For Inspiration and Recognition of Science and Technology (FIRST) is an organization that is dedicated to challenging young minds and preparing them for the real world while also providing a fun, encouraging atmosphere. Participating in FIRST Robotics has given me opportunities I wouldn’t have gotten otherwise and it can have a positive impact on anyone who participates, it inspires, provides the tools needed, and even gives scholarships to students who aspire to get a STEM degree. FIRST Robotics is one of the greatest STEM educational programs in the world, striving to inspire young minds and challenge them while also having a fun, sport-like atmosphere.
In the article “Technology, professionalism first in robotics competition: robots taking
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Michel Martin, the host of Tell Me More by NPR News, in the November 2013 broadcast “Is The STEM Education Crisis A Myth?” brought a special guest Anthony Carnavale, a professor and director at the Georgetown University Center on Education and Workforce. Carnavale believes that “We need to produce a lot more STEM workers than we actually use initially because we lose so many of them along the way because their careers are relatively successful.” He makes the observation that STEM fields are not losing jobs, STEM fields are broadening and getting a degree in it benefits someone more than a specialized degree will. He says that “STEM makes up only about 7 percent of the jobs in the American economy” and most of those who graduate with a degree in STEM do not work at the lab for long, and most of them end up in some form of management. Years ago, if you went to college you were recommended to get a general degree, and that would open the door for many job opportunities. Nowadays, a STEM degree is taking its place as the broad degree that opens the door to many jobs. However, STEM has become a buzzword and is used too often, taking away the effect of how important it is, and some people tend to avoid these topics because they feel as if they are not smart enough to know about it, or they feel it’s too expensive. That’s where the educational system needs to step in, and take away the stigma related to STEM and teach people that it’s not about being smart, but about pursuing these topics as an investment for the future, much like how kids want to be doctors without even realizing the average time to graduate medical school is 8 years. Kids should want to be engineers, because they solve problems and