Inspiring the Next Generation of Innovators Through a Multidisciplinary Entrepreneurship and STEM Educational Outreach Programme

Abstract

Education systems and industries right across the world are calling for students to acquire key transferrable skills for the twenty-first century workplace. We need people to develop a set of beliefs that shape how they make sense of the world by questioning and looking for problems from the world around them, i.e. we need people that can solve problems creatively with an entrepreneurial mindsetEntrepreneurial mindset. Therefore, a highly capable STEM and Entrepreneurial population with critical thinking skills are essential to ensure not only economic, but also social and cultural prosperity, making the world a better place in which to live, work, and play. In order for this goal to be achieved, it is necessary that future populations can apply skills within and across disciplines and in real-life situations i.e., knowledge, skills, and abilities associated with STEM and entrepreneurial thinking. This chapter will describe an interdisciplinaryInterdisciplinary educational outreachEducational outreach program for students between the ages of 14–17 years old. The ‘EMPOWER’ Programme allowed participants to experience, practice and reflect on a wide variety of innovative and creative inquiryInquiry-based, student-centered, teaching and learning pedagogiesPedagogy (teaching practices), focusing on scientific thinking, entrepreneurial thinking, generating new ideas and translating ideas into actions. The aim of the EMPOWER Programme was to design an approach that moved beyond traditional science and businessBusiness programs, to an approach that involved the development of ‘growth mindsets’ that enable and empower students to approach problems, to experiment, and to meet the needs of individuals and communities that will benefit from their solutions.