Av-STEM Alaska

Our first year pre-requisite course is called Introduction to Aviation. Students will experience integrated hands on learning in multiple areas. The larger focus areas are hands on aviation math and hands on aeronautical science. Students will go through 10 modules, 2 national competitions, and 30 career pathway interviews throughout the year. Hands on applications will accompany all subject matter. At the end of the year students will have an understanding of the aerodynamics of flight, aviation history, reading aviation maps, navigation, weather theory, as well as the broad spectrum of career potentials in the aviation industry. We specialize in wrapping science, technology, engineering and math in an aviation package.

Our slogan is "Pointing Youth Upward." Over the next 10 years aviation careers are going to flourish due to an FAA forecast shortage of pilots, mechanics and other technical support personel in the aviation industry. We want our students to begin filling those positions for exciting careers with great pay and benefits. In the meantime, they will be learing hands on math and science that will begin equiping them for these jobs.

This course was developed in an Eskimo village 500 miles from the nearest road in Alaska. However, all the math textbooks dealth with sidewalks, cities, and urban concepts. We began developing hands on applications in the area of aviation for math and science. We also believe that there should be something more exciting than a written test to apply your new skills. We feel competition gives students that opportunity. Our two national competitions are science related and very challenging. Hands on applications that are repeated through a broad variety of scenarios also develops retention. We use a method of building blocks to teach the necessary math concepts beginning with the very basic formulas and repeating them in a hands on environment that grows increasingly complex. We have found retention levels to be astonishing.

One middle school student hated math and became a disciplinary problem. He was always in the office because he hated math with an intensity that affected all his schooling. His mom tried homeschooling him because of the discipline problem. She enrolled him in our program. A few months into the program he told his mom, "I love math." He simply needed to know that there were practical applications. By the end of the year he was top of the class!
A teacher in California emailed us that this was the best course she had ever purchased.

We taught and developed this course in the classroom over a 15 year period with the desire to improve math and science interests. Because of the remote area we live in, we were required to teach using video conferencing equipment. We had to modify the classes to fit the method of delivery. Eventually we were ready to make this an online course that is available anywhere there is internet access.