Abstract:

STE(A)M education (Science, Technology, Engineering, Art and Mathematics), a relatively new concept in Romania, helps children to understand abstract concepts through experimentation and play. The article is a research on how teachers in Romania use STE(A)M in primary school, highlighting the benefits of such an education in order to help students better understand certain notions but also to make connections with the real world. At the same time, STE(A)M education demonstrates that it can be applied in everyday life, with students focusing on problem solving for real-life solutions. This type of education can start at an early age even from primary school. The research was conducted on a sample of 130 people, divided into three categories: 60 children from primary school, 30 parents and 40 teachers from Ilfov County, Romania. Both quantitative and qualitative methods were used to collect the data, such as the survey, the interview and the experiment. The survey and interview were addressed to both teachers and parents. It was found that, unlike the classical lessons in the traditional education system, where the teacher teaches and the child listens, STE(A)M is an active, applied, constructivist method of "learning by doing". It is about students being able to work in the classroom or at home with their parents, like a scientist or an engineer: observing, asking questions, formulating ideas, hypotheses, experimenting, applying what they discover, formulating and conveying conclusions.

Keywords:

STE(A)M education, primary school, problem solving, experiment.