Understanding the Beliefs and Perceptions of Teachers Who Choose to Implement Engineering-based Science Instruction

Abstract

is a doctoral student in science education at Tufts University and a Graduate Research Assistant with the Center for Engineering Education and Outreach. She graduated from North Carolina State University as a Park Scholar with a B.A. in physics. Her passion for STEM education is long-standing, but she was inspired to pursue her graduate degree after three years spent teaching physics to high-school freshman. Beside engineering-design-based curricula, her interests include scientific representations and modeling, and women in science and engineering.

Implementation of STEM in Secondary Mathematics Classrooms: Identification of Teachers' Beliefs

“…Although teachers mostly do not fully understand the STEM integration, research studies revealed that teachers can perceive the interconnectedness of STEM areas (Wang & Knobloch, 2018;Wang et al, 2011) believing that integration of these areas nurtures a meaningful understanding of the concepts by making connections with everyday life experiences (Hargreaves & Moore, 2000;Mason, 1996;Schlechty, 1990). Research has also shown that teachers believe that STEM integration can improve the level of student involvement and problem-solving abilities (Kendall & Wendell, 2012).…”