STEM Education (Agree or Disagree)

 

1. Governments should spend more money on providing STEM education in schools than on music and art because employers need more people with a STEM background than music or art. To what extent do you agree or disagree with this opinion?

It is being argued that governments should prioritize STEM education on arts subjects when it comes to the budget allocations for schools. I agree with this considering the employability requirements and also the fact that STEM education relates to hard skills which demand proper teaching and trainings.  

Budget allocations are usually prioritized based on the benefit anticipated from the spent. Same is the case with the education sector, with employers requiring certain skills from the applicants, it creates a demand for the supply of those particular individuals in the job market. Hence, it becomes a responsibility of the government to ensure that the required talent is present in the labour pool. Therefore, this high spent on in-demand subjects such as science, technology, engineering and mathematics is justified as it reduces a country’s unemployment rate. 

Another reason why the governments should spent more money on STEM education is because these subjects are related to hard skills. It is a known fact that hard skills require proper training and coaching and cannot be easily learnt by the pupil on his or her own, whereas music and arts being soft skills, or rather hobbies, can either be self-taught or can be learnt with minimul resources. A good example to support the argument would be the existence of science and engineering laboratories. These facilities are home to expensive equipment mandatory for learning and normally it cannot be managed by an individual for self study purpose. Hence, the governments are expected to allocate more money on the teaching of such hard skills. 

In conclusion, in order to avoid unemployment and to ensure that hard skills are being well-taught, the governments are required to spend more money on the STEM education in comparison to arts subjects in schools.

2. Government should spend more money on providing STEM education in schools then on music and art because employers need more people with a STEM background then music or art.

To what extent, do you agree or disagree with this opinion?

The increasing demand of STEM professionals has led many people feel that more money should be invested in STEM education in the schools rather than on music and art. I completely disagree with the idea because subjects like music and art extremely important for an individual’s personal development and professional life, and they also help create a more balanced society.

Studying music and art at school plays a crucial role in the personality development of a child. Even if a  student chooses to study STEM related subjects later at university, he or she needs to be exposed to subjects like music and art while they are at school. This not only helps them explore their artistic potential, but also aids them to express themselves in a better way. They grow up to be more socially aware and compassionate individuals and hence well rounded human beings. History provides us with many examples of great names who were pioneers in scientific fields and at the same time famous for their artistic talents. Leonard da Vinci and Albert Einstein are two such great names.

Another reason why governments should continue to support arts at school level is that it helps people perform better at their jobs. Employers around the world value people with great soft skills or interpersonal skills. Even engineers, scientists and software developers are expected to be good team players in today's challenging work environment. Individuals who have had this opportunity to develop the sensitive side of their personalities are in a better position to meet this demand. If STEM education gets more funding and patronage from the government, it will eventually lead to a very dull and robotic society. If all the young people are trained to be scientists technicians and engineers who will these professionals turn to when they need relaxation and entertainment? Musicians, writers, actors and artists are the people who add color to any society and keep its culture alive. A society where people have been discouraged from pursuing their interests will not have any  artistic talent to represent their art and culture in front of the world.

In conclusion, I feel that government should not invest more money to promote STEM education at school level as subjects like music and art help create well rounded professionals for employers and  better human being for a well-balanced society.