Aligning Learning Environment Affordances for Effective Professional Learning in an Innovative Senior Secondary STEM School

Abstract

A shortage of graduates in science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) disciplines has been reported internationally with the Australian Industry Group (2013) noting that STEM skill shortages are limiting business and opportunities to innovate and – with the growth in technology and its ubiquitous use world-wide the STEM skills shortage – will become even more evident. The report also states, “Young people in schools and universities are not acquiring the STEM skills we need for our future prosperity.” The Australian Chief Scientist Professor Ian Chubb (Commonwealth of Australia, 2012) identified that to increase suitably qualified STEM professionals a transformation in the way science and mathematics is taught in the primary and secondary year of schooling is required. But to transform science and mathematics teaching Chubb and his colleagues acknowledged an urgent need to increase the pool of inspirational teachers with extensive STEM discipline knowledge and that STEM teachers required access to high quality professional learning that incurred no individual financial burdens.