Abstract
This paper outlines the interdependency between arts and technology, and explains the absolute necessity of keeping them together in our education systems. While arts and humanities can be successfully taught without technology, technology greatly enhances learning, and more technology is connected to arts in some way than any other use. According to PwC Chief Executive Luke Sayers, science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) are the solution to our workforce and growth challenge. Deckers suggests that all the levels of Maslow’s Hierarchy exist in order to get us to the highest level where decisions are made according to aesthetics. Both STEM and (with arts added) STEAM offer the requisite knowledge and skills that make graduates attractive to employers, while also providing these students with the capacity to make knowledge transferrable to other subjects and tasks. This prepares them for lifelong learning and bestows the capacity for adaptability, essential in the twenty-first century job market. Retention of arts and technology are both imperatives in a higher education. A liberal education develops social responsibility and the practical skill set including communication, analytical, and problem-solving skills, and a demonstrated ability to apply knowledge and skills in real- world settings.
Creative Commons License
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International License
Recommended Citation
Watson, Etain
(2020)
"STEM or STEAM?: the Critical Role of Arts in Technology Education (and the Critical Role of Art in Technology),"
Irish Journal of Academic Practice:
Vol. 8:
Iss.
1, Article 8.
doi:https://doi.org/10.21427/eqzb-vb42
Available at:
https://arrow.tudublin.ie/ijap/vol8/iss1/8
DOI
https://doi.org/10.21427/eqzb-vb42