Conferences

Gaylord Palms Resort & Convention Center • 6000 W. Osceola Parkway • Kissimmee FL

The 6th Annual STEM Forum & Expo, hosted by NSTA, is a unique, focused event that brings together (informal and formal) educators and representatives from exhibiting companies who are interested in, and who have tools and resources to share that will ensure successful implementation of STEM education into our schools and communities. It is intended to provide resources for educators and organizations seeking to learn more about STEM education, associated outreach programs, partnerships, schools, and curricula.

Have an idea for an inspiring presentation or workshop on STEM education? We are currently accepting proposals. The deadline to submit session proposals is December 5, 2016.

Session confirmation e-mails will be sent in late March.

Twitter hashtags: #STEMforum, #NSTA (all-purpose)

Registration

• Register online
• Download a registration form

Please refer to the registration links above for pricing, submission instructions, and other important information.

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Dear STEM Educators:

We invite you to the 6th Annual STEM Forum & Expo, hosted by NSTA. We are pleased to host the STEM Forum for the first time in the sunny and magical setting of Kissimmee/Orlando, Florida! We cannot wait to see everyone on Wednesday, July 12, through Friday, July 14, for another fantastic summer forum full of exciting and ground-breaking information on STEM education. The STEM Forum committee is working tirelessly to prepare a great event for STEM educators of all grade levels—with engaging strands, featured panel discussions, and the best possible resources and information about STEM education.

The STEM Forum & Expo is a highly specialized professional development event that brings together over 2,000 educators from around the world with the same goal—to learn the best practices in STEM education. This event provides you with the latest information on STEM content, teaching strategies, and research to enhance and expand your professional growth. You will be able to select from over 400 strand specific sessions, seminars, and panels, while collaborating with leaders in STEM education and national education policy makers. In addition, you are able to network and start collaborations with colleagues from around your area and from around the world through face-to-face interactions, back channel discussions, and social events. It does not matter if you are just starting a STEM program or looking to further develop your present STEM program, the STEM Forum & Expo has learning opportunities for all.

We would love to have you attend the 6th Annual STEM Forum & Expo, but we would also love to have you share your knowledge and expertise with your colleagues. Please consider sharing a great idea, a fantastic lesson, or a partnership or program you may have started with us. Submitting a proposal to present at the 2017 STEM Forum & Expo can be made here from September 1, 2016, through December 5, 2016.

On behalf of the steering committee and NSTA, we hope to see you in the Kissimmee/Orlando area next July! We promise it will be an invigorating, rewarding, and energizing experience for you as we explore STEM and prepare for a new school year. See you there!

Best,

Jennifer Williams
Steering Committee Chairperson

STEM Forum Strands

If you are searching for ways to immediately and effectively apply STEM education in a preK–16 setting or to implement STEM as a best practice, you should plan to attend this event. Attending the 6th Annual STEM Forum & Expo, hosted by NSTA, will provide networking opportunities to learn and interact with colleagues from your respective teaching community. The STEM Forum offers the following strands of programming.

Lower Elementary/Early Childhood

Students in the lower elementary grades are beginning to understand the world around them and the role they play in it. They are curious and want to make sense of their surroundings. By providing students with inquiry-based experiences in Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics, we can unlock each student's natural curiosity and help them understand the world in an engaging way. The foundational skills learned and mastered through the integration of STEM during the early years, if done right, will help these students be critical thinkers and makers that can innovate the future they will be a part of. Sessions in this strand will emphasize open-ended and active exploration, play, and investigation of the real world through the lens of NGSS.

Upper Elementary

How do we respond to research that indicates that by the time our students reach the fourth grade, a third of them will lose interest in science? How do we ensure that our students develop a solid foundation in the STEM areas so that they are prepared to both work and live in the 21st century? To reverse this trend and ignite their interest in future STEM careers, elementary students need quality learning activities and experiences that spark curiosity, promote confidence, support the rigor of current standards, and develop competence in STEM subjects. The sessions in this strand showcase programs and instructional strategies that support STEM and have been successfully integrated into the elementary core curriculum.

Middle Level

Engaging students through opportunities to explore STEM fields of study that support the NRC Framework and the Next Generation Science Standards is a top priority at the middle school level. A successful middle school STEM program allows students to create, innovate, communicate, collaborate, and iterate projects that are driven by their own interests. The sessions in this strand showcase learning environments where Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics interconnect to serve as a vehicle for discovery, innovation, and independent problem solving while also meeting rigorous content standards.

High School

As we prepare high school students to enter the workforce and college, students must not only understand but apply their understanding in the context of real-world problem solving. Nowhere is this more important than in STEM for grades 9–12. The sessions in this strand will highlight innovative, hands-on, student-centered approaches to STEM topics that cross subject boundaries.

Partnerships

Partnerships among community, business/industry, and education-focused entities often connect preK–16 schools and universities to valuable resources. Leveraging those partnerships can also be key to preparing students to meet the needs of a dynamic workforce that is constantly changing. As the nation recognizes the importance of STEM education to our economic future, collaborations in STEM education between preK–16 and business and cultural communities are becoming increasingly prevalent. The sessions in this strand highlight select preK–16 partnership initiatives that have been successfully implemented and have demonstrated positive outcomes.

Administrators

Successful STEM programs at the primary and secondary levels align the interrelated nature of science and mathematics education with an emphasis on technology and engineering through hands-on and real-life applications where students develop the skills and mindsets needed to answer complex questions, investigate global issues, and develop solutions for real challenges. This is an incredibly exciting time in education as we shift to support the development of these skills in STEM and across the curriculum. The sessions in this strand will highlight how administrators can best support innovative, hands-on, student-centered approaches to STEM education.