By Kate Stringer | MIT Open Learning

When we picture hands-on learning, usually a computer screen is nowhere in sight. But for the team behind MIT Full STEAM Ahead, “hands-on remote learning” may become the great new frontier for delivering quality K-12 online learning at scale.

Full STEAM Ahead began as an online resource hub to provide robust curated content to K-12 students, teachers, and parents during the first surge of the Covid-19 pandemic, when schools around the world started to shut down in rapid succession. With support from the Abdul Latif Jameel World Education Lab (J-WEL) and a monumental effort of coordination, the hub has grown into a vibrant learning community. Six months, 10 custom-created interactive learning packages, and two highly successful online summer programs later, the Full STEAM team has a lot to share about what makes engaging, effective remote learning experiences. Spoiler alert: it’s not high-tech gadgetry.