In today’s Pope Center piece Jay Schalin dissects the recent legislation passed by the General Assembly that aims to increase the number of students studying science, technology, engineering and math (now usually shortened to STEM subjects) on the grounds that the economy will need a lot more workers with such background in the future. The trouble is that the supposed shortage of people with such training is a complete myth.
What this is all about is political grandstanding — the desire of politicians to pass bills they can crow about because they sound good to the average voter. Politics, however, can’t improve upon the invisible hand of self-interest. If and when it seems beneficial for young people to gravitate toward STEM fields rather than other things, they will do s. Central planning in education is just as foolish as, e.g., political efforts at planning the housing market.
