EXAMINING EXPERT OPINIONS ON STEAM EDUCATION: A CASE STUDY

Abstract

The purpose of this study was to examine the opinions of experts on STEAM education. Four experts working in a STEM center and six academicians working in the field of STEM in a state university education faculty participated in the study. The participants were selected on the basis of purposeful sampling. The research data were collected through structured interview forms. There were 12 open-ended questions in the interview forms. The data obtained at the end of the study were analyzed using the qualitative analysis techniques of thematic analysis. According to the results, the experts reported that STEAM education had an important place in the education system; that it gave students a holistic perspective; and that it was especially effective in the development of 21^st century skills. The participants found it very important to add art to STEM education. They emphasized that art was very important in the development of students' visual, aesthetic and design skills. In addition, they stated that art should be used in processes requiring visuality and design. Moreover, the participants mostly pointed out that STEAM activities could be carried out in every field and environment. The experts participating in the study stated that they mostly preferred STEAM books, scientific publications and Internet resources to learn about STEAM education. They reported that STEAM activities could be used with many methods and techniques of constructivist theory, especially project-based learning. The participants in the study emphasized that teachers willing to carry out STEAM activities should receive training from experts and develop their 21^st century skills. The participants expressed the age of starting STEAM education as the pre-school age in general, and they thought that the implementation processes of STEAM activities were not easy for various reasons. In STEAM training practices, some of the participants considered themselves as sufficient, and some as inadequate. They also stated that the current conditions in learning environments were insufficient for STEAM applications.