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Science café although they do not seem easy to prepare, are a great opportunity to have a relaxed environment where students can talk to experts. I am looking forward to present a proposal to my school. It was very interesting.

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Planning, implementing and evaluating an event  is a huge task. I have been involved in WorldSkills Portugal and a Multimedia and Robotic event at Iberanime. Though the results wer very good, management decided not to pursue them as they were costly.

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My school works in terms of electronics and computing, so fairs related to those subjects are ideal for us. There are not so many but they are important. One thing that I notice is that workshops, unless they are in fairs are directed only to teachers.

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I agree completely that fairs are too noisy and it is difficult for students to reach experts. Usually in the neighborhood of the school, there are much smaller evens that though not so broader in terms of different jobs are ideal. Science cafes seems to be a huge event needed to be prepared.

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My school is a vocational training school and we have an array of companies that provide internships to our students. Some come completely satisfied, others not so much due to the lack of tutoring they had. WE work mainly with small companies bu we had a high success rate in getting our students employed by those companies.

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There are a a few programs in Portugal. Unfortunately, most of them are dedicated to university students. Some companies like Vista Alegre, a ceramic company is always willing to show their work and assembly line. Sometimes, the problem is transportation, as these companies that have these programs ara a bit far from the capital and the school cannot always afford field trips. They might probably produce educational videos and materials that could be used through their websites or workshops through video conference.

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I agree that having a learning partner is very motivating and a wonderful experience. This module has given me other ideas to find learning partners mainly parents and other experts of the local community.

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These videos about my country are wonderful. Though, I did not know about them. Although Portugal is not a big country, there should be a larger dissemination of what happens in the so called provinces. All we get is information of what is going on in the capital. There is not much willingness of the companies to receive students as they interfere with the daily life of workers.

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I find the parents of my students are not at all involved in their children's education. They only care about results. I know for a fact that many of the so called mess exploring and breaking apart things takes place on their free time usually when they hang out. It is a pity that parents sacrifice the best years of their children's studies due to the alleged lack of time.

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Some of my students have changed careers throughout the years and they could be a nice example how society is evolving and that STEM is present nowadays in almost all the jobs. Bringing entrepreneurs is not always easy as they tend to be not so open and they have small window time to visit schools.

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I found the subject very interesting. Sometimes it is difficult to find role models. Usually, I tend to face that younger STEM professionals are more at ease and natural with the students and tend to have a normal conversation instead of a lecture.

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These projects seem very interesting. In Portugal, I did not find any similar one. Though, some companies advertise job positions specifically asking for women based on quota which I find undermining.

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The role of women in STEM is increasing though sometimes in the work place I feel I had to adapt to the environment as my male colleagues tended to shut up when I was around. Fortunately, that issue was overcome and now it is very natural. Though, it took time.

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I always try to mix groups with different abilities and ask them to share and cooperate. Sometimes to illustrate something, I even have to draw it myself to avoid stereotypes.

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Gender equality and the gender gap in STEM

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Gender equality and the gender gap in STEM

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I completely understand the issue with stereotypes. Fortunately, where I live, society is changing. I still remember when I got my degree in Physics and I was considered the dumb one, as I was the only female in class. The problem that I still see is the companies. They do not trust we are able to do a men's work and make us work twice as hard to prove ourselves and we are still underpaid.

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I find bringing experts and citizen science very important. The students are brought to a new reality, knowledge is put into context and they became aware even of problem futures society might face and see that careers are evolving and changing.

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In my center we have career counselling for our students. It is made with a battery of tests that are somewhat old school, very theoretical and they just state the previous knowledge the students possess either in physics or maths. I don't find them as career counselling. I find them either a way to know what problems the teachers are going to face. What I usually do and whenever possible is to bring experts and professionals about a particular job that talk to my students and do regular visits to companies to see how the work is done. Unfortunately, with the economical crisis, visits have been cut short and not always I find experts willing to come to our school.

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It is very nice to know these tools exist. I liked TES and the Dream Job Game. They might be very useful.

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Whenever possible, I give my students PBL. Though, management does not see it that way. For example, if I want to use cellphones, I might risk my job, as they are forbidden to be used in classroom. Management also plays a crucial role on this subject and they need to change their minds. They are stuck to old teaching methodologies. Sometimes, I even do PBL in secrets so that neither me or the students are in trouble. Unfortunately, some colleagues of mine even face me as a clown and not a real tutor.

