There’s never enough education funding. Or people, or supplies, or time. That’s why allocating funding is always so difficult—it’s all about balancing competing, worthy priorities.

Teachers work an average of 10 hours and 40 minutes per workday. They also take home an additional 2-3 hours of work each weekend. Add in summer work days and professional development, and the average American teacher works 2,000 hours a year—more than the average worker at 1,811 hours per year.

Every teacher knows how important it is to keep their students engaged. As noted by the University of Washington's Center for Teaching and Learning, "engaging students in the learning process increases their attention and focus, motivates them to practice higher-level critical thinking skills, and promotes meaningful learning experiences.”

With the signing of the American Rescue Plan Act of 2021 (ARPA) on March 11, a third round of Elementary and Secondary School Emergency Relief Fund (ESSER) funds were passed into law. Together with ESSER I and ESSER II funds allocated from previous COVID-19 relief bills, the total supplemental education funding in the US since the start of the coronavirus pandemic equals $190.5B.

This article originally appeared on Medium. Joe Biden signed the American Rescue Plan Act of 2021(ARPA) on March 11, broadly one year after the Coronavirus Pandemic was declared in the USA. ARPA includes $122.8B of new funding that is called the Elementary and Secondary School Emergency Relief Fund (ESSER III). So here I’ll be telling you about ARP ESSER III and the difference between the STATES requirements and the DISTRICT requirements.

Ask a local official or a business leader what STEM means, and they may have an answer for you. “It’s Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics,” they might say. They might go on to talk about STEM careers, and how engineers and computer programmers make good money and are in demand. They might even talk about how we need more science teachers to teach STEM.

Students today need to be prepared for the modern-day workforce Standardized testing, sitting quietly in class taking notes, and reciting facts from memory may have their place, but educators have begun to rally behind a new way of teaching that enables students to learn valuable skills. These skills aim to go beyond traditional assessment models, digitized worksheets, and even the scientific approach of STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, Mathematics).

Making decisions about what EdTech solutions best fit the goals of schools, teachers, or parents is a complex and personal process. A big part of that is positioning the EdTech offering in the most helpful way, for users to quickly and easily identify when a product is the right fit for them. Identifying the specific needs each EdTech product meets is perhaps one of the more important, yet hardest parts of a startup’s journey, especially when separating between what the product is designed for, and how users identify with the product for their own purposes.

The world around us is increasingly powered by science and technology. There’s plenty of data on the growth of STEM careers, and the need for qualified workers to fill these jobs. These trends aren’t going anywhere, and if anything are accelerating. But what about STEAM?

  I saw an article over the weekend about a school district that was placing 50+ students into every distance learning classroom.  Of course this is a temptation that is to be largely expected.  At a time when budgets are stretched thin and schools are scrambling to find ways to save money, it is hardly surprising to find schools that are stuffing digital classrooms with more students.    

The COVID-19 pandemic has upended education for teachers, parents, and students alike, but before that revolution, there was another one just as profound. Long before parents were asked to double as in-home teachers, educators were focusing on STEM education, turning their sights to the important fields of science, technology, engineering, and math. 

How do we become more authentic in the way that we teach as educators?