A Vision for the Treatment of Technology Education within Integrated STEM

Abstract

Since the inception of the term ‘STEM’ (Science, Technology, Engineering and Math) in the late 1990’s, a persistent challenge for educators has been the STEM gap. Inequities in participation across socioeconomic status, race and sex have challenged educators and policymakers alike. Integrated STEM (iSTEM) education has emerged as a promising meta-discipline which is attractive to a wide variety of learners. iSTEM’s value lies in its ability to offer interdisciplinary, student-centred learning experiences, mirroring the real-world complexity of global, and local issues. Despite this, iSTEM still faces considerable challenges. Conceptualisation and enactment of iSTEM experiences remain fragmented, particularly within technology education disciplines. Educators battle to navigate broad and varying definitions, pedagogies, and levels of integration. Building on two previously proposed frameworks, the first addressing the content of iSTEM from an educator’s perspective, the second addressing the learning context from the learner’s perspective, this paper presents a combined theoretical framework for iSTEM education. In this framework, technology education disciplines are foregrounded as disciplinary domains, not merely a pedagogical tool. This combined framework encompasses findings from a work-in progress systemised literature review. In addition, it spotlights students’ volition over their educational journeys, highlighting self-efficacy and social cognitive career theory (SCCT) as key influences. This paper contributes to the ongoing discourse, offering a unified model for iSTEM implementation. It aims to support educators in creating inclusive, coherent and transformative learning experiences and in fostering a lifelong interest in STEM. For students, the framework recognises iSTEM’s potential in affording greater volition over their educational and career trajectories. Future research will explore how iSTEM experiences can shape students’ educational and career trajectories, with a focus on empowering underrepresented learners through inclusive, affective and authentic STEM provision.