The team at FTKNY (FasTracKids NY) recently had the honor of speaking with an international TV network for a feature showcasing our supplemental STEAM education programs on Japanese television. Thanks to an abundance of emerging opportunity for technical talent worldwide, parents and educators around the world have begun looking to America for insight on STEAM education. After exploring the FasTracKids approach, the team was eager to share our model with their Japanese audience and paid a visit to our Staten Island – Grasmere learning center.
STEAM Unlocks Career Opportunities
It’s a bold statement, but when the journalists concluded that “STEAM education from the United States will expand the future possibilities of children,” we had to agree. The idea of engaging, individualized education is new in Japan, where Kumon-style (pencil-and-paper) tutoring is the norm. Just like the US, Japan faces a growing gap in the number of highly skilled technicians able to fill emerging tech jobs. A global explosion of tech-related opportunity promises a wealth of innovative, high-paying positions for today’s students worldwide, but standardized education hasn’t been keeping pace. As we’ve seen in the United States, despite the urging of experts and parents, establishing and implementing such a large-scale program takes a wealth of time, effort, and action on the part of officials. Thus, parents in Japan are beginning to look beyond traditional education resources to give their kids an edge as soon as possible. FasTracKids is excited to be showcased as a solution.
Engaging, Student-Focused STEM Education
One reported weakness of early STEM education thus far has been the focus on the achievement of an external end goal (like a product or robot) over the development of critical or design thinking in the student. A 2017 survey of Asia Pacific students, which included Japan, revealed that “access to practical experiments and an interesting curriculum are the most important factors to sustain their interest in studying STEM.” Fewer than half of students said they were satisfied with the STEM education they got in school. Through its holistic interdisciplinary curriculum, diverse teaching methods, and individual approach, FasTracKids develops a strong base for future learning and inspires kids to envision future careers. FasTracKids also nurtures so-called “soft skills,” which have been proven to make the difference between millennial professionals who build successful careers and those who struggle to advance.
World-Renowned New York Enrichment Programs
FasTracKids isn’t available in Japan just yet, but the international need for supplemental STEAM education highlights the challenge facing parents everywhere. In New York and across the United States, schools are coming up short on giving students the tools they’ll need to thrive in the workplace of the future. Fortunately, NYC parents can intervene right now to prepare their kids for school and life – whatever their age or grade level. In just two hours a week, FasTracKids Junior STE(A)M Preschool Enrichment (aka G&T 101) lays a foundation in Biology, Math, Technology, Speech, Economics, and many more topics for potentially gifted children ages 3 to 5. For students ages 5 to 10, the FasTracKids STE(A)M enrichment program offers an opportunity to explore future careers while expanding problem-solving, experimentation, and socialization skills. Both use engaging, interactive activities to develop your child’s talents and tap into his or her natural curiosity.