STEAM Program: Empowering Global Scientific Education

Many areas worldwide  lack access to high-quality scientific education, limiting social mobility, economic development, and creativity. Marginalized people, particularly those in low-income areas, lack the means and opportunities to participate effectively in STEM disciplines, perpetuating educational inequities and decreasing their chances of success.

Over 4 million kids in Guatemala are in grades K-12, and over 20 million in Mexico. These students frequently lack access to proper scientific education, restricting their options and skills that would allow them to advance in the job market and academic careers.

According to official Ministry of Education data, students fail standardized tests in Guatemala, with only 11% passing Matematics proficiency tests and less than 10% passing Language arts. 

Proper scientific education is founded on the scientific process, which requires students to observe, hypothesize, investigate, evaluate, experiment, validate results, and communicate findings to peers.

With these principles, proper scientific education in formal and informal contexts improves access to quality education, enhances learning outcomes, and promotes fair opportunities for all students.

Our solution seeks to address these issues and provide better learning environments and training to students and teachers.

Access to Education: Millions of people around the world do not have access to basic education, let alone scientific education, due to factors such as poverty, geographical isolation, migration, a lack of properly trained teachers, or discrimination. The program provides alternative learning pathways to underserved communities.

Quality of Education: Even when education is available, the quality of instruction and learning materials can vary greatly. The goal is to increase the effectiveness of teaching methods, curriculum design, assessment processes, and educational technologies so that all students receive a high-quality education, regardless of their background.

Equity and Inclusion: Disparities in access to education persist based on gender, ethnicity, socioeconomic status, disability, and other factors. Our solution promotes inclusive educational policies, develops culturally relevant learning materials, and provides targeted support to marginalized groups.

21st Century skills: In today's fast-changing world, critical thinking, creativity, communication, cooperation, and digital literacy are all becoming increasingly important abilities for learners. to incorporate these 21st-century talents into educational techniques to better prepare students and teachers for success in today's workforce and society.

Lifelong Learning: Learning continues after formal education stops. We encourage lifelong learning for individuals of all ages, including adult education, vocational training, professional development, and informal learning experiences.

Educational technology:  Technology can transform education by expanding access, personalizing learning experiences, and enhancing outcomes. We utilize online platforms, metaverse technologies, and virtual reality to improve teaching and learning processes. We're using artificial intelligence technologies and apps to improve instructional technology for all participants.

Environmental and Sustainability Education: As communities become more conscious of environmental challenges, there is a greater demand for education that promotes environmental literacy, sustainability, and responsible citizenship. To raise awareness, we addressed these issues, as well as including the  NASA GLOBE initiatives and agricultural projects.

With these considerations, our solution is revised continuously to improve access and to provide meaningful solutions adequate to diverse contexts and tailored to the participants' needs.

"STEAM Program" is a multilevel intervention that reaches from K-12 to research levels, providing students with support and follow-up to help them prosper in STEM-related career choices, while also raising scientific awareness among the general public through outreach activities.

The program offers several interventions tailored to the participants' needs. a. Online international seminars to raise scientific knowledge 

b. Workshops for schools and teachers to give resources and training

 c. Student-tailored courses

 d. STEAM Conferences led by students as speakers 

 e. Storytelling events that use narratives to convey scientific information, such as Flying on the Wings of Science with the Little Prince and Alice in the World of Science. 

 f. Astronomical occurrences workshops for safe viewing such as solar and lunar eclipses.

g. Links to the Globe NASA initiative for teacher training and environmental education.

The "STEAM Program" is a comprehensive educational program that aims to democratize access to scientific education and enable students from all backgrounds to explore, engage, and thrive in STEM subjects. The STEAM Program aspires to build a diverse pipeline of future scientists, engineers, innovators, and problem solvers by combining multidisciplinary approaches, hands-on learning experiences, and digital tools.

Free and Open Access: All program resources freely available  to learners worldwide, eliminating financial obstacles to enrollment.

Multilingual Content: To target broad audiences, the STEAM Program provides content in Spanish and English, enabling inclusivity and accessibility for non-English speakers.

