Enhancing the implementation of science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) education in the 21st century: A simple and systematic guide

Abstract

The world today is in the era of new technology and digital transformation. This new landscape is described as a combination of systems that blur the lines between physical, digital and biological fields. Similarly, the way we work will also be transformed; making it is a must to prepare for such transformations, particularly to prepare professionals with contextual knowledge of Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematical (STEM) to acquire Higher Order Thinking Skills (HOTS). A STEM education is an interdisciplinary approach to learning where rigorous academic concepts are coupled with real-world lessons. HOTS is a very important asset of engineers in the 4th Industrial Revolution. Thus, a promising approach is needed to strengthen STEM education for our future engineers. This paper systematically describes how the efforts of strengthening learning in STEM education can be achieved with the implementation of Student-Centered Learning (SCL) using the simple but just as powerful method, Informal Cooperative Learning (ICL).