Effects of different interventions to treat errors during STEM learning on improving young children’s psychological resilience

Abstract

ABSTRACT Background: Early childhood is seen as a critical period for developing psychological resilience, which is important for the development of young children’s mental and physical health. Previous research has identified the value of STEM learning in early childhood education, but less research has focused on the psychological resilience of young children in the face of STEM learning errors and setbacks. Purpose: This study aimed to explore the intervention effects of trial-and-error learning (TEL) and error-free learning (EFL) on improving young children’s psychological resilience in STEM activities. Sample The participants were 42 young children aged 5-6. Design and methods The TEL group included 21 young children who adopted the method in which the teacher guided them to learn by trial and error, while another 21 young children in the EFL group conducted the method in which the teacher provided direct instruction to reduce or eliminate errors during the learning process. The Devereux Early Childhood Assessment for Preschoolers was used to test the pre-, mid- and post-psychological resilience of the two groups. The Friedman test and Mann-Whitney test were used to examine whether TEL and EFL can improve young children’s psychological resilience. Results: The results indicated that TEL can, but EFL cannot. Different effects were shown on the improvement of the young children’s psychological resilience in the two groups. Compared with the EFL group, the young children in the TEL group could better improve their psychological resilience, especially in the dimensions of initiative, self-regulation, and attachment/relationships, but the better improvement in behavior concerns was not evident until the final test. Conclusions: This study addresses a gap in understanding of the effects of TEL and EFL interventions on young children’s psychological resilience, and the need to establish an evidence base for promoting young children’s psychological resilience through designing STEM activities in early childhood education. Meanwhile, a reference for preschool teachers to use TEL interventions in STEM education is also provided.