Interactive Learning Experiences: Engaging hands-on activities, interactive storytelling events, virtual seminars, in-person workshops and conferences, virtual led experimentation, metaverse activities, and collaborative projects encourage learners' curiosity, critical thinking, and creativity, making STEM education more enjoyable and relatable.

Community Engagement: The STEAM Program partners with local schools, community centers, and youth organizations to broaden its reach and effect in underserved neighborhoods. The Eclipse events, held in Mexico in collaboration with the Instituto Politécnico Nacional de Mexico and other institutions, are an example of these synergies. Volunteer mentors and educators offer learners support and advice, instilling a sense of belonging and empowerment.

individualized Learning Paths: Adaptive learning technology and data-driven analytics provide individualized learning experiences based on individual abilities, interests, and learning styles, providing fair access and achievement for all students. Each intervention is adapted to the situation and the participant's interests, strengths, needs, and educational goals.

Career Pathways and Mentorship: In addition to academic learning, the STEAM Program assists in career exploration, skill development, and mentorship opportunities, linking students with STEM experts and creating a supportive environment for lifetime learning and growth. Speakers serve as good role models for pupils through initiatives such as the "Real Scientists Like You campaign" and the Ask Scientist seminars. 

Links to the STEAM Program Presentation

STEAm Program presentation

Link to STEAM Program brief video of results

Electroweek

https://youtu.be/p5Q1mO8eqi8

Superhero presentation ad

https://youtu.be/xjoeo0-zVHY

Quanta

https://fb.watch/rCMcg0rkdQ/

Facebook pages where we stream Seminars

https://www.facebook.com/LaboratorioInternacionaldeParticulasElementales

https://www.facebook.com/STEAMfisicaatualcance/

Laboratory web page

https://laboratoriointernacion...

The STEAM program helps kids from impoverished socioeconomic backgrounds who have limited access to excellent education in locations where the public educational system typically lacks facilities and educated people. Because the program runs in an informal schooling atmosphere, allowing students to freely participate, it is open to any student who is interested.

We want to increase interest in K-12 students, with a focus on girls and underrepresented populations, rural populations, and those from public sectors who are unable to obtain an education other than what the public system provides.

We also intend to increase interest in low- and middle-income schools, but the offer is accessible to any kid who wishes to participate. Anyone interested in participating in the online lectures is welcome to do so. Thus, our online seminars have influenced over 54 nations throughout the world. The opportunity for kids in grades K-12 to receive scientific knowledge and interact with world-class scientists is unique and inspiring. This life-changing experience aims to demonstrate to them that a different reality is conceivable and that they can access other opportunities. We also provide mentorship and counseling to assist them in reaching their full potential despite their circumstances, demonstrating that overcoming those realities is achievable.

Students can use the skills they learn in the program to get access to greater job and academic possibilities.
The skill set gained through the program is not part of the usual curricula in the educational system, thus it is considered as an added value for greater chances.
By the end of 2024, we hope to have over 2,000,000 participants in online seminars, as well as at least 20,000 K-12 students and 17,000 teachers participating in professional development programs. We also intend to establish at least two additional corporate collaborations and two more academic partnerships by the end of 2024.

We hope to have an impact on teachers and students in the Mexico-Guatemala region while also raising scientific knowledge around the world. By 2026, we hope to have expanded program workshops in K-12 and teacher professional development to the Central American Region. 

We have proof that the skills acquired during the Program enable participants obtain access to improved opportunities and employment. The training typically leads to higher-paying jobs and a shift in institutions for teachers within a year. 

Magdalena Waleska Aldana Segura has over 20 years of expertise in Teacher Professional Development programs at the Universidad de San Carlos de Gautemala and the Universidad Galileo. On a daily basis, she collaborates with instructors and works with underrepresented students from schools where the teachers originate from as well as local public schools. Because of her expertise at all levels, she is familiar with the difficulties that rural residents have in obtaining excellent programs and money for these initiatives. Has experienced exclusion as a woman and has tried to improve possibilities for women both inside and outside of the country.

She has received various awards for her work, including the US State Department's 20 Faces of Exchange Award in 2020 for her efforts to promote better education and opportunity for kids. Works with participants from all over the country and Mexico with ease.

