STEAM教育とは / What is STEAM education?

文部科学省ではそのホームページにおいて「STEAM教育等雄各教科等横断的な学習の推進について」という項目で次のようにSTEAM教育の重要性を述べている。(https://www.mext.go.jp/a_menu/shotou/new-cs/mext_01592.html)

・AIやIoTなどの急速な技術の進展により社会が激しく変化し、多様な課題が生じている今日、文系・理系といった枠にとらわれず、各教科等の学びを基盤としつつ、様々な情報を活用しながらそれを統合し、課題の発見・解決や社会的な価値の創造に結び付けていく資質・能力の育成が求められています。

・文部科学省では、STEM（Science, Technology, Engineering, Mathematics）に加え、芸術、文化、生活、経済、法律、政治、倫理等を含めた広い範囲でAを定義し、各教科等での学習を実社会での問題発見・解決に生かしていくための教科等横断的な学習を推進しています。

さらにその資料のなかで、STEAM教育の説明として次の２項目が述べられている。

・近年は、現実社会の問題を創造的に解決する学習を進める上で、あらゆる問いを立てるために、Liberal Arts(A)の考え方に基づいて、自由に考えるための手段を含む美術、音楽、文学、歴史に関わる学習などを取り入れるなどSTEM教育を広く横断的に推進していく教育（東京学芸大学 大谷忠氏より）。

・取り扱う社会的課題によって、S・T・E・Mを幹にして、ART/DESIGNやROBOTICS、E-STEM（環境）など様々な領域を含んだ派生形が存在し、さらには国語や社会に関する課題もあり、いわゆる文系、理系の枠を超えた学びとなっている（日本STEM教育学会 新井健一氏より）。

The Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology (MEXT), on its website under the section “Promotion of Cross-Disciplinary Learning such as STEAM Education” (https://www.mext.go.jp/a_menu/shotou/new-cs/mext_01592.html), emphasizes the importance of STEAM education as follows:

• In today’s world, where society is undergoing rapid changes and diverse challenges due to the accelerated advancement of technologies such as AI and IoT, it is essential to cultivate the qualities and abilities to transcend the traditional boundaries of the humanities and sciences. Students are expected to build on subject-based learning, integrate and utilize diverse information, and link this to identifying and solving problems as well as creating social value.
• MEXT defines the “A” in STEM not only as the Arts but also in a broad sense that encompasses the arts, culture, daily life, economics, law, politics, and ethics. By doing so, the Ministry promotes cross-disciplinary learning across various subjects to apply academic knowledge toward real-world problem-solving.

Furthermore, the same document explains STEAM education through the following two perspectives:

• In recent years, in order to foster learning that creatively addresses real-world issues, it has become important to advance STEM education in a broad and cross-disciplinary manner. This includes incorporating liberal arts (A) approaches—such as art, music, literature, and history—that provide the means to think freely and to pose diverse questions. (Prof. Tadashi Otani, Tokyo Gakugei University)

Depending on the social issues being addressed, various derivatives exist that branch out from the core of STEM, including ART/DESIGN, ROBOTICS, and E-STEM (environment). Furthermore, issues related to subjects such as language and social studies are also included, creating a form of learning that transcends the conventional boundaries of the humanities and sciences. (Prof. Kenichi Arai, Japan Society for STEM Education)