STEM education: A tale of two paradigms

Higher education in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) disciplines has been in a turbulent period for several decades. Pressures for reform include declining STEM student enrollments, high attrition rates from STEM curricula, and the rise of powerful alternative teaching strategies shown by cognitive science and educational research to promote learning and curricular retention better than traditional teaching methods do. In addition, research has shown that online and face‐to‐face courses on average produce comparable learning outcomes, and hybrid courses that combine the best features of both are more effective than either face‐to‐face or online courses by themselves. Motivated by these and other pressures, many faculty members have adopted the new teaching methods, and distance education had become widespread well before the 2020 coronavirus pandemic forced most educators at all levels to teach online. As might be expected, however, many faculty members and administrators have resisted change, arguing that the traditional approach has always worked well and needs no major revision. Before the pandemic, most STEM courses were still being taught using the traditional methods, and many course instructors are eager to return to them. These different responses to calls for education reform have led to heated debates among university instructors and administrators regarding how STEM curricula and courses should be designed, delivered, and assessed, and the role technology should play in all three functions. This essay outlines two competing paradigms on each of these issues—the traditional paradigm, which has long dominated STEM education, and the emerging paradigm, which has become increasingly common in the last 30 years but is still not predominant at most universities and colleges. The essay concludes with speculation about the eventual outcome of the competition.     

Students’ conceptions of good teaching in three different disciplines

This paper explores students’ conceptions of good teaching in three different disciplines. Moreover, the aim is to explore the relation between these conceptions and students’ approaches to learning by combining qualitative and quantitative methods. A total of 695 students from the Faculties of Behavioural Sciences, Law and Veterinary Medicine participated in the study. The students’ conceptions of good teaching were analysed using a qualitative content analysis. Furthermore, the students were assigned to homogenous subgroups on the basis of their responses to items measuring approaches to learning and the differences between these subgroups and the students’ conceptions were examined. The association between the conceptions, disciplines and approaches to learning were examined using Chi‐square tests. Twenty‐one dimensions were created from the data and 12 of them differed between the disciplines. Only one dimension differed between the student groups. The study suggests that there is disciplinary variation in students’ conceptions of good teaching and universities should take this into account in the development process of the student evaluation system.     

面向STEM教学过程的学习动机序列模型建构与应用

当前我国STEM教学中普遍存在课程设计粗线条化、缺少足够的教学支架、无法满足学生完成探究过程等问题。造成这些问题最为核心的原因是STEM教学设计过程中没有充分考虑如何激发学习者的学习动机。STEM教学所强调的自主、合作、探究的"做中学"学习方式和注重跨学科、情境、体验、参与的特色,有助于激发学习者多个层面的学习动机,从而提升STEM教学效果。基于STEM教学过程模式、学习动机相关理论以及动机层次模型,通过归纳演绎构建的面向STEM教学过程的学习动机序列模型,包括教学目标/结果层、教学活动层、教学干预/策略层三层结构,通过每层核心要素的横向推进以及层与层之间的纵向转化,最终指向STEM学习动机的激发。该模型的特色体现在,从情境、语境和全局三个层次划分了学习动机,并指出在各教学环节可以通过不同的教学活动设计来激发不同类型的学习动机,且情境、语境和全局动机之间存在双向循环递归关系。案例分析结果表明,该模型有助于指导教师更好地在STEM教学中激发学习者的多层学习动机。     

Learning to teach STEM disciplines in higher education: a critical review of the literature

ABSTRACT

Enrolments in STEM disciplines at universities are increasing globally, attributed to the greater life opportunities open to students as a result of a STEM education. But while institutional access to STEM programmes is widening, the retention and success of STEM undergraduate students remains a challenge. Pedagogies that support student success are well known; what we know less about is how university teachers acquire pedagogical competence. This is the focus of this critical review of the literature that offers a theorised critique of educational development in STEM contexts. We studied the research literature with a view to uncovering the principles that inform professional development in STEM disciplines and fields. The key finding of this critical review is how little focus there is on the STEM disciplines. The majority of studies reviewed did not address the key issue of what makes the STEM disciplines difficult to learn and challenging to teach.     

