The Readiness of Shenzhen Primary Science Teachers Using Problem-Based Learning to Implement STEM Education

Abstract

Teachers are essential factors in educational reform. In Shenzhen, STEM education has become popular and problem-based learning (PBL) is a common pedagogical approach adopted in science courses in primary schools, while few studies integrate PBL and STEM education to facilitate teachers to implement STEM education. Considering the mature development of PBL in science education in Shenzhen primary schools, the combination of PBL and STEM education may effectively improve teachers' readiness for STEM education. To attain a broad and in-depth understanding of the readiness of primary science teachers, the study uses mixed methods to investigate the cognitive, affective, and behavioral aspects of 31 science teachers' readiness. The instruments included the questionnaire and teachers' interview form based on Abdullah et al. (2017)'s related framework of three aspects. Descriptive analysis and the inductive thematic network approach were applied in quantitative data and qualitative data respectively. The results showed that science teachers were best ready in the cognitive aspect (average 3.43) and relatively less ready (average 3.07) in the behavioral aspect. The affective aspect was found with the lowest readiness among these three aspects (average 2.92). Even if the level of cognitive readiness and behavioral readiness was high, the low affective readiness teachers did not have the confidence to implement STEM education with PBL in class. This study also found that the support from parents and schools became the key factors influencing teachers' affective readiness.