The Role of STEM in a Classical Christian Education (Part 3): Biblical Worldview

(Continued from Part 2) 

The previous installment of this STEM series showed how STEM methodologies complement the classical model of education. STEM methodologies also strengthen the foundations of an educational institution rooted in a Biblical worldview.  Knowing how to integrate and apply concepts across disciplines is vital for deeper understanding of God's word and for application of His truths to daily life.  STEM best practices train students' minds to constantly look for connections between classroom knowledge and Biblical truth to real life application for the continuous building of knowledge and wisdom.  

After the fourth blood moon in the last tetrad occurred on September 28-29 of this year, students were curious about lunar events and asked why and how the eclipse occurred.  As I guided my students with leading questions through the mechanics of a lunar eclipse and some of the Jewish history and significance surrounding the timing of the tetrads, I challenged the students to consider spiritual applications.  The discussion that followed compared a lunar eclipse to the spiritual darkening that takes place when we allow the world to come between God and man.  These elementary-aged students were able to connect in their minds the effect of the earth getting in the way of the moon so that it could not reflect the sun’s light with the spiritual implications of letting the things of this world keep us from looking to God so that we no longer reflect His light into the dark and dying world.  What absolute delight it has been for me to watch them see how learning more about the things God has made and the way they function in the universe helps them better understand who God is and how He loves each of them and works in them personally.

STEM education begins with training the mind in fundamental processing skills (observation, inference, comparison, classification, labeling, etc.) which help students become more discerning. Faith is strengthened as students learn how to answer tough questions from critics by applying their STEM knowledge to real life questions. After only two STEM classes, my 3^rd through 5^th grade students were already identifying false assumptions and recognizing the dominating role of opinion instead of inference and empirical evidence being used to support popular scientific theories, which are presented as fact while contrary to God's word.  They saw on their own some of the contradictions between the laws of nature and the theories taught by scientists.  "If science has proven that life cannot come from non-life," one student asked, "then why do science books teach that we evolved out of random matter?"  Another student asked, "Why do scientists say the earth is millions of years old when the Bible indicates it is only thousands of years old?"  So I explained to him the assumption of uniformitarianism and asked him if that assumption was a reasonable one to make when dating the earth?  I asked him to consider how we could test the reliability of such an assumption, and after giving him time to critically examine the issue, I provided examples of various tests that have already been done to disprove the assumption following his same line of thinking. We know that when catastrophic events like volcanic eruptions, mass flooding, tsunamis occur, changes take place in moments that would take millions of years under the assumption of uniformitarianism.   This level of critical thinking flows freely in STEM classrooms and equips students to defend their faith.

STEM training also helps the words of Scripture come more alive for students.  When my students "discovered" that density is directly related to mass and indirectly related to volume and that objects sink when they are more dense than the solution in which they are placed, Jesus’s words in Luke 9:44 took on greater meaning. What Jesus had told his disciples about his death in that verse was massive, yet He communicated within the "volume" of only 14 words (in the ESV translation), making his message infinitely dense. This dense message was to enter the ears and hearts of mankind which have negligible density compared to the infinite work of Christ on the cross. Thus, Christ's words could not have floated, rested, or simply gone into the disciples'  ears and hearts. Instead the passage uses the word “sink” which conveys to those who understand density an enormous differential between man’s lowly state and the infinite grace of God’s suffering in our place.  Christ's words fell like a million tons of bricks onto their hearts, and they were forever changed, just as all are who believe and trust in Him. In this way, the students could see that every single word and tiny detail of Scripture has a purpose and holds eternal truth from God.

During that same unit on density, the students considered the miraculous catch of fish described in Luke 5:1-11.  "How many pounds of fish would it take to sink just one of their boats, I asked?"  Interest piqued, the students figured out how to perform such a calculation based on what they had just learned about density.  After making some assumptions about the size of the boat and all it contained before the catch and with some help from a calculator and their teacher, the students approximated a number.  They were astounded by the result.  Suddenly this miracle they had read or been told about several times before become even more amazing as they could visualize just how many pounds of fish it had taken to sink those boats. 
 