 

Julian Felix has over 30 years of expertise in higher education and research at the highest levels on a global scale, as well as outreach experiences to encourage the general public and prospective students to pursue further studies. Has personally supported the efforts of underrepresented students, women, and economically disadvantaged students to continue their studies in and outside of the country, providing them with life-changing experiences and mentoring students all the way to the most important international experimental collaborations at Fermilab in the United States. Passionate about science outreach, she has published over 20 books, including two for children, which have earned international acclaim.

 

Both leaders established the curriculum on both sides of the border, understanding the unique characteristics of the territory and the necessity to deliver relevant activities in a place where poverty, exclusion, violence, and migration are hurdles to student growth. Work together with people from many backgrounds to provide greater opportunities for students, thereby improving the quality of life in our local communities and having an impact on the region, in the hopes of promoting prosperity and combating migration, poverty, and marginalization.

 

The team has received international recognition from organizations such as Falling Walls Berlin, Reimagine Education from QS and Wharton Schools of Business, and the US State Department, and has been able to form relationships with academics, the public sector, and private sectors to promote the program.

The team has been able to deliver conferences and workshops in remote areas to large audiences; over 240 students attended many programs, and the team was able to serve the children at the same time. Julian Felix has also spoken in front of crowds of more than 500 people, including 2,000 people at the STEAM Conference.

 

Both leaders provide original content, present seminars and conferences, serve as mentors, and contribute their personal time and effort to the program beyond the official agreement, making the program operate as an act of passion and belief in a better future. 

We began the basic design of the STEAM Program as the STEAM Conference in 2018. Following my participation in the US State Department's International Visitor Leadership Program IVLP Hidden No More, we received financing and support from the US Embassy in Guatemala. This allowed us to broaden our current activities and design what would become the STEAM Program. The STEAM conference was a success, with 900 participants in 2018 and over 2,500 in 2019, which included rural areas in Guatemala as well as three micro STEAM Conferences in the country's interior. We prototyped the intervention and added online seminars as a contingency for 2020.

Then we added Metaverse implementations, and virtual workshops, and expanded our mentorships of K-12 kids to support Science Fairs and online conferences. The initiative has now evolved, with metaverse versions developed in Mexico and Guatemala being tested in 2022 and 2023. For the 2024 editions, we're developing a digital gaming challenge for university students. We have completed the initial stages and are now on a full pilot program. We have over 1.6 million online seminar attendees, 17,000 K-12 students, and 15,000 teachers in professional development programs. 

During the pandemic, I learned about MIT Solve and enrolled in the course. Although I was unable to complete it, I did participate in webinars where answers were presented, as well as multiple conferences.  

We believe that MIT SOLVE is the ideal fit for our project since it will provide us with the mentorship we need to scale up and expand the program beyond borders and technological barriers.

MIT SOLVE will also give us with the necessary exposure to get proper funding for our project, which will benefit regional growth and will allow us to move in our business plan to the sustainability part of our implementation. We have several patents pending that could help us provide sustainability to the project but need support to be able to accomplish the process.

STEAM Education is founded on an experimental scientific method. However, for over 50 years, scientific education has relied on the repetition of books, frequently out of context, to convey their contents. In today's digital age, where students desire fast pleasure, immediate information, and ready-made answers, this does not drive them to continue their education, let alone pursue a STEAM-related career. This becomes an issue when we need to rely on scientists to better the future of society and our living situations. We rely on the next generation of scientists to address difficulties that we cannot foresee today, such as climate change, pandemics, health emergencies, global financial emergencies, and creativity in the face of new developments.

A multidimensional, multinational initiative that runs concurrently in one of the world's most vulnerable regions with the goal of promoting the next generation of scientists, raising scientific knowledge, and promoting prosperity by encouraging kids to stay in school is innovative. We employ existing technologies in participants' hands (tablets, laptops, and cell phones) to provide meaningful experiences and novel uses of technology and information. Metaverse implementations, as well as putting participants in the spotlight and transforming them into speakers and leaders, contribute not only to the hard scientific abilities earned in renowned institutions' curricula, but also to the soft skills required to succeed in an ever changing environment.