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Soft skills are of up most importance. WE need to be collaborative, flexible, communicative, critical, argumentative. Those are skills that I try to pass on with group work, self and other's assessments and meeting deadlines. What I usually do as well is problem solving that leads to curiosity and innovation.

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I have used for the last 14 years IT and digital skills on my tutoring. It has not been an easy pass, either because sometimes the head master did not understand why a particular subject would need a computer room. Another problem faced is the obsolete software that most schools still have and forbidden acess to some sites such as you tube. You tube has a myriad of resources that can be used in the classroom. The third problem that I face is the students. Some of them are not keen in acquiring IT skills. They think they won't be needing them ang it takes time to convince them. My journey in teaching sometimes feels like being a joggler, which by the way involves a lots of Physics.

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Though many non STEM jobs are still out there, the demand to have STEM skills on those jobs are increasing either by demanding multitasking or because there is a need to understand in some way partially STEM to perform them. STEM is now spreading all over the jobs in my opinion.

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I use the Internet, buy specialized magazines, explore new software, make part of discussion forums where many teachers collaborate and share ideas, all the media available, join specialized groups and follow teachers whose ideas are really great.

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In my area around Lisbon, many farmers are developing ways to produce organic food and preventing natural disasters to affect their crops. Designers are also very motivated in creating and helping them to build shelters for the crops and how to rationalize the use of water.

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I really believe that adaptability and let's say globalization of a particular job is of up most importance. Students need to be directed to several solutions after they graduate, instead of one. They need to multitask in their area of study and be innovative and be able to shift when necessary. Society as it is nowadays has no fixed jobs where only one or two tasks are performed. People needs to continue studying, learning and be able to have the needed flexibility. Teachers need to evolve as well and not stick to a fixed curricula, show the newest trends and shifts that are happening.

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Flexibility.,motivation, originality and creativity are key points nowadays at teaching. We need as well to know our students to help them to see a future in their paths or careers. People of all ages want to hang to the past and see no purpose in society or in learning new skills. We need to give them that alternative, making them realize that a change is difficult but at the reach of a hand if we all cooperate. Society is not going to stop its evolution. we need to change the minds of our students.

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https://www.weforum.org/agenda/2016/01/the-fourth-industrial-revolution-what-it-means-and-how-to-respond/

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The 4th revolution is creating somewhat fear among people. They are afraid of losing their jobs. It is essential people recognizes the value of continuous education and being updated. Each time, more companies are practicing social tasks to help underdeveloped countries where the digital era is present but expensive. It is a means to a way. Let's hope we can reduce inequality and people understand the world embarked on this new revolution and there is no turning back. We need to help each others. Teachers need to be up to date and even more proactive.

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Dealing with ICT and computer science it is imperative for me to give the students tasks similar to what they will find  in the real world. If for example they show huge skills using Excel, I usually try to connect the student to an area where he would like to work and therefore give him a task related to that. It is a difficult question to do, as sometimes 20 different students have different levels of skills. Fortunately, it is possible in Vocational training to give different levels and different exercises to different students. I find they improve much better and faster when they feel they are preparing themselves for their future.  It is imperative for me to know my students and guide them for being an active and motivated contributor to today's society.

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There is definitely a lack of STEM skills in Portugal. Most companies when advertising for a job, just state a myriad of skills that are sometimes overwhelming. For example in programming, sometimes companies just place almost seven to eight programming languages, whereas former students might be good just at one, two maybe three. The second reason is the payment. The companies want high level skilled professionals at a basic wadge. Students that are fresh from the university want to start work and accept them. However, the contractual rotation is high. Companies are not helping by making short term contracts that do not motivate employees to do their best and they continue to look for a more permanent position. Companies that work closely with vocational training centers are much more successful and end up by keeping these professionals.

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STEM is essential for innovation and creativity. The problem in Portugal is that the subjects are taught theoretically and no hands on. Students get bored, they can't try and test. They see no purpose in what they are learning, no practical applications.

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I have several courses online. Please visit the academy.

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I am a vocational training teacher of students ranging from 16 to 60 years old. I teach ICT and multimedia and I am fascinated with the e-learning and b-learning methodology.