This book provides a platform for international scholars to share evidence for effective practices in integrated STEM education and contributes to the theoretical and practical knowledge gained from the diversity of approaches. Many publications on STEM education focus on one or two of the separate STEM disciplines without considering the potential for delivering STEM curriculum as an integrated approach.This publication analyzes the efficacy of an integrated STEM curriculum and instruction, providing evidence to examine and support various integrations. The volume focuses on the problems seen by academics working in the fields of science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) and provides valuable, high quality research outcomes and a set of valued practices which have demonstrated their use and viability to improve the quality of integrated STEM education.

STEM Integration in K-12 Education examines current efforts to connect the STEM disciplines in K-12 education. This report identifies and characterizes existing approaches to integrated STEM education, both in formal and after- and out-of-school settings. The report reviews the evidence for the impact of integrated approaches on various student outcomes, and it proposes a set of priority research questions to advance the understanding of integrated STEM education. STEM Integration in K-12 Education proposes a framework to provide a common perspective and vocabulary for researchers, practitioners, and others to identify, discuss, and investigate specific integrated STEM initiatives within the K-12 education system of the United States. STEM Integration in K-12 Education makes recommendations for designers of integrated STEM experiences, assessment developers, and researchers to design and document effective integrated STEM education. This report will help to further their work and improve the chances that some forms of integrated STEM education will make a positive difference in student learning and interest and other valued outcomes.

This timely book addresses the increasing need for collaboration, innovation and solution-focussed skills by looking at examples of cutting-edge pedagogy that can inform future directions. Integrating STEM in Higher Education shows how applying digital innovations that can be generated through the implementation of deliberately designed STEM education can change the world for the better. References to over 45 higher education institutions from around the world are included, where integrated approaches are already occurring. A wide range of teaching strategies and assessment methods are discussed, promoting a transformative method in which students can generate new knowledge within coursework and simultaneously develop skills and attributes for their future careers, lives and the world’s needs. This book is essential reading for STEM educators, administrators and academic leaders, as well as learning designers in higher education.

Over the past decade, integrated STEM education research has emerged as an international concern, creating around it an imperative for technological and disciplinary innovation and a global resurgence of interest in teaching and learning to code at the K-16 levels. At the same time, issues of democratization, equity, power and access, including recent decolonizing efforts in public education, are also beginning to be acknowledged as legitimate issues in STEM education. Taking a reflexive approach to the intersection of these concerns, this book presents a collection of papers making new theoretical advances addressing two broad themes: Transdisciplinary Approaches in STEM Education and Bodies, Hegemony and Decolonization in STEM Education. Within each theme, praxis is of central concern including analyses of teaching and learning that re-imagines disciplinary boundaries and domains, the relationship between Art and STEM, and the design of learning technologies, spaces and environments. In addition to graduate research seminars at the Masters and PhD levels in Learning Sciences, Science Education, Educational Technology and STEM education, this book could also serve as a textbook for graduate and pre-service teacher education courses.

In the face of complex local and global problems, there is a critical need to prepare PK-12 students to be innovative, resilient problem-solvers and well-equipped STEM-literate citizens. With focus upon integrated content, college and career readiness, authentic problems, and action-oriented pedagogies, integrative STEM education provides a promising approach to address this challenge. Integrative STEM programming with its fusion of science, mathematics, engineering, and technology content and practices may manifest in a variety of ways: Teachers co-plan an engineering design experience within a social studies class. A community business partner offers a job-shadowing experience. Students engage in an after-school program at a makerspace. Educators collaboratively re-envision and interweave STEM across the curriculum. And more... Current and future educational leaders striving to improve STEM programming will find this book to be a useful resource. Its introduction offers an orientation to the fundamental goals, principles, and practices of integrative STEM education. While later chapters delve into the facets of STEM programming and the competencies of STEM leadership which form the foundation of a coherent program. These evidence-based strategies, examples, and resources may provide inspiration to leaders as they initiate and enhance an equitable integrative STEM culture within their school.

STEM Road Map: A Framework for Integrated STEM Education is the first resource to offer an integrated STEM curricula encompassing the entire K-12 spectrum, with complete grade-level learning based on a spiraled approach to building conceptual understanding. A team of over thirty STEM education professionals from across the U.S. collaborated on the important work of mapping out the Common Core standards in mathematics and English/language arts, the Next Generation Science Standards performance expectations, and the Framework for 21st Century Learning into a coordinated, integrated, STEM education curriculum map. The book is structured in three main parts—Conceptualizing STEM, STEM Curriculum Maps, and Building Capacity for STEM—designed to build common understandings of integrated STEM, provide rich curriculum maps for implementing integrated STEM at the classroom level, and supports to enable systemic transformation to an integrated STEM approach. The STEM Road Map places the power into educators’ hands to implement integrated STEM learning within their classrooms without the need for extensive resources, making it a reality for all students.

