Good Practices For Stem Based Learning Management And Assessment For Secondary Education Classrooms In Thailand

Abstract

The idea of STEM education is not new, but it is considered to be innovative and still limited in Thai education. Thai teachers have tried adopt this concept in managing their classrooms and assessing their learners. This study aimed to investigate good practices for STEM based learning management and assessment that is currently applied by STEM Education Centers in Thailand. Participants of this qualitative research included coordinators of the center (n=8), and teachers (n=16) who were trained by the centers. Content analysis was used to analyze the data from interviews, focus group, and observations. The analysis indicated the instructional model on good practices including an implementation of problem-based instruction and project-based in curricular developed by teachers of the centers. Moreover, the good practices regarding classroom management and assessment were shown through 5E’s cycle. The cycle aims at encouraging students’ thinking process and problem-solving. The findings also showed authentic assessment as a good practice for assessing learners ‘performances. The results suggest that transdisciplinary integration combined with 5E’s cycle, which is a good practice for STEM based learning management, can promote learners’ interest in science, technology, engineering, mathematics, and other related careers.