Using STEAM to Increase Engagement and Literacy Across Disciplines

Abstract

This paper explores STEAM as a solution to improving student engagement and helping students improve functional literacy across the curriculum. While STEM is a fairly established approach to curriculum, researchers and practitioners are continuing to develop and understand STEAM and its place in school curriculum. It is important that educators foster this holistic approach to education and strive to participate in active research associated with STEAM. It is also most advantageous for stakeholders to understand the importance of arts integration and its use to support collaboration, innovation, and creativity within students. Key strategies can be used to support arts integration in any classroom.

Using an iSTEAM project-based learning model for technology senior high school students: Design, development, and evaluation

“…Moreover, it promoted their integration and application of iSTEAM knowledge and strengthened their ability to acquire integrated knowledge and address practical problems (Herschbach 2011). In addition to fulfilling the objective of interdisciplinary STEAM education, this course guided the students to detect and solve problems through knowledge integration and practice and complete their STEAM work (Long II and Davis 2017).…”

Promoting interdisciplinarity in primary school in the framework of science education

“…There is a growing number of acronyms that result from interdisciplinary among several subject matters such as ICT (Information and Communication Technologies), STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics) and STEAM by adding A from Arts (Weaver, 2016). Long, Robert and Davis (2017) sustain that benefits of this integration are related to scientific and economic development of countries. Costa and Domingos (2018b) propose the acronym STEAMH, by adding H of Heritage to STEAM, arguing that Heritage is a very important feature of the real world since its beginning.…”

Cultivating STEAM Literacy: Emphasizing the Implementation of the Arts through Reading Practices Supporting the Asian Diaspora

“…Developing a habit of mind specific to STEAM literacy shapes how reading is approached and how students select materials to read. To foster habits of mind in STEAM literacy, students will need to be supported to do the following: -cognitively and metacognitively associate reading content back to potential STEAM concepts -actively and critically thinking about what they are reading and how it can be integrated into real-world contexts -innovatively consider potential applications of knowledge gained from reading by using a critical thinking lens to make connections to the text, self, and world According to Long II and Davis (2017), literacy "occurs through the process of learning (i.e., deliberate procedure of gaining knowledge) and acquisition (i.e., gaining knowledge through observation, exposure to modelling, imitation, and trial-and-error" (p. 2). To support the process of developing students' STEAM literacy, teachers not only need to be cognizant and mindful of the texts they are incorporating in their STEAM lessons, but they also need to help students learn how to generate good reading habits and develop self-discipline that support STEAM exploration practices.…”