Want to know how to implement authentic STEM teaching and learning into your classroom? STEM Lesson Essentials provides all the tools and strategies you'll need to design integrated, interdisciplinary STEM lessons and units that are relevant and exciting to your students. With clear definitions of both STEM and STEM literacy, the authors argue that STEM in itself is not a curriculum, but rather a way of organizing and delivering instruction by weaving the four disciplines together in intentional ways. Rather than adding two new subjects to the curriculum, the engineering and technology practices can instead be blended into existing math and science lessons in ways that engage students and help them master 21st century skills.

Science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) are cultural achievements that reflect our humanity, power our economy, and constitute fundamental aspects of our lives as citizens, consumers, parents, and members of the workforce. Providing all students with access to quality education in the STEM disciplines is important to our nation's competitiveness. However, it is challenging to identify the most successful schools and approaches in the STEM disciplines because success is defined in many ways and can occur in many different types of schools and settings. In addition, it is difficult to determine whether the success of a school's students is caused by actions the school takes or simply related to the population of students in the school. Successful K-12 STEM Education defines a framework for understanding "success" in K-12 STEM education. The book focuses its analysis on the science and mathematics parts of STEM and outlines criteria for identifying effective STEM schools and programs. Because a school's success should be defined by and measured relative to its goals, the book identifies three important goals that share certain elements, including learning STEM content and practices, developing positive dispositions toward STEM, and preparing students to be lifelong learners. A successful STEM program would increase the number of students who ultimately pursue advanced degrees and careers in STEM fields, enhance the STEM-capable workforce, and boost STEM literacy for all students. It is also critical to broaden the participation of women and minorities in STEM fields. Successful K-12 STEM Education examines the vast landscape of K-12 STEM education by considering different school models, highlighting research on effective STEM education practices, and identifying some conditions that promote and limit school- and student-level success in STEM. The book also looks at where further work is needed to develop appropriate data sources. The book will serve as a guide to policy makers; decision makers at the school and district levels; local, state, and federal government agencies; curriculum developers; educators; and parent and education advocacy groups.

The Handbook of Research on STEM Education represents a groundbreaking and comprehensive synthesis of research and presentation of policy within the realm of science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) education. What distinguishes this Handbook from others is the nature of integration of the disciplines that is the founding premise for the work – all chapters in this book speak directly to the integration of STEM, rather than discussion of research within the individual content areas. The Handbook of Research on STEM Education explores the most pressing areas of STEM within an international context. Divided into six sections, the authors cover topics including: the nature of STEM, STEM learning, STEM pedagogy, curriculum and assessment, critical issues in STEM, STEM teacher education, and STEM policy and reform. The Handbook utilizes the lens of equity and access by focusing on STEM literacy, early childhood STEM, learners with disabilities, informal STEM, socio-scientific issues, race-related factors, gender equity, cultural-relevancy, and parental involvement. Additionally, discussion of STEM education policy in a variety of countries is included, as well as a focus on engaging business/industry and teachers in advocacy for STEM education. The Handbook’s 37 chapters provide a deep and meaningful landscape of the implementation of STEM over the past two decades. As such, the findings that are presented within provide the reader with clear directions for future research into effective practice and supports for integrated STEM, which are grounded in the literature to date.

Originally published as a special issue of the Middle School Journal, this book presents integrative curriculum as a foundational element of the middle school. By addressing the current gap in literature on curriculum integration in the middle grades, this text explores how learning can be organized around authentic concepts or questions which cut across disciplines and speak to young adolescents. Providing a current, nuanced, and comprehensive review of what it means to embrace and implement an interdisciplinary and integrative curriculum, the volume considers how educators can create and deliver a high-quality integrative curriculum which is enjoyable, challenging, and inclusive. Examples of implementation in teacher preparation programs and middle grade classrooms showcase integrative approaches and illustrate how curricula have been key in tackling social inequities, increasing engagement with STEM, and supporting collaboration. This text will be of great interest to graduate and postgraduate students, researchers, academics and libraries in the field of Middle School Education, Curriculum Studies, Teacher Education, Theories of Learning, and STEM Education.