Abstract:

The future of space holds immense promise and potential, with advancements in space exploration, technologies, and resource utilisation. STEAM learning is an approach that integrates Science, Technology, Engineering, Arts, and Mathematics into a cohesive, interdisciplinary curriculum. The goal is to provide learners with a holistic and hands-on learning experience that fosters critical thinking, creativity, collaboration, and problem-solving skills. The emergence of STEAM (Science, Technology, Engineering, Arts and Maths) education could be considered a recent pedagogical approach. Indeed, the acronym was only coined in 2011 during funded workshops at Rhode Island School of Design (RISD). However, it may be argued that STEAM represents a return to holistic methodologies for learning in a world increasingly siloed into discrete disciplines. As the boundaries and edges of our world - the physical, mediated, augmented or parallel - become increasingly blurred, this paper presents an example of how STEAM education offers opportunities for the integration of the natural and social sciences with art to facilitate multidimensional ways of approaching challenging issues, such as those characterising teaching about the future of space.

This paper will outline a learning collaboration with Future Focus21c, Ireland and STEMArts Lab, New Mexico and a group of learners in South West Kerry, Ireland. Through Future Focus21c’s place-based STEAM methodologies and STEMArts Lab’s Space Messenger programme, we explore the universe through the diverse perspectives of experts in the field of science, art, philosophy, futures thinking and culture. The main objective; to expand our awareness, understanding and connection to the universe as planetary citizens, through eco-social justice principles. Through this creative process we imagined alternative sustainable interplanetary futures.

Drawing from our nationally-funded research and delivery, the paper describes a replicable series of innovative pedagogical methods and activities for stimulating awareness-building, reflection and problem-solving around the future of space and crossover between native and western science.

This paper will be of interest to educators seeking to improve the engagement of teenagers with space through STEAM learning interventions and equipping them as future-ready citizens.

Keywords:

STEAM, Future of Space, 21st Century, STEM.