An Experimental Study on the Implementation of a STEAM-Based Learning Module in Science Education

Ibrahim Arpaci (), Muhammed Said Dogru, Hassan Kanj, Nawaf Ali () and Mahadi Bahari
Additional contact information
Ibrahim Arpaci: Department of Software Engineering, Faculty of Engineering and Natural Sciences, Bandirma Onyedi Eylul University, Balikesir 10200, Türkiye
Muhammed Said Dogru: Araç Rafet Vergili Vocational School of Higher Education, Kastamonu University, Kastamonu 37150, Türkiye
Hassan Kanj: College of Engineering and Technology, American University of the Middle East, Egaila 54200, Kuwait
Nawaf Ali: College of Engineering and Technology, American University of the Middle East, Egaila 54200, Kuwait
Mahadi Bahari: Department of Information Systems, Faculty of Management, Universiti Teknologi Malaysia, Johor Bahru 81310, Malaysia

Sustainability, 2023, vol. 15, issue 8, 1-12

Abstract: Over the last decade, there has been notable academic interest in the multidisciplinary studies of science education with the emergence of STEAM. Accordingly, this study aimed to conduct an experimental study to explore the effectiveness of a STEAM-based space-themed learning module in science education taught to primary school students. The sample of the study was 6th- and 7th-grade students from the Central Anatolia Region of Turkiye. The experimental group consisted of 180 students, whereas the control group consisted of 94 students. The STEAM-based learning module was applied to the students in the experimental group, and the traditional lecture-based approach was applied to students in the control group. The traditional education and intervention lasted eight weeks. The chi-square test and one-way ANOVA were used to analyze the differences and associations between the variables. The results indicated that gender and academic achievement level were the two key factors determining the effectiveness of the STEAM-based learning module. The comparison of the pre-test and post-test scores indicated that the scores of the female students who participated in the module increased the most. This suggested that girls benefited more from the STEAM-based learning module than boys. Further, the lecture-based approach led to a decrease in some high-achieving students. The findings have implications for educational policymakers, curriculum developers, and syllabus designers.

Keywords: STEAM; informal learning; science education; transversal competencies (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: O13 Q Q0 Q2 Q3 Q5 Q56 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2023
References: View references in EconPapers View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations:

Downloads: (external link)
https://www.mdpi.com/2071-1050/15/8/6807/pdf (application/pdf)
https://www.mdpi.com/2071-1050/15/8/6807/ (text/html)

Related works:
This item may be available elsewhere in EconPapers: Search for items with the same title.

Export reference: BibTeX RIS (EndNote, ProCite, RefMan) HTML/Text

Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:gam:jsusta:v:15:y:2023:i:8:p:6807-:d:1126372

Access Statistics for this article

Sustainability is currently edited by Ms. Alexandra Wu

More articles in Sustainability from MDPI
Bibliographic data for series maintained by MDPI Indexing Manager ().