Designing STEAM Education: Fostering Relationality through Design‐Led Disruption

A significant contention underpinning the commentary around STEM / STEAM is the evidence of discipline hierarchies, and inherent binary perspectives and/or biases that lend themselves to privileging one or more disciplines over another in an interdisciplinary education context. The current focus on increasing engagement with STEM in Australian schools provides opportunities to explore how the creative and liberal arts, and arts‐based approaches to teaching and learning are being adopted to significantly enhance teaching and learning outcomes in and for STEM education. This article examines how design for a STEAM education programme evolves and is adopted in an Australian context. Tasmania represents one of the most vibrant creative communities in Australia. At the same time it has one of the lowest levels of educational attainment. Entrenched teaching habits and disciplinary hierarchies often create significant barriers to the implementation of STEAM despite genuine goodwill and enthusiasm for STEAM among teachers and within schools. This article argues that, despite the contrasting dynamics extant in the Tasmanian educational context, it is here that some of the nation’s most curious and exciting examples of STEAM teaching and learning have emerged. It offers an example of an innovative learning project and proposes the means by which these disciplinary strands have been effectively entwined.     

理科师范生STEM素养发展的实证研究

基于学者Alan Zollman的STEM素养内涵界定,提出评测STEM素养的一级指标,包括STEM学科概念理解、问题解决能力、STEM态度,并编制问卷,问卷信度系数为0. 931。以浙江省高师院校不同专业背景的理科师范生为研究对象,基于问卷、访谈,分析理科师范生STEM素养在不同维度是否与专业、年级和性别存有相关性。表现为:(1)学科概念理解存在偏差;(2)综合问题解决能力亟待提升;(3) STEM态度与职业理想需要涵养。进而从课程、教学、课堂环境、专业定位等方面进行归因分析,提出走向综合、开放、多元的理科师范生STEM素养发展,即注重教师教育课程的综合性,加强学科交叉理解;创设开放的问题解决课堂环境,实现教学方法的多元;引领多元化的职业理想与定位,涵养师范生STEM态度。     

How does STEM context-based learning work: what we know and what we still do not know

ABSTRACT

Context-based learning (CBL) has influenced teaching and learning science in many countries over the past decades. Twelve years ago, a special issue on CBL was published in this Journal, focusing on CBL curriculum development. Seven papers in this current special issue on CBL now address the question of how a context influences the learning process. The papers focus on the stimulation of learning STEM subjects within contexts, how the learning process occurs and is enhanced, and the application of contexts in different settings. The approaches, results, and implications of the papers are located in a larger view that considers the question of what must be the case if a student not only engages in the tasks of learning but also succeeds at them. Concerning willingness and effort by learners, the papers draw conclusions about which STEM-related interests of students endure and are ephemeral across a decade, design criteria for maximising students’ situational interest, and students’ engagement with content and context simultaneously. Focusing on the opportunity to teach and learn, the papers reveal how a professional development approach functions to support STEM teachers to develop CBL materials, and how specific scaffolding acts in teaching bring students to more complex reasoning. Regarding good teaching, insights are offered on how metacognitive prompts improve teaching. Centring on the social surround that supports teaching and learning, a comparison of two contexts for teaching the same content reveals which aspects of the contexts move student learning forward. From this mapping, paths toward future research are projected.     

Book Reviews

ABSTRACT

Student foundational knowledge of science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) is formed in their elementary education. Paradoxically, many elementary teachers have constrained background knowledge, confidence, and efficacy for teaching STEM that may hamper student STEM learning. The association between teacher preparation to teach STEM and student achievement in STEM motivated the authors' professional development program. The authors created and implemented a professional development program to address K–5 teacher confidence for, attitudes toward, knowledge of, and efficacy for teaching inquiry-based STEM. Using data from 2 independent cohorts the authors found significant and consistent increases in pre- to postinstitute assessments of teacher confidence, efficacy, and perceptions of STEM. Further, they found increased participant attention toward linking STEM curriculum and instruction to learning standards. Implications and suggestions for future research are discussed.     

