Welcome to STEAM Ahead Australia
What is STEAM?
STEAM - Science, Technology, Engineering, Arts and Maths - is a global education movement in response to emerging technology, increased automation and a new set of skills required for a changing work environment.
To prepare students for this future, many Australian and international educators have turned to the learning approach STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering and Maths).
This approach reinforces technology-centric skills but lacks focus on the skill that will be even more important to employers in the future: creativity and innovative thinking.
The main difference between STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering and Maths) and STEAM is STEM explicitly focuses on scientific concepts. STEAM investigates the same concepts, but does this through inquiry and problem-based learning methods used in the creative process.
Want more information on STEAM and the importance of creativity in child development? Read this explainer article published in The Conversation here co-authored by Bronwen Wade-Leeuwen.
STEAM Ahead Australia is a social enterprise committed to furthering the education of local children and we are pleased to work with other, like-minded companies to achieve this goal.
Bronwen
Wade-Leeuwen
Dr Bronwen Wade-Leeuwen is a STEAM expert and passionate educator that has spent her life nurturing creativity in students and teachers.
As founder and director of STEAM Ahead Australia, Bronwen brings her academic expertise and 30+ years of teaching experience across primary, high school, and tertiary education. Her PhD research investigates fostering critical and creative thinking skills in teacher education using multifaceted approaches (ACARA, 2016), including why the Arts are core to an integrated STEAM education approach.
Bronwen has partnered with education institutions like Macquarie University and Maria Regina Primary school to deliver STEAM initiatives and workshops. As a strong believer in collaborating with industry providers of the latest education tools, Bronwen has partnered with Adobe and OfficeMAX to develop STEAM-based learning activities for the classroom.
A frequent speaker at academic conferences both locally and internationally, Bronwen is a strong advocate for working within the Australian cross-curriculum priority areas of sustainability, working with our First Nation peoples and collaborating with our Asian neighbours.
