I think you are right that it probably isn't a campaign hyping the STEM jobs but I doubt the answer is making those classes "more rigorous" (though it probably

I think you are right that it probably isn't a campaign hyping the STEM jobs but I doubt the answer is making those classes "more rigorous" (though it probably does need some work in that area). My bet is that it is not treated appropriately by the teachers. My grade school teachers made science boring, monotonous and repetitive. It wasn't interesting at all. The crazy thing is that it is really cool... So much of it has a ton in common with a fun action movie: explosions and sex. Frame it in terms that make sense and is interesting to students rather than just reading chapter 5 and the interest in STEM fields will naturally increase.