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I could list examples from every class, but the primary point is that students who cannot apply what they learn in one subject to all of life and especially to God’s word walk through life as if their eyes are shut.  Christian education seeks to open eyes and fill hearts with the awesome truths of God's words.  Students will face critics of the faith, and they need freedom to ask questions and the tools to seek out answers, so they can stand firm in their faith instead of being trampled by the herd.   All of creation, every subject and discipline, and each experience and encounter exist to make God known and to bring Him glory.  If STEM principles can help equip students to ask questions, seek out answers with discernment, make necessary connections between classroom knowledge, Biblical truth, and life, and develop the habit of looking for God's hand in everything, trusting in His goodness, faithfulness, power, and love, then it certainly has a place in Christian schools.

⁵ “A sower went out to sow his seed. And as he sowed, some fell along the path and was trampled underfoot, and the birds of the air devoured it. ⁶ And some fell on the rock, and as it grew up, it withered away, because it had no moisture. ⁷ And some fell among thorns, and the thorns grew up with it and choked it. ⁸ And some fell into good soil and grew and yielded a hundredfold.” As he said these things, he called out, “He who has ears to hear, let him hear.”  (Luke 8: 5-8)

The Role of STEM in a Classical Christian Education (Part 2): Similarities

(Continuation of Part 1 found here.) 

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Dorothy Sayers presented an effectual essay at Oxford in 1947 entitled, “The Lost Tools of Learning”.  This essay, along with a number of texts upholding similar ideals, has inspired numerous classical schools across the globe.  By teaching to each child’s natural bent and pattern of learning development (grammar, logic, and rhetoric phases), learning is optimized.  Classical education prioritizes broad, integrated, useful learning over highly specialized learning which is isolated into distinct subjects.  The goal is to teach students how to think for themselves as opposed to merely teaching them what to think for a test.  Classical education strives to inspire a life-long love of learning with tools to help students continuously grow in both knowledge and wisdom.  The Christian classical model strives to train the whole person (mind, body and spirit) while recognizing and nurturing the unique gifts, talents, experiences, and passions given by God to each child, so that students will be well equipped to fulfill God's individual calling for each and every student for His glory.

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Another text that has largely influenced classical education and is often used as an evaluation tool for teachers is The Seven Laws of Teaching by John Milton Gregory.  To illustrate how intertwined STEM methodologies are with classical education, I have briefly summarized those seven laws of teaching and then described ten of the most effective STEM instruction methods as they relate to Milton's seven laws of teaching.

The Seven Laws of Teaching

1. Knowledge:  Know thoroughly the lesson to be taught.  Teach from a full mind and clear understanding.
2. Engagement: Gain and keep the interest of the pupils. Refuse to teach without attention.
3. Clarity: Use clear and vivid words understood by both the pupil and the teacher in the same sense. 
4. Connections:  Begin with what is already known by the pupil and proceed to what is unknown by single, easy, natural steps, letting the known explain the unknown.
5. Discovery:  Use the pupil’s own mind, exciting his own self-activities. Keep his thoughts as much ahead of your expression as possible, making him a discoverer of truth.
6. Reproducing:   Require the pupil to reproduce in thought the lesson he is learning, thinking it out in its parts, proofs, connections, and applications till he can express it in his own language.
7. Review:  Review, review, review – reproducing correctly the old, deepening its expression with new thought, deepening its impression with new thought, correcting false ideas, and completing the true.

As a STEM professional (engineer, project manager, analyst, process improvement consultant), STEM teacher, and math teacher and tutor, I have seen firsthand how helpful STEM methodologies are in providing a comprehensive and effective classical education for all students.  Some of the most effective STEM teaching methods I have used have been described by Middleweb.com as 10 of the best STEM practices. I have used that list merged with my personal classroom experiences within a classical educational system to show how STEM fits the classical model and helps teachers more effectively follow the seven laws of teaching.

