What do climate change, artificial intelligence, pandemics, and space exploration have in common? They all demand minds trained in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics—STEM. But what happens when more than half of India’s future workforce has never touched a science lab, seen a circuit board, or solved a real-life math problem?
In a nation of over 250 million school-going children, the future of India’s economy, innovation, and equity rests on how effectively we embed STEM into classrooms, especially in government schools and low-income communities.
The data doesn’t lie: STEM education gaps begin early
Despite being the world’s third-largest ecosystem for higher education in science and engineering, India faces a paradox: around 30% of engineering graduates are either unemployed or underemployed due to skill gaps (NITI Aayog). And the pipeline into STEM is narrow to begin with.
As per ASER 2023, among students in Class XI or higher, only 31.7% are enrolled in STEM subjects, while 55.7% are in the Arts/Humanities stream. Girls, rural students, and first-generation learners are particularly underrepresented.
Most government schools where over 65% of Indian children are enrolled still operate with outdated pedagogy, undertrained teachers, and minimal infrastructure. Traditional rote-based teaching does little to nurture curiosity, experimentation, or problem-solving—the very foundations of STEM.
Why STEM matters now more than ever
STEM cultivates creativity, critical thinking, collaboration, and resilience. According to the World Economic Forum, 65% of children entering primary school today will work in jobs that don’t yet exist—most of them requiring STEM skills. Economies that invest early in STEM consistently see stronger innovation indices and more equitable growth.
Smile Foundation: Reimagining STEM from the ground up
Smile Foundation’s Mission Education programme is redefining what STEM means for underserved children. With a footprint across 2,000 villages in 26 states, our approach is holistic, scalable, and rooted in real-world needs.
Our STEM programme includes:
- Mini Science Centres and resource kits in government schools
- Do-It-Yourself (DIY) learning kits that replace rote learning with hands-on discovery
- Science clubs and fairs that encourage teamwork and creativity
- Teacher training in pedagogy, STEM content, and inclusive classroom practices
- Timetable integration and monitoring through baseline and end-line assessments
The result is a shift from passive absorption to active exploration, especially among girls and first-generation learners.
Global inspiration
Finland’s Phenomenon-Based Learning
Subjects are taught through cross-disciplinary projects. A lesson on “sustainable cities” could include physics, geography, economics, and ethics. It’s holistic and future-focused.
Rwanda’s Smart Classrooms
With limited budgets, Rwanda introduced solar-powered smart classrooms in rural areas. These boosted attendance, especially among girls, and improved national math scores.
United States’ STEM Ecosystems
Programmes like Girls Who Code and NASA’s outreach connect students, mentors, and industries, creating a sustainable STEM pipeline.
Gender and beyond: Making STEM education inclusive
Girls remain underrepresented in STEM, especially in rural and tribal schools. Factors include lack of role models, lab access, social norms, and gender biases. Smile Foundation works to reverse this through girl-led science projects, STEM day celebrations, and mentorship drives.
Globally, women like Gitanjali Rao, TIME’s Kid of the Year 2020, and Tessy Thomas, India’s “Missile Woman,” show how STEM empowers.
But true inclusion means going further. Dr. Ben Barres, a Stanford neurobiologist and the first openly transgender scientist elected to the National Academy of Sciences, once said,
“The barriers to entry are not just educational. They’re cultural.”
In India, transgender representation in STEM is nascent but growing, with public figures like Living Smile Vidya advocating for inclusive education frameworks. Policies must explicitly welcome transgender students into science education through scholarships, infrastructure, and safe learning spaces.
From policy to practice
India’s National Education Policy (NEP) 2020 is a bold step forward, encouraging coding, critical thinking, and interdisciplinary learning from the early years. But to make this vision a reality, STEM must not just be a policy objective—it must be woven into existing national development missions.
- Digital India: STEM literacy builds the foundation for digital citizenship, cybersecurity, and emerging tech.
- Startup India: Early innovation labs and maker spaces nurture entrepreneurial thinking in students.
- Skill India: STEM learning aligns directly with vocational readiness in AI, robotics, renewable energy, and data analysis.
However, challenges remain:
- Under-resourced schools often lack even basic science labs or trained teachers.
- Overloaded curricula leave little room for experimentation.
- Low visibility of diverse STEM role models limits aspirations, especially for girls and gender-diverse youth.
Smile Foundation addresses these through teacher upskilling, community engagement, and partnerships with local governments. We also track progress through continuous assessments, ensuring impact is measured, not assumed.
To expand this impact, varied partnerships should:
- Fund low-cost mobile STEM labs and solar-powered science classrooms
- Create gender- and trans-inclusive scholarship schemes
- Leverage platforms like DIKSHA for STEM content in regional languages
- Incentivize CSR and industry mentorships for government school students
By embedding STEM in national missions and school systems, and tracking results, India can move from access to aspiration, and from policy to practice.
India’s demographic dividend will only pay off if young minds are equipped for the challenges ahead. STEM education is about creating engineers and empowering them as creators, problem-solvers, thinkers, and informed citizens. It’s about ensuring that every child, regardless of gender, caste, geography, or identity, has the tools to shape their own future.
Smile Foundation’s experience proves that STEM can be scaled without being sterile, inclusive without being expensive, and joyful without losing rigour.
“We need to move from ‘STEM for the elite’ to ‘STEM for all.’” – Dr. Tessy Thomas, India’s ‘Missile Woman’ and DRDO scientist
Now is the time to build classrooms that teach science and help children live it.
Sources
- ASER 2023 Report – www.asercentre.org
- National Education Policy (NEP) 2020 – education.gov.in
- DIKSHA STEM Portal – diksha.gov.in
- STEM and Gender Advancement (UNESCO) – unesco.org
- Smile Foundation STEM Initiatives – smilefoundationindia.org
- Girls Who Code – girlswhocode.com
