for Youth’ which looks at a wide range of situations, from identifying and correcting problems in academic work, to solving the problems of everyday life.
In 2013 the company engaged in a nation-wide collaboration with teachers, curriculum officers and Heads of Districts to identify gaps in the delivery of STEM subjects. That information has been used in the development of the current teachers training programme.
Bowrin is aware that the success of the programme will rely heavily on teachers giving extra time and effort outside of the standard curriculum requirements to ensure STEM compliance. But he also anticipates that success will encourage other schools and have a much needed ripple effect in boosting interest and passion in the STEM subjects. He believes that STEM in schools in Trinidad is a direct response to the corporate voice in the country calling for education delivery to be more responsive to economic drivers. “Business,” he says, “should also advocate for teachers to be better compensated and to have the right teaching tools at their disposal to be effective.”
Bowrin believes that the current situation analysis, which was conducted by Sacoda, is pointing the way for how the STEM approach can be applied across primary and secondary schools nationally. What’s needed, he says, is “An Explicit STEM Agenda (to strengthen STEM education in school and expand the STEM human resource pool); An Enabling Environment for STEM and STEM education; Labour Market Alignment (based on sound labour market data); and better Benchmarking and Research.” Shell’s future plans include a national consultation and the employment of STEM ambassadors.
Current Shell’s STEM Partner Institutions:
- Faculty of Engineering and the Engineering Institute of the University of the West Indies;
- Geomatics Department of the University of the West Indies;
- Arthur Lok Jack Graduate School of Business;
- National Institute of Higher Learning, Research Science and Technology (NIHERST);
- KENSON School of Production and Technology Ltd;
- Metal Industries Company Ltd (MIC);
- Trinidad and Tobago Civil Aviation Authority;
- Trinidad and Tobago Air Support Company;
- Royalink Ltd (ICT and Mentorship);
- Mathematics Support Group;
- Anthony Petite-IT Programmer and Anti Cyber Bullying Activist;
- UTT Marine Campus at Chaguaramas;
- Water and Sewerage Authority (WASA);
- The Zoological Society of Trinidad and Tobago (The Petting Zoo);
- Creative Thinking Programme (Internal Support Team); and
- Drive Wise (Trinidad) Limited.