Understanding teachers' experiences as they lived them and as they told them is important for conceptualizing a well-rounded view of the state of science education and the role teachers play in it. Journey mapping, a way of visualizing one's processes and experiences as they progress towards a goal, is a tool with the potential to capture…

The aim of this study is to present the implementation steps of an engineering design process-based activity. The activity was implemented with 6th-grade students; 21 students were involved. Various visuals were used to attract the students' attention during the introduction of the activity, and discussions were held about engineers and…

Nearly one-fifth of U.S. children attend rural schools; however, these students have fewer opportunities for high-quality STEM learning. Rural students are also less likely to attend college and less likely to enroll in STEM majors than their urban and suburban peers. In conjunction with these factors, female students are also less likely to…

The purpose of this research is to examine the effects of engineering design-based activities carried out in the sixth-grade Matter and Heat unit on the problem-solving skills of students, and the changes in the designing skills of students during these activities. This research, conducted by following the one-group pre-test -- post-test…

This study explores the impact of robotics activities on the creativity and problem-solving performances of secondary school students. The participants consisted of 10 students from a computer science class at a secondary school. The robotics activities utilized Lego Ev3 kits and incorporated reverse engineering principles. Data were gathered…

A group of adults, dressed in authentic medieval costumes, organize and stage a full-scale battle at a local park; weapons (made from foam), roles, and medieval speech are all part of the event. This is known as "Live Action Role Play" -- more commonly referred to as "LARP." Although many settings and scenarios have been used…

Engineering design is being increasingly included in elementary education, typically to provide students with opportunities to apply science and mathematics concepts while developing their engineering practices. An important question is how to prepare teachers who can help students develop more informed engineering practices during classroom…

Background: Dealing with uncertainties is inherent in the engineering design process and often poses challenges for young learners. This necessitates providing learners with adequate support to navigate their uncertainties effectively. However, achieving this requires a deeper understanding of the factors influencing learners' uncertainty…

Astronomy education is essential for STEM education in primary schools, and integrating engineering design-based science education enhances student engagement and achievement in the field of space science. Integrating engineering design into science education is essential for students to excel in astronomy and to meet the requirements of…

Preparing students to use and consume data both inside and outside of school is an important goal in mathematics, science, and engineering education, but even basic data analysis tasks can quickly become complex. Planning and designing classroom data analysis tasks that support students' learning of statistical principals requires an understanding…

The integration of engineering into existing school science curricula is arguably an effort to move beyond a mono-disciplinary goal of learning to one that teaches real-world applications and problem-solving in science. This study adopted dual theoretical lenses to scrutinize and compare the distribution of engineering elements in past and present…

In the current study, an engineering design-based STEM activity was designed and implemented for 5th graders. The current activity is expected to provide guidance and perspective to teachers (practitioners) in designing and implementing an activity based on design-based learning, STEM activity, and engineering design process (EDP). At the same…

The activity presented in this article is an engaging engineering challenge that has been conducted with third- through fifth-grade students in school classrooms and during after-school programs. This article describes the hands-on activity as appropriate for fifth graders that supports the "Next Generation Science Standards." This…

This article describes a force and motion unit that spanned four weeks (50 minutes a day) in a fifth-grade classroom. The inquiry-based learning progression mirrors Piaget's Theory of Cognitive Development (1952) because it allowed students to manipulate materials and ideas as they actively constructed and reconstructed their knowledge of motion…

Elementary engineering, as an emergent or "contentious" practice, is fertile ground for cultural analysis. Contentious practice (Holland, D., & Lave, J. (2001). "History in person: Enduring struggles, contentious practice, intimate identities." School of American Research Press) highlights how historically enduring…