The Effects of Using Science Learning Unit Aligning with STEM Education on Sunflower Sprout to Promote Problem-Solving Ability of Matthayomsuksa 1 Students

Abstract

The objectives of this research was to study the effects of using science learning unit aligning with STEM Education on sunflower sprout to promote problem-solving ability of Matthayomsuksa 1 students in three aspects: 1) students’ problem-solving abilities; 2) students’ science understanding; and 3) students’ satisfaction towards learning with science learning unit. The pre-experimental research, one group pretest-posttest design, was applied for this research. The participants in this research consisted of 30 Matthayomsuksa 1 students who were studying in the second semester, 2018 academic year of a school under Bangkok Primary Education Service Area Office, Huai Khwang District, Bangkok Metropolis, using purposive sampling. The research instruments comprised of: 1) Matthayomsuksa 1 student’s problem solving ability test; 2) science understanding test; and 3) student’s satisfaction towards teaching and learning questionnaire. The statistics used for data analysis included percentage, mean, standard deviation, one-sample t-test and t-test for dependent samples. The results found that:
1. The students’ problem-solving ability mean scores, in overall, after learning was higher than before learning with statistical significance at .05 level (t = 9.417, p = .000).
2. The students’ science understanding mean score after learning was higher than before learning (t = 18.508, p = .000) and higher than the criteria at 65 percent with statistical significance at .05 level (t = 9.967, p = .000)
3. The students’ satisfaction towards learning with science learning unit mean scores in overall and each aspect, after learning were at a high level.