Creative teaching in STEM

If Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics (STEM) disciplines in higher education are to retain students, there needs to be a shift towards teaching in more enriching and interesting ways. Creative teaching needs to become more prominent in STEM. This article presents a study that defines creative teaching in the STEM context and investigates attempts to teach creatively as experienced by nine STEM educators in an Australian university. The results highlighted that achieving creative teaching is difficult and that the element of surprise is essential. Despite the struggle required, creative teaching afforded fulfilment for teachers. We examine the characteristics of those interviewed and suggest strategies for fostering creative teaching. The findings extend beyond the STEM discipline.     

STEM教育促进小学科学课堂教学变革的探讨

STEM教育是现代社会对于教育变革思考进行的大胆探索,它是融入了许多不同种类学科的一种教育教学形式,打破了学科与学科之间存在的固定界限,主要目的是进行跨学科的知识融合,培养学生的思维创造能力和各方面的学习能力,进而提高学生的综合素质。     

Integrating the entrepreneurial mindset into solar energy statistical analysis and performance modeling

Statistical knowledge is required for students in a range of disciplines. However, there are limited educator resources that exist for applying statistics to solve real-world problems. This investigation provides one approach to teaching statistics using entrepreneurial-minded learning (as a way to connect real-world applications and value creation with problem-solving and curiosity) in the context of solar energy. Both the ready-to-use teaching intervention and assessment of student learning details are provided for an undergraduate course on Introductory Statistics. The teaching intervention includes a series of seven lesson plans (and three extension projects) that educators can use in an introductory statistics course.     

跨学科协作学习何以有效——STEM教育中CSCL应用效果的元分析

STEM教育注重通过跨学科的协作学习发展学生的知识和技能。近年来,计算机支持的协作学习(CSCL)被广泛应用于STEM教育。然而,其效果如何?其采用的各类技术和教学策略对学习效果有何影响?上述问题的明确有助于完善STEM教育中跨学科的协作学习设计。基于对2009至2019年间发表在国际期刊上的142项相关实验和准实验研究成果的元分析发现:在STEM教育中应用CSCL整体上有助于提升学习效果,且相较于过程类和情感类,其对认知类学习效果的作用最为明显;从学科来看,其对科学、工程学和教育学的影响相对较大;从采用的技术来看,通信技术、动态呈现技术和共享共建技术对学习效果的影响更加显著;从教学策略来看,案例式、游戏化、知识建构和探究式等教学策略更能提升学习效果。因此,在将CSCL应用于STEM教育时,应当加强针对情感类目标的设计以激发高水平的认知活动和认知成果,注重发挥共享共建类技术在知识可视化表征、知识追踪等方面的作用,通过整合多种教学策略推进协作探究学习。     

The Classroom Observation Protocol for Undergraduate STEM (COPUS): A New Instrument to Characterize University STEM Classroom Practices

Instructors and the teaching practices they employ play a critical role in improving student learning in college science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) courses. Consequently, there is increasing interest in collecting information on the range and frequency of teaching practices at department-wide and institution-wide scales. To help facilitate this process, we present a new classroom observation protocol known as the Classroom Observation Protocol for Undergraduate STEM or COPUS. This protocol allows STEM faculty, after a short 1.5-hour training period, to reliably characterize how faculty and students are spending their time in the classroom. We present the protocol, discuss how it differs from existing classroom observation protocols, and describe the process by which it was developed and validated. We also discuss how the observation data can be used to guide individual and institutional change.     

Improvement Science as a Promising Alternative to Barriers in Improving STEM Teacher Quality through Professional Development

STEM teaching occurs within national and state policy contexts that are constantly shifting in terms of standards and accountability due to the current and intense focus on students’ STEM outcomes. In the last two decades, federal legislation as well as common standards movements increasingly influence what and how STEM teachers instruct their students. Improvement science in education (ISE) has recently emerged as a new method of addressing many of the issues that impact teacher teaching and STEM teacher quality. ISE is a context-focused process improvement approach targeted at school improvement. This article explores three main barriers between STEM teacher professional development and student learning, and focuses on ISE as a promising alternative to current forms of STEM teacher professional development.     

