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Examination of Integrated STEM Curricula as a Means Toward Quality K-12 Engineering Education (Research to Practice)

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... A variety of useful conceptual frameworks for integrated STEM have been offered (e.g., see Asunda 2014; Asunda and Mativo 2016;Kelley and Knowles 2016;and English 2016). Moore and colleagues (e.g., Glancy et al. 2014;Guzey et al. 2016;Moore and Smith 2014;) provide empirical support for the proposition that engineering is an essential bond or connector that can integrate STEM disciplines in K-12 education, as well as a facilitator of problem solving, creative thinking, communication and teamwork skills, and positive motivation and attitudes towards STEM careers. Engineering can be a motivator as a natural way to learn how to integrate STEM concepts, because real world engineering problems are often complex and require the application of mathematics and science. ...
... This possibility can lead to new "STEM" degrees, certifications, endorsements, and teacher PD, meaning specifically an integrated approach to teaching STEM. Indeed, this activity has already started (see Glancy et al. 2014). In keeping with common practice, the implied meaning of "STEM education" throughout this article is typically "integrated STEM education." ...
... For her, nearly all of her curricula and instruction was integrated. Another master teacher with an engineering background and graduate degree had developed a variety of integrated STEM activities centering around the engineering design process, not dissimilar from those demonstrated in the current literature (e.g., Estapa and Tank 2017;Glancy et al. 2014;Grubbs and Strimel 2015;Guzey et al. 2016). This teacher shared her work catalyzing change in a STEM academy high school to engage students in the engineering design process and "school-based inquiry" in which students use engineering design to solve various problems. ...
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Abstract Background: Given the growing interest in, and relevance of, integrated approaches to STEM (science, technology, engineering, and mathematics) education, there is an urgent desire to understand the challenges and obstacles to developing and implementing integrated STEM curricula and instruction. In this article, we present phase 1 of a two-phase needs assessment study to identify challenges and needs of promoting integrated approaches in STEM education. Utilizing a key informant approach, 22 K-12 teachers and four administrators selected as potential leaders in STEM education in an unidentified state on the East Coast of the USA were interviewed. Participants were asked to identify challenges and perceived supports to conduct integrated STEM education. Questions were open-ended in order to inform a larger, state-wide questionnaire study in phase 2 to be reported subsequently and were qualitatively coded. Results: Several distinctive themes were identified as described by teacher participants when discussing challenges and obstacles of implementing integrated STEM education, as well as supports that would be most helpful in overcoming them. Participants also provided specific suggestions for teacher education needed to support integrated STEM education. Conclusions: Preliminary findings suggest that many teachers are interested in integrated approaches to STEM, but do not believe they are well prepared to implement them. Teachers and administrators also suggest that adequate preparation in integrated STEM would entail a considerable rethinking and redesigning of pre-service courses and in-service workshops. Findings provide a starting point for better understanding teacher needs in integrated STEM and a springboard for further study.
... A commonly used variation was by engaging students in an innovative curriculum or teaching practices. These practices included the use of robotics [16], [17], gamification [18], [19], Integrated STEM education strategies [20], [21], and other active learning activities [22], [23] in the curriculum. However, an important aspect to note is that in middle schools, such teaching practices are often incorporated in science and mathematics courses [24]- [26]. ...
... Further, these integrations could be useful in teaching the STEM context to enhance students' learning and engagement [4]. Studies showed that the use of Integrated STEM education in K-12 classrooms helped with students' learning, motivation, and performance [20], [21], [28]. Also, Integrated STEM education provides opportunities for "more relevant, less fragmented, and more stimulating experiences for learners" [28, p.186]. ...
... Concerns reported by fewer than 10% of participants were time constraints, the insufficient provision of integrated STEM examples and the management of the ongoing workload of integration, all of which are consistent with 'best practice requests' in other studies (e.g. Glancy et al., 2014;Shernoff et al., 2017). Sustaining changes to practice after the completion of the PD events was also difficult for some teachers, particularly if they had no time for ongoing contemplation (Kirkby, 2015;Meier, 2002;Mockler, 2018). ...
