Adding the “A” to STEM was a good move, suggesting that education needs to emphasize that capacity for synthesis, design and problem-solving as much as schools have traditionally emphasized analysis.

Image Credit: The Children’s Museum of Illinois

John Maeda is the originator of the idea that STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics) needs an A to become STEAM (adding Art to education to build capacity for creativity, innovation, problem-solving, and synthesis). Maeda speaks at Rhode Island School of Design, where he was formerly President, on the importance of Design Science, bringing synthesis and analysis back together: