The Effects of Using STEM Education Approach in the Topic of Fluid on Learning Achievement and Creative and Innovative Thinking of Grade 12 Students at Prankratai Pittayakom School in Kamphaeng Phet Province

Abstract

The purposes of this study were to (1) compare learning achievement on the part of grade 12 students who were learning under the STEM education approach with the traditional approach; and (2) compare the creative and innovative thinking of grade 12 students who were learning under the STEM education approach with the traditional approach. The research sample consisted of grade 12 students from Prankratai Pittayakom school, first semester of the academic year 2023, 2 classrooms totaling 86 students obtained by cluster random sampling. The experimental group was assigned to learn under STEM Education learning management, while the control group learned under the traditional approach. The employed research instruments were (1) 5 learning management plans for STEM education on the topic of fluid for a total of 20 hours; (2) 5 learning management plans on the topic of fluid for the traditional approach for a total of 20 hours; (3) an achievement test on the topic of fluid; and (4) a creativity and innovative thinking evaluation form. Statistics employed for data analysis were the mean, standard deviation, and t-test. The research findings showed that (1) the learning achievement of students who were learning under the STEM education approach was significantly higher than the control group at the .05 level; and (2) the creativity and innovative thinking of students who were learning under the STEM education approach was significantly higher than the control group at the .05 level.