Exploring the Impact of STEM Education on Scientific Creativity and Reflecting Thinking in Elementary Science Education

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Abstract

The purpose of this study was to examine the effect of STEM education on students' scientific creativity and reflective thinking skills in elementary school science class. The participants were 80 fourth-grade students. A pretest-posttest quasi-experimental design was used. Five integrated STEM lesson plans were prepared and implemented for ten weeks and 30 course hours. The data was collected using the Scientific Creativity Test and Reflective Thinking Skill Towards Problem Solving Scale. The findings revealed a statistically significant difference in scientific creativity scores of the participating students in favor of the experimental group. The effect size was moderate. No significant difference was detected between groups in terms of reflecting thinking scores.

Authors

• Umran Atabas, Istanbul 29 Mayıs University

• Gonul Sakiz, Marmara University