How to STEM

Science, Technology, Engineering, and Math Education in Libraries

Carol Smallwood, Vera Gubnitskaia

• Publisher: Rowman & Littlefield Publishers
• Year: 2013
• eBook ISBN: 9780810892743
• Edition: 1
• Topic: Languages & Linguistics
• Subtopic: Education Teaching Methods
• Index: Languages & Linguistics

During the past few years, groups like the President's Council of Advisors on Science and Technology, Center for Education have been placing great emphasis on the significance of STEM (science, technology, engineering, and math) education. In brief, the US is seen as falling behind the rest of the world in science and technology education. In response, the curricula have been revised in many educational institutions and school districts across the country. It is clear that for STEM to be successful, other community organizations, most particularly libraries, need to be closely involved in the process. Library staff realize the importance of getting involved in STEM education, but many have difficulty finding comprehensive information that will help them plan and successfully implement STEM direction in their organization. This book is designed to meet that need. It is timely and relevant. How to STEM: Science, Technology, Engineering, and Math Education in Libraries is by and for libraries who are involved in contributing efforts into advancing these subjects. It is organized in 9 parts including funding, grant writing, community partnerships, outreach, research, and examples of specific programming activities. Authors are drawn from the professional staffs of educational institutions, libraries, and non-profit organizations such as science museums.
The book contains eight parts, each emphasizing a different aspect of how to succeed with STEM. Part 1 emphasizes how hands-on activities that are both fun and educational can be used to further STEM awareness. Parts 2 and 3 contain chapters on the uniting of STEM with Information Literacy. Innovative collection development ideas are discussed in Part 4 and Part 5 focuses on research and publishing. Outreach is the theme of Part 6 and the programs described in these chapters offer an array of ways to connect with students of all ages. The final section of How to STEM: Science, Technology, Engineering, and Math Education in Libraries addresses the funding of these programs.
Librarians of all types will be pleased to discover easy-to-implement suggestions for collaborative efforts, many rich and diverse programming ideas, strategies for improving reference services and library instruction to speakers of English as a second language, marketing and promotional tips designed to welcome multicultural patrons into the library, and much more.

Table of contents

• Title Page
• Tables and Figures
• Foreword
• Preface
• Acknowledgments
• Range and scope
• WonderWorks: Preschoolers Playing with STEM
• Creating STEM Kits for Teen Programs
• Digging into Reading: A Worm’s Perspective
• The Maker Movement, STEM and Libraries: How Libraries Large and Small Can Support Hands-on Math and Science Learning in Their Communities
• The STEM Kids program and the FIRST LEGO League (FLL) at the Grand Forks Public Library
• Teaching
• Animation Programs at the Evansville Vanderburgh Public Library
• How Not to Blow Up the Library
• Customizing the For-Credit Information Literacy Course for STEM Majors
• Information Literacy and Educational Support
• Kid-ventions with the US Patent Library
• A Math Emporium Project
• The School Librarian Role in the FIRST LEGO League Team Project
• STEM Library Services for High School Students Enrolled as University Students: STEMming From Scratch
• Collection Development
• How to Get Science Going
• Graphic Novels Ignite Imagination in the Sciences
• Research and Publishing
• Showcasing Scientific Research Output: New Audiences for Science Libraries
• Embedding Librarians into the STEM Publication Process
• Outreach
• How Not to Reinvent the STEM Wheel: Using Crowdsourcing and Community Partners
• Girls’ Night Out: STEM Programs for Girls Only
• Celebrating Geographic Information Systems through GIS Day @ Your Library
• Fun Is Learning: Making an Interactive Science Café Series
• Partnerships
• How to Make Library Workshops Popular with Science and Engineering Students
• Learning About Future Stem Careers
• ”Take It from the Top”: Cultivating Relationships with STEM Faculty to Connect with Students
• Funding
• Grant Writing to Support STEM
• STEM on a Budget!
• Index
• About the Contributors