Description
Book SynopsisThis book informs best practice for enhancing young children's STEM learning experiences in formal settings such as preschool environments and less formal settings such as home environments. It is the first collection of multidisciplinary and multinational studies on early STEM programs worldwide and presents diverse, authentic, and current STEM-relevant scenarios that address two fundamental problems: where are we in early STEM education? and where shall we go?
The book explores factors that influence young learners' abilities to make informed choices in authentic, problem-based, STEM-relevant scenarios and how those abilities have been identified, documented, and enhanced. Chapters address topics related to curriculum and pedagogy, teacher education and professional development, family environment, and inclusive education from a variety of international settings including Australia, Germany, Hong Kong, Mainland China, Singapore, and the United States. Each ch
Table of Contents
1. Introduction: Developing Culturally and Developmentally Appropriate Early STEM Learning Experiences 2. “Once Upon A Star”: A Science Education Program Based on Personification Storytelling in Promoting Preschool Children’s Understanding of Astronomy Concepts 3. Teacher’s Role in Fostering Preschoolers’ Computational Thinking: An Exploratory Case Study 4.Engineering Play, Mathematics, and Spatial Skills in Children with and without Disabilities 5.Mathematics Learning Opportunities in Preschool: Where Does the Classroom Library Fit In? 6. Exploring the Relationships between Scientific Epistemic Beliefs, Science Teaching Beliefs and Science-Specific PCK among Pre-Service Kindergarten Teachers in China 7. Evaluation of an Online Early Mathematics Professional Development Program for Early Childhood Teachers 8. The Influence of Parental Educational Involvement in Early Childhood on 4th Grade Students’ Mathematics Achievement 9. Family Cohesion Facilitates Learning-Related Behaviors and Math Competency at the Transition to Elementary School 10. STEM for Inclusive Excellence and Equity 11. An Analysis of the Nature of Young Students’ STEM Learning in 3D Technology-Enhanced Makerspaces
