2024 ASEE Annual Conference & Exposition

The problem is that COVID-19 radically changed teaching and learning at a time when many public school districts were still aligning to their state’s new science, technology and engineering (STE) curriculum frameworks. When the pandemic hit the United States by March 2020, teaching and learning went completely remote for the majority of schools. Teachers abruptly learned new strategies and technologies to facilitate remote teaching while students faced challenges with remote learning, self-directed learning, isolation from friends and teachers, and equitable access to the Internet and computer devices. STEAM Labs and science equipment were inaccessible. With an emphasis on math instruction, ELA instruction and students’ social and emotional learning needs, remote and hybrid teaching and learning involving science and engineering were not a priority for elementary teachers and their district administrators, even as COVID-19 health protocols and restrictions eased into the 2021 – 2022 academic year.

Fullan’s educational change theory was used to investigate the impact of STEAM education in 2 public school districts as they aligned to new state STE curriculum frameworks. A mixed methods, embedded case study approach was used to explore how sixteen (16) elementary teachers and six (6) district leaders implemented revised STE curricula before and during the pandemic. This study investigated the research question “How does the presence of science, engineering and technology curricula and STEAM Labs, and in particular their absence during COVID-19, impact elementary education and the implementation of new science, technology and engineering (STE) curriculum frameworks?”. Study participants were invited between December 2021 – February 2022 to complete an online qualitative and quantitative survey which was designed using questions from previously published self-efficacy and teacher experience instruments. Participants were also invited to discuss their experiences during a virtual interview.

Results indicate that COVID-19 continued to disrupt STE teaching and learning through the 2021 – 2022 academic year and that STEAM Labs, collaborative group work, and investigative problem solving skills were missing from STE instruction. Findings reveal that there is renewed interest in project-based learning, inquiry-based learning, innovative pedagogy, STEAM Labs and engineering as the “keystone” to STEAM education, especially as COVID-19 health protocols and restrictions subside. To apply the results of this study, researchers and professional development providers should continue to engage teachers in continuous, embedded professional development that focuses on engineering pedagogy, engineering practices and teacher self-efficacy to help integrate STEAM education. Future research should also follow the short-term and long-term integration of engineering into elementary education to study student outcomes, especially longitudinally. As much as COVID-19 continued to disrupt STE teaching and learning, it has reminded educators that the need to provide high-quality science, technology, and engineering education is even more urgent.