The starting point for STEM instruction is to believe in your students.  This step is often missing in schools where teachers or administrations do not adapt teaching methods to match the different learning styles of their students or where assumptions about students are made or labels assigned inappropriately.  Confidence in one's own ability to learn is the gateway to increased learning.  Teachers must understand the power they wield with their words and their actions to open or close that gate for many years to come, perhaps even for a lifetime.  STEM classrooms demand caring, nurturing teachers who offer encouragement and legitimate, earned praise.  Confidence grows as students achieve, so teachers must provide a flexible classroom that provides every student the opportunity to succeed where they are instead of forcing each child to squeeze into the teacher's own odd-shaped mold or narrow rubric, which may be contrary to the child's natural bent. Flexible STEM teachers also offer challenging work to students who learn quickly and easily become bored.  Watered down curriculum with excessive review and no opportunity to go beyond the limits of the text communicates to students that the teacher does not believe they can handle challenging work or that they do not care enough to take the effort to stretch them.  Believing in your students especially helps with engagement (Law #2). 

Another fundamental STEM teaching method is to transfer control of the learning process to the student so that students become self-sufficient learners.  Teachers trained in STEM methods do not spoon feed information to students.  Instead, they help students derive answers for themselves using guided inquiry and self-directed lab activities to lead students to make their own discoveries.  Reference "10 Ways to Encourage Students to Take Responsibility for their Own Learning" for more ideas.  This STEM step is a direct response to the law of self-discovery (Law #5).

STEM programs make fostering curiosity a priority in the classroom.  Before presenting new information, teachers ask open-ended questions or present a real world problem for class discussion.  In a STEM class, the teacher will present a demonstration or lead the students through an experiment first before spitting out new facts and concepts to draw students in and get them asking their own questions out of genuine interest and curiosity. This strategy has been very effective in keeping all students engaged (Law #2), even those students who struggle to stay focused, both during and after my classes. Many of my students come to class each week with stories of different experiments they have performed at home or with interesting facts from books they have sought out and read pertaining to the subject matter purely out of their own curiosity.  When students are bursting to share related information they have learned or new discoveries they have made since our last class, then I am encouraged and motivated by that evidence of curious, active, stimulated minds.

Another STEM best practice that has had a huge impact in my class has been providing hands-on, experiential learning.  Kinesthetic learners are not the only students who need interactive learning.  All students are better able to remember concepts when they interact with them in a multi-sensory way.  Hands-on manipulation and experimentation builds critical thinking skills for cross functional applications while keeping students engaged and motivated (Law #2).  Hands-on experience also provides students with the ability to transfer book knowledge into useful applications which is so vital to becoming college and career ready. Since students know to expect hands-on activities in every class, they consistently come to class excited and eager to learn.

The list of STEM best practices also includes collaboration among students, usually through team exercises or interactive class discussions. When facilitated in an orderly manner, collaboration fosters clarity (Law #3) while helping students make more mental connections for more efficient knowledge building (Law #4).  Learning to become a team player will not only help students succeed in school and in their careers, but it will also give them greater joy and success in personal life and ministry. As students experience the synergy that flows out of group collaboration, they value each other more highly and are more inclined to build up one another.

STEM methodology insists that teachers provide opportunities to take risks and to accept failure, for failure is a critical step in the learning process.  The greatest contributors to society throughout world history have made big mistakes, but the rich lessons gained through those mistakes led to greater discoveries and contributions.  Students need practice making mistakes without reproof to build courage and confidence.  Occasionally, experiments I have planned for my classes and practiced at home have not worked as expected during the class time.  Seeing their teacher's project fail gave the students more freedom to take risks themselves.  Those failures were not wasted, however, because then the students were tasked with helping me figure out what went wrong which built trouble shooting and problem solving skills. This risk/failure teaching tool addresses the laws of engagement (#2), connections (#4), and self-discovery (#5).

The next few STEM best practices support the laws of knowledge (#1), engagement (#2) and clarity (#3).  MiddleWeb advises STEM teachers as follows: "Be an inspiring leader and role model for students. Be positive and enthusiastic about what students are learning and how they are learning it. Be passionate in your teaching and your love of your subject area."  Those directives are a paraphrase of classical education ideals.  Teachers will not be passionate about a subject they do not understand really well.  Knowledgeable teachers (Law #1) are inspiring teachers.

