Event

Join authors of STELAR's recent publication entitled Building the Foundational Skills Needed for Success in Work at the Human-Technology Frontier for a four-part webinar series exploring the educational and social implications of living, learning and working in a future driven by technology.

Register for the entire series on this page, or click the title of each webinar to register for a specific webinar in the series.

Part 1: Future Work at the Human-Technology Frontier

January 25, 2018 2:00-3:00 pm ET

(view the recording and presentation materials here)

What does work look like at the Human-Technology Frontier? What will workers need to know and be able to do to succeed there?

During this webinar STELAR's Joyce Malyn-Smith, Sarita Pillai and Caroline Parker shared descriptions of future work environments provided by interviewees from high tech industries currently working at that frontier, and described the types of skills, knowledge and dispositions our students need to develop to set them on a pathway to success in work at the Human-Technology Frontier.

Part 2: The Psychology of Working

February 8, 2018 2:00-3:00 pm ET

(view the recording and presentation materials here)

How does work contribute to our social and psychological well-being and the stability of our nation?

Join STELAR as we host Dr. David Blustein of Boston College, as he describes his new Psychology of Working Theory (PWT) and the future of work. Building off research from vocational psychology, multicultural psychology, intersectionality, and macro-levels analyses of work, PWT proposes that contextual factors are fundamental  to career attainment and, also, highlights the importance of K–12 education as a way of mitigating some of the contextual factors while also strengthening students’ career adaptability (capacity for exploration and planning) and sense of proactivity. By addressing these psychosocial factors through both STEM content and guided STEM career-development activities, ITEST helps youth develop the tools they will need to access and persist on the STEM career path of their choosing.

Part 3: Educational Implications of future work at the Human-Technology Frontier

February 22, 2018 2:00-3:00 pm ET

(view the recording and presentation materials here)

What Career Competencies should K-12 students develop to prepare for success in work at the Human-Technology Frontier?

The worker of the future will require a deep knowledge of science, technology, and engineering coupled with the technical skills and understanding of how computers, robots, and other machines work. This technological grounding, however, will not be enough to succeed. Optimal new workers will be curious, self-directed, and resilient. They will be lifelong learners willing to be disruptive and innovative, while also being cooperative and interpersonally competent. They will think outside the box; solve problems and risk failure; work in dynamic, cross-disciplinary teams; and lead those teams to consensus. All of their work will be characterized by insight, interpretation, diligence, persistence, and cooperation. Join the STELAR’s Joyce Malyn-Smith and ITEST PIs as they discuss the STEM Career Competencies that students should develop in K-8 to set them on a pathway towards success in work at the Human-Technology Frontier.

Part 4: Policy Implications of future work at the Human-Technology Frontier

March 8, 2018 2:00-3:00 pm  CANCELED

This webinar has been canceled. A rescheduled date will be announced once available. 

How are NSF programs laying a foundation for success in work at the Human Technology Frontier? 

The rise of inequality in the labor market is highly challenging, with major consequences to both political and social trends in many societies around the globe. Education and training have long been viewed as important means of enhancing social mobility. The NSF’s commitment to increasing equity in access to the STEM workplace is a good example of efforts to broaden participation in undergraduate and graduate programs, preparing students for immediate transition into the STEM workforce (e.g.., NSF INCLUDES, ADVANCE, and Scholarships in STEM). The ITEST program reflects a concerted effort by the NSF to develop new evidence-based pre-K–12 curricular and programmatic initiatives that optimally may enhance participation of girls and historically marginalized students (e.g.., youth of color and those from low-SES backgrounds) in the STEM educational pipeline. Join STELAR PI Sarita Pillai and NSF Program Officers as we discuss existing programs that support success at the frontier, and examine key policy levers that can greatly contribute to the development of a robust future STEM workforce, help ensure the well-being of that workforce, and support and sustain a strong innovation economy for our country.

Read an introduction to the paper in a blog post by Joyce Malyn-Smith: http://stelar.edc.org/blogs/joyce-malyn-smith/building-foundational-skills-needed-success-work-human-technology-frontier 

View and download the full article from the EDC website: http://www.edc.org/sites/default/files/uploads/HumanTechnologyFrontierWhitePaper.pdf