Enhancing student engagement through instructional STEAM learning activities and self-explanation effect
Mirjana Maričić 1 * , Branko Anđić 2 , Filiz Mumcu 3 , Mia Marić 4 , Snežana Gordić 5 , Marijana Gorjanac Ranitović 5 , Stanko Cvjetićanin 1
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1 Department of Sciences and Management in Education, Faculty of Education in Sombor, University of Novi Sad, Sombor, REPUBLIC OF SERBIA2 Austrian Educational Competence Center for Biology, University of Vienna, Vienna, AUSTRIA3 Department of Computer Education and Instructional Technologies, Faculty of Education, Manisa Celal Bayar University, Manisa, TÜRKİYE4 Department of Social Sciences, Faculty of Education in Sombor, University of Novi Sad, Sombor, REPUBLIC OF SERBIA5 Department of Mathematics and Mathematics Teaching Methodology, Faculty of Education in Sombor, University of Novi Sad, Sombor, REPUBLIC OF SERBIA* Corresponding Author

Abstract

The self-explanation effect (SEE) has great potential in strengthening student learning outcomes. With adequate instructional guidance, this potential is even higher. Our study aimed to examine to what extent direct instruction (DI) and indirect instruction (II) in science, technology, engineering, arts, and mathematics (STEAM) education can strengthen different types of student engagement, as well as whether and to what extent the SEE can support instructional STEAM learning and enhance student engagement. The research was conducted through a quasi-experimental design. The data were collected using an instrument–the engagement scale and were analyzed using confirmatory factor analysis (CFA), one-way ANOVA analysis, and paired sample t-test. The study involved 103 students aged 9-10 years. The results of CFA showed that the adapted version of the instrument for measuring four types of student engagement–emotional, behavioral, cognitive, and agentic–represents a valid and reliable measure for these purposes in primary education. In addition the results of one-way ANOVA analysis and t-test revealed that the usage of DI and II proved to be successful in enhancing all four types of student engagement in the performance of STEAM activities, whereby the combination of the usage of DI with the SEE was singled out as the most successful strategy. As a significant practical implication, this research underlines the need to create appropriate conditions for introducing the SEE in the teaching of STEAM.

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This is an open access article distributed under the Creative Commons Attribution License which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited.

Article Type: Research Article

EURASIA J Math Sci Tech Ed, Volume 21, Issue 1, January 2025, Article No: em2560

https://doi.org/10.29333/ejmste/15798

Publication date: 02 Jan 2025

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