Another imperative of effective STEM teachers is to be flexible and know how to quickly redirect lesson plans when class discussions take a different though productive turn according to the developing thoughts of the students.  The teacher must know the subject well enough to following the change in direction and pull the conversation back when appropriate without being too dependent upon a scripted lesson plan.  (Law #1).

STEM methodology also insists that teachers never stop learning.  Teachers must constantly seek out ways to communicate more effectively (Law #3) and gain more knowledge of their subjects. (Law #1).  STEM teachers learn in community, working with colleagues to build knowledge together (Laws #1 and #4).

 

While the laws of reproducing and reviewing may not be as obvious in this summary of 10 best STEM practices, those laws are a natural result of a classroom following the STEM format. Every class I teach begins with a comprehensive review session, but I do not ask students to recite vocabulary definitions word-for-word as I gave them,for repeating my words verbatim does not indicate comprehension.  I also avoid asking each question the same way.  Students have to reproduce the information for me in their own words or show me through demonstration. Review continues as students are asked to apply the new concepts to other real world applications.  Even though I teach elective classes without testing or grading requirements, students can reproduce advanced concepts for me without losing memory because they have interacted with the topics in so many different meaningful ways and have associated the concepts with everyday life.  The structure of an integrated STEM class allows new concepts to build upon previous concepts, so each new topic is an expansion or an application of previous material.  For example, when we introduced the concepts of buoyancy and ballasts to maintain a boat's stability in the water, the students then asked if airplanes use ballasts to remain stable in the air. When we study air pressure, flight, and aerodynamics in future classes, they will review again the concepts taught within the context of oceanography and then build upon them within a different context.  The processing skills introduced in the first few weeks of class are practiced in every other class to follow as the students build their processing capabilities.

Part 1 of this series defines STEM and provides a brief history and summary of the goals and philosophies driving STEM programs. Part 2 compares STEM to classical education.  The last installment shows how STEM methodologies can also supplement and enrich an education founded upon a Biblical worldview.

The Role of STEM in a Classical Christian Education (Part 1): STEM Defined

 

STEM has become an increasingly popular buzzword in American education over the past six years. By now, many people have figured out that the acronym stands for science, technology, engineering and mathematics.  Many astute parents and educators also understand that much of the push for STEM programming stems from a growing shortage of employees for the ever increasing demand for STEM jobs.  STEMconnector.org has estimated that the demand for STEM-related jobs will be 8.65 million workers by 2018 with 71%  projected to be computing jobs and 16% in engineering. (http://www.livescience.com/43296-what-is-stem-education.html)  To meet this demand, new standards and educational curricula have been developed with over $6.1 billion invested by the federal government into STEM educational programming last year alone.
  
As school administrators initially tried to establish STEM focused schools, they quickly realized that the traditional model of education was failing to equip students with the critical thinking skills, perseverance, and ability to apply book knowledge to real life applications necessary for STEM vocations.  Students had learned how to memorize facts, but with so much emphasis on standardized testing, little time had been spent thinking through what those facts mean or how to apply them practically.  When knowledge is not applied in a meaningful way, it is soon forgotten.  Students were being taught what to think but not how to think.  Traditional teaching methods were robbing students of their God given love of learning while failing to give them the tools required for lifelong learning. 

To address these needs, STEM teaching methodologies were introduced (or “re-introduced” for those familiar with the classical model of education who can easily recognize the many similarities) which use an interdisciplinary approach with hands-on, real-life applications. STEM programs do not teach subjects in isolation but rather, in a cohesive, integrated manner just as students will need to apply them in real life.  

