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Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics (STEM) education faces various barriers, including a shortage of teachers and a lack of modern laboratories and technical equipment in Bangladesh.
The findings came up in the survey reports conducted by the Asian Development Bank (ADB) on STEM education and education technology (EdTech) in four developing member countries (DMCs)--Bangladesh, Cambodia, the Kyrgyz Republic, and Uzbekistan.
According to findings of the survey reports released Monday night, the general secondary education system in implementing STEM education is facing problems like a shortage of teachers in mathematics, physics, chemistry, biology, and computer science; and an absence of training programs offered for the preparation of integrated STEM education teachers in pre-service and in-service education.
There is also a lack of modern laboratories and technical equipment required for education in STEM subjects and a lack of educational and methodological frameworks for integrated STEM education.
STEM education is also facing insufficient funding; the bulk of state budget expenditure on public education is on wages, while limited funds are allocated for the renewal of school equipment and materials and the renovation of school buildings.
However, it was mentioned that there is strong government support for improving STEM education, and the authorities have started some initiatives for improving STEM education.
The survey was conducted from May 2020 to May 2021, along with situation analysis reports on EdTech, and described the condition of ICT in the general education subsectors (primary and secondary) of the four DMCs, including Bangladesh.
It said the stakeholders indicated the absence of science centres set up classically.
At the same time, there is also an absence of NGO-based scientific academies and scientific societies in Bangladesh and the three other DMCs.
A comparison of STEM education in the four DMCs, including Bangladesh, Finland, and Singapore, shows that there are several areas for improvement, mainly concerning pre-service teacher education, teacher professional development, STEM education practices, the presence of external providers of STEM education, the establishment of high bandwidth access to the internet in schools, and the promotion of research activity levels of teacher education institutes.
The report shows that the standard of pre-service teacher education in STEM subjects, teacher professional development, STEM education practices, and research activity levels of teacher education institutes are high in Finland and Singapore. Still, they are developing in Bangladesh, Cambodia, the Kyrgyz Republic, and Uzbekistan.
Integrated STEM as a subject in mainstream schools is in the primary schools of Finland. Still, it is absent in Singapore, Bangladesh, Cambodia, the Kyrgyz Republic, and Uzbekistan.
The presence of science centres and providers of STEM education from outside the school system and high bandwidth access to the internet in schools is absent in Bangladesh, Cambodia, the Kyrgyz Republic, and Uzbekistan.
There are some suggestions to improve STEM education, namely, improving students’ interest levels in science and mathematics; ensuring that STEM teachers attend regular in-service courses as part of their professional development; enhancing the latest developments in STEM education; improving pre-service and in-service teacher education in STEM subjects to enhance pedagogical practices that contribute to improvement in student learning outcomes.