To supplement traditional interventions in schools, we are employing existing technologies available on sites, such as handcraft materials, the metaverse, online videos, online seminars, videoconferencing, and streaming. We are not looking to replace traditional settings right now, but rather to encourage teachers to use innovative pedagogical approaches that have been researched and demonstrated to be effective in improving educational indicators such as performance, retention, dropout rates, and others.

Overall, the STEAM program's revolutionary qualities, such as its multidisciplinary approach, hands-on learning experiences, digital resources, inclusivity, individualized learning, community participation, and career pathways, distinguish it as a game-changing answer in scientific education. STEAM Program  enables students to flourish in the digital age while also contributing significantly to the growth of science, technology, and innovation.

We anticipate that at least 10% of teachers who participate in the program will maintain better practices after 5 years of participation. This is based on authorities' aversion to implementing new programs, availability to materials, incentives, and other factors. Our goal is to reach a larger number of teachers and advocate for changes in educational policies at the governmental level in order to have an impact on the educational system and provide meaningful, useful experiences for students. They need to learn a new skill set that will enable them to face future problems and gain access to greater employment and academic opportunities.

Each teacher teaches at least 40 pupils, increasing the probability that these approaches will be reproduced. If at least 1,700 teachers implement the methods covered in the program, at least 68,000 pupils will be exposed to and embrace the methodology. That is why we are looking to increase our reach and grow the program. We have proof that 50% of teachers who have participated in the last five years are applying some aspect of the program in their schools. That means we need to add 340,000 children who are not contabilized but have been exposed to these practices to our direct effect list. That means we can have an impact on the school system by continuing and expanding the program.

Our ambitions match with the SDG goals.
Goals include eliminating poverty, improving education quality, promoting gender equality, and collaborating to accomplish the SDGs.

We have ambitions to improve educational quality as a means of providing social mobility to participants while eliminating inequities and poverty. We also hope to have an impact on gender equality by offering inclusive, safe spaces for participants. Science education does not discriminate based on gender, age, or economic circumstances, so we should create safe spaces for participants to thrive. 

We also seek the partnerships to expand, grow and impact a broader audience. We stimate 2,000,000 participants in the online seminars by the end of 2024, but want to impact at least 20,000 K-12 students and 20,000 Teachers in PD programs.

Our indicators have evolved with the program; for the reasons stated above, we try to broaden our reach, thus we have both participation and performance metrics.

Participation Indicators:

a.Women’s participation: Women have participated in 45% of online seminars, compared to 52%, 1%, and 47% during the epidemic. This pertains to the safe atmosphere we offered throughout the pandemic via online events.

b. Online event participation: Over 1.6 million people from 54 countries have participated, with a target of 2 million by 2024.

c. Teacher participation: Workshops, seminars, and conferences attracted around 15,000 educators. We intend to get 20,000 participants and collect data from lists and registrations.

 d. Geographic distribution: Currently, 80% of participants come from México and Guatemala, with 10% from the Andean Region of Colombia-Perú Ecuador and 8% from Argentina. We want to increase geographical diversity. We hope to encourage involvement from Central America. 2% came from all other countries across the world.

e. Age distribution. In our 2020 online interventions, 34% of participants were aged 13-18, despite social networks no longer accepting underage registrations. Since then, we've had an age distribution for 20-35-year-olds, as long as it includes the age of the parents and excludes minors. We plan to improve the record by having an age distribution that corresponds to our goal of targeting 13-18 year olds to encourage interest in STEM-related career options.

Performance Indicators

a. Retention: The STEAm program has increased retention rates from 40% in 2018 to 75% in 2023 when administered for at least 3 months in classrooms.

b. Dropout rate: In 2017, the dropout rate exceeded 50% in participating schools. By 2023, the dropout rate is expected to be less than 20%, with the program lasting at least three months.

c. Improved academic performance: In 2017, performance was below 40%, but after implementation, students achieved close to 70% and ranked above the district average in standardized tests.

d. Employment: 90% of participants reported greater employability among volunteers, teachers, and staff. 100% of the instructors who participated are currently employed and improving their working conditions. Students from Mexican higher education institutions have a greater employment rate, with over 98% of graduates now employed and pursuing their study to the Post Doctoral level.

