Abstract
The objective of this research was two-fold. First, to determine the impact of a Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics (STEM) Education program on school performance amongst primary education students. Second, to identify the potential benefits of this program on the key competences of university students in Primary Education Teacher Training. The primary education students’ sub-sample, after being matched on key covariates, was randomly assigned either to the experimental (N = 25) or control group (N = 25). The university students’ sub-sample consisted of 26 students self-selected from the Primary Education Teacher Training degree. The intervention consisted of 20 two-hour weekly sessions of highly structured after-school tutoring delivered by previously trained university students. Although statistical significance was not reached for the hypotheses tested, notably, the results showed between small and moderate effect sizes (i.e., magnitude and direction of the program impact) for primary education students on core STEM subjects (e.g., mathematics d = 0.29, natural science d = 0.26), and for university students on some key employability competencies (e.g., action orientation d = 0.27 or team orientation d = 0.54).
Highlights
In spite of the impact of the economic and financial crisis on labor markets, the demand for employment in sectors linked to Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics (STEM) has been increasing significantly in the last decade [1,2]
The sample consisted of 76 participants who were divided into two sub-samples, 50 primary education students (NtN tutees), and 26 university students who participated as student-tutors (NtN tutors)
This study aimed to demonstrate the capacity of the Nurture Thru Nature (NtN)-Granada, firstly, to improve the academic performance amongst primary education students in the instrumental and STEM subjects through the Inquiry-Based Science Education (IBSE) teaching method with a strong hands-on component and activities designed ad hoc for this project, and secondly, to increase the quality of competency-based co-curricular learning experiences available for university students
Summary
In spite of the impact of the economic and financial crisis on labor markets, the demand for employment in sectors linked to Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics (STEM) has been increasing significantly in the last decade [1,2] This growth trend is expected to persist in the coming years, and in Spain a rise of 9.68% is expected in the number of employees that the scientific-technological sector will demand by the year 2025 [3]. In Spain for example, the number of students enrolled in these scientific-technological university degrees is decreasing drastically, while the students who do enroll in these studies and training programs show a low academic performance [6] This decrease in the number of students and graduates in STEM degrees is the result of the combination of several social, cultural, economic, and educational factors. The literature points out that the main causal variables are the following [4,7,8,9]: students’ disinterest in the scientific-technological field during compulsory educational stages, stimulated by their level of self-efficacy in the STEM curricular areas; the fact that they belong to ethnic or cultural minorities; their socio-economic status; and the high rates of failure and drop-out that these degrees present [10]
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