STEM Education in the New Zealand Setting: A Case-Study of STEM in a Year 7/8 Classroom

Abstract

This article explains a case study undertaken for the purposes of answering the research questions: What does STEM education look like in a Year 7/8 New Zealand classroom? How do Year 7/8 students engage in the interdisciplinary approach of STEM education? Do/how do students value STEM learning in contrast to individual subject learning? This case study focused on a STEM unit of work with data collected through pre- and post-unit surveys, observations and student journals. Findings illustrate that students find STEM learning an engaging and interesting avenue for developing a deeper understanding when their learning is situated within a context they can connect with. The case study discussed in this article provides a rich example of STEM teaching and learning that will, hopefully, be informative for other teachers and researchers interested in exploring the integration of STEM education in the New Zealand setting.