We employ the technology accessible in schools, but we have also diversified due to the participants' access to other gadgets.
We use mobile phones and smart phones to increase engagement on existing social media platforms. We also use our own webpages to offer content and announce activities.
b. We've started using Zep Metaverse to present students with interactive experiences. https://zep.us/play/DwPmJ0
d. We are developing a game for students to encourage interactive involvement and content selection, which will be available in June 2024.

Some sections of the country lack energy and access to technology, therefore we modify during the intervention to supply them with printed or hands-on materials so they may get experience or improve their network connectivity.

We have started the use of additive technologies, CNC and 3D printing so students can build and test their own prototypes and get a renewed skill set highy sought in the industry and academic environments.  We teach them 3d design and circuit design to improve the quality of the experience by planning, designing,  building and testing  their own prototypes. 

We diversify their skill set according to their needs, interests and access and promote their improved access when possible.

2 TEAM Leaders:

• Magdalena Waleska Aldana Segura.
• Julián Félix

10 volunteers as part-time staff 

4 High School Volunteers who participate as mentor trainers 

4 volunteer trainers

2 Companies that offer promotional services and technologies and in kind support.

The solution has changed since its original conception in 2017.
It has grown from a local trial of less than 600 participants to over 17,000 K-12 students, 15,000 teachers, and more than 1.6 million online users. 

Gender, social level, race, and other factors do not influence scientific education. Access is promoted to everyone, regardless of circumstance, thus at conferences, all participants receive the same materials and t-shirts. Our team receives the same treatment in terms of respect and inclusiveness, and it is encouraged to engage in a variety of academic and labor possibilities, resulting in a high rate of renewal because our team members are highly valued in the workforce.

A financial model for the STEAM program that encourages free access to scientific education must strike a balance between offering valuable educational content and ensuring sustainability.

Grant Funding and Donations: We are continuously looking for grants from governmental bodies, foundations, and corporations to support education projects. Accept donations from individuals and organizations that support the objective of giving free access to scientific education. To date, our most important backer has been the US State Department, through the Public Affairs office at the US Embassy in Guatemala, which has supported the program and made it available to students for free.

Corporate Sponsorship: We collaborate with companies that are interested in advancing STEM education. We provide opportunities for events, workshops, and content development in exchange for financial support. CAEN Italy, Arte Color y Texto, Camino Real Corporation, Tikal Futura Corporation, and others have all provided some corporate support, including discounts and equipment.

Partnerships with Educational Institutions: We collaborate with schools such as Capouilliez, Ameritec, Evelyn Rodgers and Universities such as Instituto Politécnico Nacional in México, Universidad Internacional de la Rioja, and other educational institutions to integrate the STEAM program into their curricula or extracurricular activities. We offer training and support for educators to use the program effectively.

Funds for Research and Development: We are continually applying for research funds to help develop new educational resources, technology, and teaching approaches for the STEAM program.Affiliate Marketing: Partnering with companies that offer educational products or services relevant to the STEAM program's audience is in the next phase to earn revenues on referrals.

Events and Workshops: We have conducted paid events and workshops centered on STEAM education. We provide participants with hands-on learning experiences, expert-led workshops, and networking opportunities; our business model in this regard is in its early stages, and we hope to extend it as it has been well received.

We are looking into the next phase, which will include freemiun activities (free at the basic level, paid at the advanced level), consultancies where we offer our services to support the program, affiliate marketing partnerships with companies to earn commissions on our websites, and merchandise that will be promoted online and at our events.

By combining diverse funding streams such as grants, contributions, partnerships, and supplemental income sources, the STEAM program can provide free access to scientific education while also supporting its long-term growth and effect.

The program has raised over $225,000 in financing for the STEAM Program, while Dr. Felix has raised over $2,000,000 in grants for the International Laboratory, which supports the STEAM Program's operations. Our effect has increased over the last five years, from a local initiative to a global incipient program that provides free access to participants in over 56 countries.