Course Content
Introduction
Activities and exercises developed within this methodology aim to increase fundamental soft skills in female students who are currently attending STEM university courses. Following the introduction of "Arts" in STEM - i.e. implementation of creative and artistic thinking - we developed a methodology that helps mentoring students while elaborating different types of projects with the aim to empower their skills through an art thinking process. The proposed methodology follows an input-output process that leads students through the development of a project, where each output activity represents the input of the following activity.
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Technology & STEM
The methodology
WeSTEAM methodology
Useful links
Incubation
In the Incubation Phase the participants carry out research in relation to the topic of their interest and begin to put the foundations for a more concrete and precise idea.
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Creative visualisation
Connections and analogies
Conceptual reworking through photography
Learning questionnaire
Imagination
In the Imagination Phase participants begin to idealize and define the key steps for the development of the project. During this development phase, the first goals and objectives are set.
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Interactive mind map
Your project storyboard
Visual storytelling
Learning questionnaire
Creation
During the Creation Phase, participants begin to concretely develop their product, project, or idea. After a prototyping step, this phase is accompanied by testing moments, where participants begin to understand what works and what should be changed. The testing phase is accompanied by the collection of external feedback, crucial to implement transversal points of view useful for the finalization of the project.
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Shape your prototype
Collecting feedback
Art data visualization
Learning questionnaire
Evolution
During the last Evolution phase participants aim to complete the project and present it to the audience of experts and external auditors. The Evolution Phase is a finalization phase but also a phase that looks to the future, as participants can take the key decisions on what should be changed in order to make the project more successful and to plan potential follow up.
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Strengths and weaknesses towards the finalization
Pitch your project creatively
Wind and anchors of your project
WeSTEAM Methodology
About Lesson

“Technology alone is not enough. It’s technology married with the liberal arts, married with the humanities, that yields the results that makes our hearts sing” –  Steve Jobs

The European Parliament considers careers in STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, and Math)  as ‘the job’ of the future and forecasts around 7 million new STEM jobs by 2025 in Europe [1]. We are at the crossroads where so many positions are needed or will be needed that involve STEM and not enough people to fill the labor market.

Nowadays there are few important tendencies affecting STEM globally. Firstly, they are characterized by the rapid growth of industrialization, more known as the Fourth Industrial Revolution, and by the exponential growth of the artificial intelligence and automation of most of the human processes [2]. This requires a lot of workspaces to be created by 2030 – and at the same time a lot of workspaces will be taken by jobs directly or indirectly related to the STEM fields [3]. As a result, most of the jobs we have now will soon change. 

Secondly, there is a shortage and therefore desperate need for creative and innovative thinking force to ensure that we build a sustainable future to live in. Recent reports show [4] that employers consider graduates to be deficient in soft skills and expect those who are educated to the human, cultural, and social as well as the computational. Indeed, hard skills and specific competencies are vital in STEM, but alone without soft skills are not sufficient to succeed in modern times – the elements of the competency include adaptability, creativity, curiosity and open-mindedness. It means that STEM is missing a key set of creativity-related constructs that are equally critical to fostering a competitive and innovative workforce. Those skills are summarized under the letter “A” for Arts when it goes to STEAM –  the next level of STEM education that implements best Art practices in the process. [5] .

Thirdly, considering general gender inequality in this area, where the percentage of male students and workers prevail, this could be hard to achieve. Unless changes in the education system are implemented providing equal opportunities to access and benefit from quality STEM education. If we take a close look at statistics made by UNESCO in their research [6], in higher education, only 35% of all students enrolled in STEM-related fields are female. Also, only 28% of all of the world’s researchers are women. Lack of female role models and intimidating gender stereotypes compromise the quality of the learning experience for female students and limit their education choices. With the underrepresentation of women in STEM we’re lacking an extensive pool of talent, and the variety of concepts and ideas that can lead to innovation.

Higher education must advance and should prepare students, female students in particular,  for the challenges that await them. According to McKinsey recent research on the labour market in Europe [7], Europe needs to create more training and career pathways. Over the longer term, every country in Europe needs to ensure that its educational system is preparing students to succeed, keeping in mind the abilities required for in-demand jobs, such as STEM skills.

Shifting from STEM to STEAM toward Art integration in science, technology, engineering and mathematics studies is crucial in order to adapt to the fast-paced reality. New industrial era requires new interdisciplinary approaches in STEM education, in learning and teaching activities, integrating Art, because creative human resources are crucial in order to thrive in the labour market and solve future problems, that explosion of technology can bring.

According to Partnership for 21st Century Skills, the top 4 skills required for the Fourth Industrial Revolution are: Critical thinking, Communication, Collaboration, and Creativity [8]. At the same time, World Economic Forum also mentions Problem Solving [9]. To be ready for 2030, students should be able to think creatively, be innovative, develop new ways of thinking, running businesses and enterprises, and create new services, jobs, processes, and new lifestyles. The future calling us to make those changes possible through cooperation and collaboration.

Equally, new sources of growth are urgently needed to achieve stronger, more inclusive, and more sustainable development. Innovation can offer vital solutions, at affordable cost, to economic, social, and cultural dilemmas. Innovative economies are more productive, more resilient, more adaptable, and better able to support higher living standards [10].

That’s why developing art thinking and creative skills in STEM-related fields is important to stimulate new ways of thinking that will guarantee a more sustainable life. The EU-funded Erasmus+ project “WeSTEAM” has driven STEAM to increase attention and curiosity of women in STEM by investing in their education process through art thinking development. Creative skills within women-STEM students is a key driver of growth and step to a more inclusive society, where both men and women have equal access to STEM education and careers.

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