Chapter
This chapter focuses on the development, adaptation, and revising of the Taiwanese-based STEM2TV (STEM for Taiwan, Thailand, and Vietnam) module toward the needs of New Asia. The STEM2TV project aims to investigate and develop the next generation of STEM education for this region. After the introduction to this chapter, we present our STEM2TV project in four sections: (1) context setting—how our research project starts by leveraging similarities, accommodating the differences between the partner countries, as well as presenting our struggles in implementing STEM courses in different classrooms; (2) research framework—how we gather knowledge from other (mostly western) countries as well as from our previous experiences to guide STEM education research toward our STEM2TV project; (3) preliminary findings from the pilot data—how we are building strong relationships and partnerships by trialing STEM modules and assessments together, to fit the needs of “New Asia’s” countries, based on more comprehensive and contextual views toward STEM (this section also shares some educators’ and teachers’ feedback from two collaborative case studies in Vietnam and Thailand in 2018); and (4) future directions of the project—the benefits, contributions, and future vision of this research for STEM education communities.
Chapter
Given the mounting interest in, and growing relevance of, integrative approaches to STEM (science, technology, engineering, and mathematics) education, there is a strong desire to understand the challenges and obstacles to promoting and developing integrative STEM curricula and instruction. In this chapter, a variety of definitions and conceptual frameworks for integrative STEM education are presented. Next, findings from an integrative STEM education Needs Assessment Study conducted by the Rutgers Center for Mathematics, Science, and Computer Education (CMSCE) are summarized. The study utilized a key informant approach, selecting 22 K-12 teachers and four administrators as leaders in integrative STEM education in the state of New Jersey. In their interviews, participants were asked open-ended questions to identify challenges, needs, and perceived supports to implement integrated STEM (or “iSTEM”) education in their daily practice. Several distinctive themes emerged. Many teachers were very interested in learning or using integrated approaches to STEM, but believed that they were unprepared to implement them effectively. The key informants suggested that adequate preparation in integrative STEM would entail a substantial rethinking and redesigning of pre-service courses and in-service workshops. Findings provide a springboard for better understanding the needs of teachers in integrative STEM education to inform future study and practice.
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Experiences in early childhood set the foundation for lifelong learning. Given the integrative and applied nature of engineering and children’s natural curiosity, we suggest that prekindergarten classrooms are well suited for providing opportunities to promote the development of engineering habits of mind (EHM). Developmental theories suggest that children learn best through hands-on experiences that enable them to explore and discover concepts themselves and that others in the child’s environment can serve as active partners in exploration. Recognizing the emphasis on integrated curriculum in early childhood and the competing demands for time in preschool classrooms, we identify the EHM as an appropriate early engineering emphasis that can be embedded in everyday classroom moments. To this end, this chapter begins by pointing out connections among science, math, and engineering for early learners, highlights theories that inform our work with engineering in prekindergarten classrooms, discusses EHM in prekindergarten learners, briefly presents a pilot study of observing EHM in prekindergarten classrooms, and ends by drawing overarching conclusions and suggesting future directions for incorporating EHM into prekindergarten classrooms.
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Recent U.S. national documents have laid the foundation for highlighting the connection between science, technology, engineering and mathematics at the K-12 level. However, there is not a clear definition or a well-established tradition of what constitutes a quality engineering education at the K-12 level. The purpose of the current work has been the development of a framework for describing what constitutes a quality K-12 engineering education. The framework presented in this paper is the result of a research project focused on understanding and identifying the ways in which teachers and schools implement engineering and engineering design in their classrooms. The development of the key indicators that are included in the framework were determined based on an extensive review of the literature, established criteria for undergraduate and professional organizations, document content analysis of state academic content standards in science, mathematics, and technology, and in consultation with experts in the fields of engineering and engineering education. The framework is designed to be used as a tool for evaluating the degree to which academic standards, curricula, and teaching practices address the important components of a quality K-12 engineering education. Additionally, this framework can be used to inform the development and structure of future K-12 engineering and STEM education standards and initiatives.
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Quality Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics (STEM) education is vital for the future success of students. Integrated STEM education is one way to make learning more connected and relevant for students. There is a need for further research and discussion on the knowledge, experiences, and background that teachers need to effectively teach integrated STEM education. A support, teaching, efficacy, and materials (s.t.e.m.) model of considerations for teaching integrated STEM education was developed through a year-long partnership with a middle school. The middle school was implementing Project Lead the Way’s Gateway to Technology curriculum. The s.t.e.m. model is a good starting point for teachers as they implement and improve integrated STEM education.
