At the start of the 21st century, the concept of STEM education was introduced, and it eventually evolved into STEAM. Now, some private schools in San Fernando Valley continue to emphasize STEM, while others offer STEAM. Let’s talk about the key differences between these two and how it affects your child’s education.
STEM
STEM stands for science, technology, engineering, and math. This type of education focuses on developing critical skills that would be useful for a career in these fields. Private schools in San Fernando Valley offering STEM education teaches concepts related to these four disciplines as well as develops higher-level skills like critical thinking, problem-solving, innovation, and collaboration early on.
STEAM
STEAM stands for science, technology, engineering, arts, and math. It is almost the same as STEM, except it integrates the arts—visual arts, music, dance, language arts, and humanities. The incorporation of the arts to education brings soft skills at the forefront with hard skills. STEAM education promotes holistic, well-rounded education as it teaches the concepts and skills necessary for STEM along with soft skills like creativity, innovation, communication, and persuasion.
Benefits Of STEAM Education
It may seem too early to be thinking about teaching science, technology, engineering, and math to preschoolers, but the best private schools in San Fernando Valley base or integrate STEAM in their curricula for young learners. Doing so exposes children to more learning experiences that will prepare them better for the next step in their education.
While both STEM and STEAM education provide solid background for children, we cannot deny that adding arts to the curriculum includes additional benefits:
Encourages Unique Ways Of Thinking
STEAM encourages children to look at things and problems in new ways, often steering away from having a “right” answer or approach to a problem. This allows children to explore new concepts in creative ways, which not only develops critical and innovative thinking but also allows them to have a deeper understanding of those concepts.
Encourages Hands-On Learning
With the incorporation of the arts, private schools in San Fernando Valley encourages students to learn and explore not by listening to the teacher but on their own, with their teacher’s guidance.
Instills A Growth Mindset
Children are encouraged to explore and try out new things or approaches to problems. This approach to education instills a growth mindset that pushes students to find new, better solutions to problems instead of giving up easily.