The colloquial designation of “soft” and “hard” subjects is patronizing to those well-versed in humanities and the arts, and is also quite reflective of the state of our gender equality - or lack of, thereof - in Silicon Valley and beyond. As local and national artists have demonstrated, welding can be utilized for everything from making jewelry to welding car parts to constructing an art car for a local parade or festival. A project involving the construction of a replica to scale or an original piece of sculpture may inspire some students to pursue engineering, art, architecture, or welding, in the future. Too often, however, we relegate the fine, creative, and performing arts to drama, creative writing, and art class electives, rather than incorporating them into our instruction of STEM subjects like math, computer science, or physics. Not only does a wide breadth of knowledge expand our understanding of the world, but it also helps open more subjects up to more students.

In reality, it is helpful for everyone to have an at least cursory knowledge of subjects that don’t come as easily to them. The false separation of the arts, languages, and humanities from mathematics and sciences is a modern-day separation that artificially divides these subjects from each other. STEAM is just a new way of incorporating a broad liberal arts-based approach to education. Here are a few ideas for doing just that. Have you ever felt frustrated or concerned that you weren’t equipping your students with the technological skills they will need when they finally enter the post-college job market 10 years from now? Try to imagine the world of 2030 - or even 2040. Once students are at the high school level, they should be looking for and finding ways to connect all their subjects of study together.

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