AEDC STEM assisting area schools with hands-on learning tools and activities

  • Published
  • By Deidre Ortiz
  • AEDC/PA
ARNOLD AIR FORCE BASE, TENN. --  
ARNOLD AIR FORCE BASE, TENN. - Students are back in school and Arnold Engineering Development Complex's Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics Program coordinator is prepared to provide interactive learning for teachers and students in kindergarten through twelfth grade.
"The program's mission is to inspire and develop student interest in STEM-focused careers," Jere Matty, AEDC STEM coordinator, said.

AEDC STEM staff assists in matching hands-on activities with the school's curriculum and schedules speakers to visit classes at regional schools and discuss a specific program of study.

In addition to this, a STEM Center equipped with hands-on demonstrations ranging from flight dynamics and robotics, to constellations and moon colonies is available at Arnold Air Force Base. The AEDC STEM Center opened its doors in the fall of 2012.

An open house event was recently hosted at the STEM Center inviting members of the public, AEDC engineers and future volunteers the opportunity to see what is offered at the site, such as a flight simulator, static and portable wind tunnels, rocket launchers, a bell jar that demonstrates space conditions and the Discovery Dome, a portable facility which provides a full planetarium experience with surround sound and videos tailored to grade level.

During the open house, Matty spoke on the various extracurricular learning opportunities provided through the AEDC STEM program.

He provided details on MATHCOUNTS®, a national enrichment, club and competition program that promotes middle school mathematics achievement.

"The program heightens student interest in mathematics by making math achievement challenging and exciting," Matty said.

At the beginning of each school year, the MATHCOUNTS Foundation provides a complimentary copy of the MATHCOUNTS School Handbook to every middle school across the country. Teachers and volunteers use the handbook and activities to coach student Mathletes, as part of in-class instruction or as an after-school activity.

The For Inspiration and Recognition of Science and Technology  program, is another activity many elementary, middle and high schools participate in that's assisted by STEM. The vision statement of the FIRST program is "To transform our culture by creating a world where science and technology are celebrated and where young people dream of becoming science and technology leaders."  It's composed of Junior FIRST Lego League® for elementary schools, FIRST Lego League for elementary and middle schools and FIRST Tech Challenge for High Schools.

"The FIRST LEGO League is a partnership between FIRST and The LEGO Group that helps young people discover the fun in science and technology while building self-confidence, knowledge, and valuable employment and life skills," Matty said. "It's a robotics program for youth ages nine to 15."

As part of FIRST LEGO League, student groups work together program an autonomous robot, using the LEGO® MINDSTORMS® robot set, to score points on a thematic playing surface, creating an innovative solution to a problem as part of their project.

Another program AEDC STEM supports is the CyberPatriot competition, a national high school cyber defense competition created to inspire high school students toward careers in cybersecurity or STEM fields. Competing students are provided one to three virtual machines that reveal several vulnerabilities they must identify and defend against.

But the community outreach doesn't stop there, area students can also be part of the STEM Aviation Program, the NASA Human Exploration Rover Challenge as well as other science camps and competitions.

Overall, AEDC STEM supports 18 programs within 50 schools, reaching a total of 10,750 students in the Middle Tennessee area.

Because it takes a lot of people to make all these programs successful, Matty commends the volunteers who ensure schools are receiving the support they need.

"Our volunteers are the heart and soul of the AEDC program," he said. "We wouldn't be able to do all that we do without them."

Matty also mentioned that additional volunteers are always welcomed.

If interested in volunteering, scheduling a visit to AEDC's STEM Center or scheduling a STEM visit from AEDC to an organization, please go to www.arnold.af.mil/stem.