Animated educational series arrives at Discovery Familia

Discovery Familia announced Tuesday, Aug. 13 the arrival of a special group of creatures who are on a mission to bring the wonders of math to young children. In the new series, “Matemonstruos,” Max, Lily and Gú demonstrate that math is everywhere and can be used to solve any problem.

Each episode of “Matemonstruos” will help kids to explore counting, calculating, measuring and identifying geometric shapes. The new animated series brings Discovery Familia to join Discovery Communications in the “Connect the Dots” initiative. The initiative aims to promote emphasis on the importance of educational endeavors in the areas of science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) and careers in these fields.

In addition to the new animated series, “Matemonstruos,” Discovery Familia is introducing specific back-to-school programming that is geared to a preschooler’s level of curriculum. Artzooka!, Mister Maker and Word World, in conjunction with informative shorts, “Back to School with Jeannette Torres” focus on preschool education. The special back-to-school programming will air for two weeks at 10 a.m. beginning Aug. 19 and “Matemonstruos” will air Monday-Friday at 5 p.m. beginning on Aug. 26 on the Discovery Familia channel.

Facts about STEM careers and U.S. Hispanics

The President’s Council of Advisors on Science and Technology estimates that the United States needs to produce approximately one million more STEM professionals over the next 10 years, which equates to increasing the number of students earning STEM degrees by nearly 35% per year over current rates.

Latinos are the fastest growing segment of the US population and workforce, yet the Hispanic share of the STEM workforce increased by only one percentage point from 2000-2009, according to the US Department Of Commerce’ Economics And Statistics Administration.

Given Hispanics are projected to account for 75 percent of the growth in the nation’s labor force between 2010 and 2020, Latinos completing certificates and degrees in STEM fields will be vital to meeting the national STEM college completion goal1.

According to data from the Higher Education Research Institute (2010), only 16 percent of Hispanic students who began college in 2004 as STEM majors completed a STEM degree by 2009, compared to 25 percent of non-Hispanic White students.

Women hold only 24% of STEM jobs in the United States2

• Only 3% of Hispanic Women earned physical science degrees, 2% earned engineering degrees and 1% earned computer science degrees in 20113 
• 81% of teen girls see themselves as “smart enough to have a career in STEM”, yet only 13% consider it their number one career option2

Sources:

1. President’s Council of Advisors on Science and Technolog
2. New York Academy of Sciences and Girls Scouts of the USA 
3. Miami Science Museum

Discovery en Español partners with the Hispanic Heritage Foundation

Discovery en Español announced on Aug. 2 a partnership with the Hispanic Heritage Foundation (HHF) and its Latinos On Fast Track (LOFT) program for Descubre Tu Talento “Discover Your Talent”, which is a multimedia campaign aimed to inform the US Hispanic community on how to acquire marketable job skills.

With the slogan “Tu futuro empieza ahora, cuenta con nosotros,” which translates to “Your future starts now, account with us,” the Descubre Tu Talento program will offer information about job training and resources in Spanish. As part of the partnership, Discovery en Español co-hosted the HHF’s 14th Annual Regional Youth Awards, in Miami, Chicago, New York, Los Angeles and Washington, D.C., which recognizes the outstanding academic achievements and community service of Hispanic youths. The network is also participating in ten LOFT STEM symposia, hosting panel discussions that focus upon the areas of STEM; science, technology, engineering and math.

The Descubre Tu Talento campaign offers a newly redesigned micro-site, in Spanish, that offers career guidance, employment resources, and opportunities. New sections of the site include including instructions for revalidating college degrees, job search engines, scholarships, resources for learning English, and information about vocational and technical careers. For more information visit the Descubre Tu Talento site. Para obtener más información, visite Descubre tu talento.