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Government agencies and members of the educational research community have petitioned for research-based curricula. The ambiguity of the phrase "research-based," however, undermines attempts to create a shared research foundation for the development of, and informed choices about, classroom curricula. This article presents a framework for the construct of research-based curricula. One implication is that traditional strategies such as market research and research-to-practice models are insufficient; more adequate is the use of multiple phases of the proffered Curriculum Research Framework.
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This paper explores the question, should we integrate mathematics and science in reforming science education? As science, especially physical science involves mathematics, and both subjects involve process skills, integrating science and mathematics methods courses might be a way to improve science education. Considerations and recommendations for mathematics and science integration are addressed.
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Engineering is the bond in STEM integration in K–12 education. In this chapter , we present an overview of the literature on engineering in K–12 STEM integration, as well as a framework for the development and assessment of integrated STEM activities. The usefulness of the framework is demonstrated through application to three research-based STEM integration curricula. Finally, benefits and barriers for STEM integration in the classroom are presented and discussed.
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The problems that we face in our ever-changing, increasingly global society are multidisciplinary, and many require the integration of multiple science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) concepts to solve them. National calls for improvement of STEM education in the United States are driving changes in policy, particularly in academic standards. Research on STEM integration in K-12 classrooms has not kept pace with the sweeping policy changes in STEM education. This study addresses the need for research to explore the translation of broad, national-level policy statements regarding STEM education and integration to state-level policies and implementation in K-12 classrooms. An interpretive multicase study design was employed to conduct an in-depth investigation of secondary STEM teachers' implementation of STEM integration in their classrooms during a yearlong professional development program. The interpretive approach was used because it provides holistic descriptions and explanations for the particular phenomenon, in this case STEM integration. The results of this study demonstrate the possibilities of policies that use state standards documents as a mechanism to integrate engineering into science standards. Our cases suggest that STEM integration can be implemented most successfully when mathematics and science teachers work together both in a single classroom (co-teaching) and in multiple classrooms (content teaching—common theme).
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B ackground The U.S. has experienced a shift from a manufacturing‐based economy to one that overwhelmingly provides services and information. This shift demands that technological skills be more fully integrated with one's academic knowledge of science and mathematics so that the next generation of engineers can reason adaptively, think critically, and be prepared to learn how to learn. P urpose (H ypothesis ) Project Lead the Way (PLTW) provides a pre‐college curriculum that focuses on the integration of engineering with science and mathematics. We documented the impact that enrollment in PLTW had on student science and math achievement. We consider the enriched integration hypothesis, which states that students taking PLTW courses will show achievement benefits, after controlling for prior achievement and other student and teacher characteristics. We contrast this with alternative hypotheses that propose little or no impact of the engineering coursework on students' math and science achievement (the insufficient integration hypothesis), or that PLTW enrollment might be negatively associated with student achievement (the adverse integration hypothesis). D esign/ M ethod Using multilevel statistical modeling with students ( N = 140) nested within teachers, we report findings from a quantitative analysis of the relationship between PLTW enrollment and student achievement on state standardized tests of math and science. R esults While students gained in math and science achievement overall from eighth to tenth grade, students enrolled in PLTW foundation courses showed significantly smaller math assessment gains than those in a matched group that did not enroll, and no measurable advantages on science assessments, when controlling for prior achievement and teacher experience. The findings do not support the enriched integration hypothesis. C onclusions Engineering education programs like PLTW face both challenges and opportunities to effectively integrate academic content as they strive to prepare students for college engineering programs and careers.
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Engineering as a profession faces the challenge of making the use of technology ubiquitous and transparent in society while at the same time raising young learners' interest and understand-ing of how technology works. Educational efforts in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (i.e., STEM disci-plines) continue to grow in pre-kindergarten through 12th grade (P-12) as part of addressing this challenge. This article explores how engineering education can support acquisition of a wide range of knowledge and skills associated with compre-hending and using STEM knowledge to accomplish real world problem solving through design, troubleshooting, and analysis activities. We present several promising instructional models for teaching engineering in P-12 classrooms as examples of how engineering can be integrated into the curriculum. While the introduction of engineering education into P-12 classrooms presents a number of opportunities for STEM learning, it also raises issues regarding teacher knowledge and professional development, and institutional challenges such as curricular standards and high-stakes assessments. These issues are consid-ered briefly with respect to providing direction for future research and development on engineering in P-12.
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