I subscribe to an email newsletter named Model D that covers community news in Detroit. The company that publishes it also publishes other email newsletters that cover similar news around the state of Michigan.
In the last issue of Model D there was an ad for the SC4 STEM Fest. I thought to myself that this kind of event would be perfect for some kind of amateur radio involvement. So, I emailed our ARRL Section Manager and asked if he might know if anyone in the amateur radio community was exhibiting at the event, and if not, what we might do in the future to find out about upcoming events and to get involved with them.
I received the following response:
Thanks for the heads up I have forwarded this to the club up in Port Huron. If they can make it great, if not we will look a little further in advance and see if any local clubs can support. It would be perfect to introduce amateur radio at this one since a former astronaut will be there.
While this is an understandable response, I think it’s missing the boat. I think that someone in the ARRL organization should be keeping on top of these things and making sure that amateur radio has a presence at them. Not only that, we need to come up with some kind of exhibit that will be engaging enough so that kids will be attracted to our hobby, and if not our hobby, electronics and communications engineering.
This is really more than a small amateur radio club can handle. An effort like this really needs to be addressed on a statewide, if not a national level. I asked our section manager what he would think about starting some kind of Michigan Section STEM Committee, but I haven’t received a reply yet.
Having said all this, here are a few questions:
- Do you know if the ARRL has any kind of program for finding out about this kind of STEM event and any kind of exhibit that could be displayed at them? I know that the ARRL conducts the Wireless Institute, but that’s really a thing for teachers, not students.(Right after I post this, I’m going to email Steve, K5ATA, ARRL’s Education and Learning Manager about this.)
- Have you been involved with any of these STEM programs? If so, I’d love to hear about your experiences.
- Is there a list of STEM events somewhere that we could consult to find upcoming events?
- Do you have any ideas for what kind of exhibit would be a hit with the students and/or the teachers that attend these events?
I know this is all kind of partly baked, but I think that this could be a good way to get more youth involved in amateur radio. So, I say, “Let’s get on board with STEM!”
This may be an unpopular opinion among many Hams, but imagine if the ARRL shifted half the resources and energy spent on the ARRL ARES program and redirected it to an ARRL STEM program. Weekly STEM nets, having a presence at local STEM events like this one, having a presence at local Meet-Ups, tech conferences, etc. STEM related outreach should live under the ARRL Public Service arm.
It’s not an unpopular opinion with this ham. Imagine if ARRL shifted ALL the resources and energy spent on ARES to STEM and maker events! Emcomm was the raison d’etre of amateur radio in the 20th century. The 20th century ended 22 years ago.
We need a new organization that focuses on STEM and the maker movement on a national level. ARRL is not going to do it.
I find that this hobby is a better stepping stone to STEM then just sitting in a Science, Math or even Art class. Yes these are important to study and understand, but more needs to be shown.
I am not the best at showing what I do, but even I can be help to this idea. I do agree we need to be On Board this boat!
Peter
KC7GVL
Maker Faire is an International organization with licensed local versions – https://makerfaire.com/upcoming-faires/.
Dan asked if there was any sort of exhibit that exists for display at STEM or Maker events. I don’t know of any, but, a few years ago, the K2BSA Amateur Radio Association developed a series of products for promoting, explaining and demonstrating amateur radio to scouts (i.e., RadioScouting). A poster was designed that could be conveniently printed and make durable for use at various scouting events. The details are at: https://k2bsa.net/radio-scouting-poster/
A poster was, also, developed for use at hamfests and conventions: https://k2bsa.net/hamvention-poster/
Take a look at k2bsa.net and click on the “Radio Scouting” tab. There you’ll see some other useful promo info, such as Talking Points, Presentations, Quick Info Card and more.
These are the sorts of materials that would be handy to have for hams and clubs to use to use for promoting wireless communications, STEM, EMCOMM, electronic and RF careers, Radio Merit Badge for Boy Scouts, the Radio Patch for Girl Scouts, programs for local civic organizations (i.e., Kiwanis, Rotary, Lions, etc.–they’re always looking for speakers — just don’t get technical).
This seems like a natural thing for the ARRL to develop and offer to members and non-members, alike. We can’t rely on HQ Staff to do everything — somehow we need to convince the League to allow “Task Force Teams” to come together to develop ‘stuff’ that gets a reasonable scrutiny from Staff or elected officials. Something similar to this occurred several years back with Task Teams working on reviewing the Radio Merit Badge Booklet. There’s probably been a few other teams working on different subjects. The reason for an elected officer and/or staff is to provide consistency in purpose == BUT, everyone involved has to approach the task with an open mind.
Thanks! These look great.