During the elementary years, STEM programs introduce students to a wide variety of topics through exploratory exercises with an interactive class format that stimulates student interest not only in the current topic of study but also in relevant real life applications and vocations.  Students practice using key processing skills such as observation, inference, comparison, classification, labeling, and prediction as they examine each new topic or idea.  STEM teachers use guided questioning and structured inquiry to lead students to make observations and solve problems themselves in a way that builds critical thinking skills while connecting new information with previously acquired knowledge to build new knowledge. STEM assignments are rarely presented as monotonous worksheets filled with problems that have no context, all look alike, and feel like busy work. Instead, students solve problems that are applicable to real life situations or within the context of topics that interest the students.  Open-ended classroom discussions give students who may struggle with a topic the opportunity to look at the concept through multiple lenses and teaching styles while allowing each student to follow the thought process as far as he or she is developmentally ready.  Review is still a key component of STEM teaching, but the review questions are not so monotonous as to bore children to exasperation.  Review questions are asked in different ways or within the context of different applications to keep the mind stimulated while providing the repetition a growing mind needs.  

By middle school, students know to use the scientific method to seek answers to their own questions.  Their minds are active with in-depth “how” and “why” questions.  They are both able and eager to test ideas and questions of their own to form more discoveries and applications.  STEM programs guide students as they work together on cross-functional teams through project based learning. Students take delight in learning because they can see how useful it will be in life, regardless of vocation.

In high school, STEM programs seek to give students more in-depth training with greater use of technology in the advancement of  their studies and in the development of discernment regarding the risks and benefits of emerging technologies. Applying STEM knowledge in an integrated way becomes even more relevant as students bridge classroom learning with real world problems through partnerships between schools and local industries.  These real-world experiences give students a clearer vision of what God is calling them to study and do following graduation.

STEM methodologies enable teachers across all grades and subjects to reach a broader audience.  Many students struggle in school simply because they fail to see the purpose of  it.  Real-life problem solving and relevant project based learning removes that feeling of pointlessness, increases motivation, and enables students to succeed.  In fact, students become so engaged in the application of the knowledge that they are not held back by test anxiety or obsession with grades. They see learning as more than a letter on a transcript but more as a way to make a meaningful and positive impact on the world.   

Other students struggle in school because the teaching style does not match their learning style.  STEM methods appeal to students with a wide variety of learning styles.  Visual, verbal, logical, and/or kinesthetic learners, visual-spatial, and audio-sequential learners tend to thrive when STEM methodologies are incorporated into the classroom setting.

Other students disengage mentally and emotionally from the classroom because the instruction, which aims at "teaching to the middle", fails to challenge or stimulate them mentally. Instead of being sober minded and alert (1 Peter 5:8), students' hearts and minds are lulled to sleep.  They assume that if the teacher is unwilling to teach them where they are or to stimulate their minds, then it is unfair of that teacher to expect them to exert any effort or to care about the watered-down lessons in return. The STEM approach, however, sets no limits on learning.  Interactive discussions, discovery and exploration activities, hands-on experiments, and questions to ponder for further investigation give students the freedom to keep learning in a self-directed way.  Learning doesn’t stop when the books are closed in a STEM methods classroom.  Excited minds keep processing information, making connections and building knowledge.  

STEM is so much more than studying science, technology, engineering and math.  It is a very effective teaching methodology with an extensive toolbox of best practices that equip students for real life. STEM trains students how to think critically and to solve problems systematically.  It bridges the gap from simply learning facts for a test to learning methods and processes needed for life-long learning, discovery, problem solving, and innovation.  It greatly increases love of learning by making education practical while reaching a much wider spectrum of students. 

STEM methodologies and classical education share many similar philosophies and methods.  STEM programs typically apply those methods very effectively to the four subjects comprising the acronym, while classical schools tend to apply those integrated methods most effectively to all other subjects. The next installment of this series examines those similarities and shows how proactively applying the classical components (but certainly not any of the underlying worldly motivations which may be contrary to Christian ideals) of the STEM methodology within the daily academic instruction across all grades and genre within classical Christian schools could enrich the classical educational experience.  Part three shows how STEM goals and best practices help provide richer soil in which the seeds of a Biblical worldview may be planted.  STEM may have developed out of a desire to meet a growing demand for a certain skills set, but it has become a recapturing of vital educational precepts that help provide a more comprehensive education that better equip all students for lifelong learning, discipline, effective living, and Godly discernment.

Continue to Part 2