Effects of the STEM Education Program on Preschool Children's Science Process Skills

Abstract

For more than a decade, STEM educational approaches have attracted the attention of educators. The aim of this study was to examine the effects of the Early STEM Education Program (ESTEMEP) on children's science process skills. The study utilized the semi-experimental research design and it was conducted with 26 six-year-old children in Istanbul during the 2017-2018 academic year. The Preschool Science Process Skills Scale for 60-72 Month Old Children was used in the study as a data collection tool. Before starting the education process, pretests were conducted with the experimental and control group. Secondly, the ESTEMEP was applied to the experimental group twice a week for 10 weeks, after which both groups were given a posttest. The covariance analysis test and Mann-Whitney U test were used for analyses, and the results show that, although the groups shared similar scores in the pretests, there was a significant difference in favor of the experimental group in the posttest scores. This finding shows that the ESTEMEP program is effective in the acquisition of science process skills (SPS).