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NC Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics (STEM) Education Strategic Plan
Executive Summary
North Carolina has arguably the finest business climate in America. However, the state is
undergoing a critical economic transformation, moving rapidly from a low-skill, low-wage
economy to a high-skill, knowledge-based economy driven by technology and innovation. These
changes demand an adaptable workforce - one with the science, technology, engineering and
mathematics (STEM) skills embedded within the critical 21
st
Century skills required for
successful citizenship. To maintain North Carolina’s supremacy, future workers must have the
STEM skills leading companies demand and the citizenship the 21
st
Century now requires for
success.
Fortunately, North Carolina can boast a high number of statewide and local STEM education
initiatives, as well as strong education standards and public and private organizations promoting
education innovation in their communities and regions. No matter their geographic, political, or
economic disposition, North Carolina’s leaders agree that a coordinated, statewide STEM
Education Strategic Plan with clear direction, support and goals is needed to ensure a
workforce that is prepared for the high-skill, high-wage and high-demand jobs of a knowledge-
based and innovation economy.
The plan must be built on a shared vision that leverages public
and private resources in the most effective and efficient manner possible, moving North Carolina
further and faster toward a world-class workforce and sustained economic growth and
development in a global market.
North Carolina is poised to lead the nation with vibrant STEM-based education and economic
systems. It is time for North Carolina to connect the many “islands of excellence” across the
state into a bright future for all its citizens and communities. To build and maintain the world-
class workforce needed to ensure economic prosperity in a global market, North Carolina must
focus on the following three priorities and measure our progress against these strategies:
Priority 1: Increasing our student, educator and institutional STEM Achievement
Strategy: Adopt a set of attributes for STEM schools and programs, aligned with 21
st
Century Skills, to assist public and private organizations to align, coordinate and
advance STEM skills for all students.
Strategy: Measure a set of student achievement indicators along the education-to-
workforce continuum to guide the current and future implementation of the STEM
Strategy.
Strategy: Implement a designation for STEM Schools and Programs, aligned with the
STEM Attributes, to drive the goals and measures outlined within this STEM Strategic
Plan.
Strategy: Identify high-quality tools and supports – such as rubrics, self-assessments – to
enable schools, programs and businesses to advance consistent understanding and
application of the adopted STEM Attributes.
South China Normal University (202.116.41.69) - 2016/1/28 Download
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