How Community College Faculty Members May Improve Student Learning Productivity in Their Online Courses

Eleven experienced community college faculty members were interviewed to elicit examples of how they improved student learning productivity in their online courses. The 11 faculty members represented eight different states, nine different fields or disciplines, and all were permanent or full-time faculty members at community colleges in the southern or western states. Based on a thematic analysis of the examples given, improvement in student learning occurred by (a) emphasizing seven approaches to increase student engagement, (b) using six different structuring tactics to focus student attention on learning, (c) using assessment techniques to improve learning, and (d) pursuing a personal passion for online teaching. These findings suggest that faculty can and do find ways to use different tools in different ways to improve student learning productivity in community colleges.     

美国STEM教育改革的走向——基于《STEM2026:STEM教育创新愿景》的分析

为了更好促进美国STEM教育改革,美国出台了《STEM2026:STEM教育创新愿景》。该报告提出:STEM教育要从娃娃抓起;STEM教育要丰富生源,让更多弱势群体接受优质STEM教育;STEM教育要从校内走向校外,构建校内外一体化的STEM教育环境;STEM课程要注重学科的交叉整合,不仅要实现科学、技术、工程和数学之间的融合,还要重视STEM与其他学科的融合;STEM教学要融入游戏且具有风险性,让学生在探究中感知STEM教育的魅力,且养成不畏险阻的科学精神;STEM考评方式要多样且能促进学生更好地学习,为此考评方式要创新且具操作性。     

Hierarchical Mentoring: A Transformative Strategy for Improving Diversity and Retention in Undergraduate STEM Disciplines

In the United States, less than half of the students who enter into science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) undergraduate curricula as freshmen will actually graduate with a STEM degree. There is even greater disparity in the national STEM graduation rates of students from underrepresented groups with approximately three-fourths of minority students leaving STEM disciplines at the undergraduate level. A host of programs have been designed and implemented to model best practices in retaining students in STEM disciplines. The Howard Hughes Medical Institute (HHMI) Professors Program at Louisiana State University, under leadership of HHMI Professor Isiah M. Warner, represents one of these programs and reports on a mentoring model that addresses the key factors that impact STEM student attrition at the undergraduate level. By integrating mentoring and strategic academic interventions into a structured research program, an innovative model has been developed to guide STEM undergraduate majors in adopting the metacognitive strategies that allow them to excel in their programs of study, as they learn to appreciate and understand science more completely. Comparisons of the persistence of participants and nonparticipants in STEM curricular, at the host university and with other national universities and colleges, show the impact of the model’s salient features on improving STEM retention through graduation for all students, particularly those from underrepresented groups.     

民族预科化学课程教学改革探讨

目前的预科化学教学存在着重理论轻实践的倾向,教学内容缺乏针对性,学生学习积极性不高。预科教育是民族高等教育的一个特殊层次,预科学生是民族院校的一个特殊群体,其特殊性表现在其身份上的不确定性和游离特点。为适应这种身份特点,预科教学必须以培养学生良好的学习习惯和浓厚的学习兴趣为目的。在化学课教学中,强调教学内容的针对性,加强实验环节,联系社会热点问题介绍学科发展前沿信息,是提升学生学习兴趣的重要途径。     

“So,we kind of started from scratch,no pun intended”: What can students learn from designing games?

Much research attention has been focused on learning through game playing. However, very little has been focused on student learning through game making, especially in science. Moreover, none of the studies on learning through making games has presented an account of how students engage in the process of game design in real time. The present study seeks to address that gap. We report an exploratory embedded case study in which three groups of students in one classroom created a computer game designed to teach peers about climate science, while drawing on scientific knowledge, principles of game design, and computational thinking practices. Data sources were student design sheets, computer video, and audio screen capture while students created their game, and interviews after completing the curriculum unit. A theme-driven framework was used to code the data. A curricular emphasis on systems across climate systems, game design, and computational thinking practices provided a context designed to synergistically supported student learning. This embedded case study provides a rich example of what a collaborative game design task in a constructionist context looks like in a middle school science classroom, and how it supports student learning. Game design in a constructionist learning environment that emphasized learning through building a game allowed students to choose their pathways through the learning experience and resulted in learning for all despite various levels of programming experience. Our findings suggest that game design may be a promising context for supporting student learning in STEM disciplines.