ERIC Number: EJ1299382
Record Type: Journal
Publication Date: 2021-Jul
Pages: 15
Abstractor: As Provided
ISBN: N/A
ISSN: ISSN-1082-3301
EISSN: N/A
Supporting Preschool Children's STEM Learning with Parent-Involved Early Engineering Education
Ata-Aktürk, Aysun; Demircan, H. Özlen
Early Childhood Education Journal, v49 n4 p607-621 Jul 2021
This study examines the development of a STEM-based (Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics) and parent-involved engineering design curriculum for early childhood education and investigates its design principles and contributions to children's STEM-related learning. This research utilized a design-based research methodology broken into three main phases (preliminary research, prototyping, and assessment). The data were gathered over a 2-year span, and the curriculum was designed and revised during the prototyping phase's three iterative cycles. This paper presents the findings of a field test that involved two early childhood education teachers, five preschool children, and five parents. Findings validated eight key design principles of the curriculum and revealed that the curriculum contributes to the knowledge, skills, feelings, and dispositions children have towards STEM. The findings suggest that the developed curriculum can be used as a novel way of integrating STEM into early childhood education, with a particular focus on engineering, while encouraging parental involvement.
Descriptors: STEM Education, Parent Participation, Engineering, Design, Early Childhood Education, Preschool Teachers, Preschool Children, Curriculum Development, Student Attitudes
Springer. Available from: Springer Nature. One New York Plaza, Suite 4600, New York, NY 10004. Tel: 800-777-4643; Tel: 212-460-1500; Fax: 212-460-1700; e-mail: customerservice@springernature.com; Web site: https://link.springer.com/
Publication Type: Journal Articles; Reports - Research
Education Level: Early Childhood Education; Preschool Education
Audience: N/A
Language: English
Sponsor: N/A
Authoring Institution: N/A
Grant or Contract Numbers: N/A

Peer reviewed
Direct link
