ABSTRACT

Background

Although sound is an everyday phenomenon that we hear about constantly, numerous studies have reported that students often exhibit learning difficulties in understanding this subject. Only a few studies have proposed programs involving practical learning experiments to provide students with solid conceptual knowledge. Moreover, little research to date has dealt with the topic of sound from the STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics) perspective.

Purpose

The need for this research is rooted in the general lack of learning materials developed according to integrative STEM and in the shortage of interdisciplinary contents that specifically address the subject of sound. The Sound, Waves and Communication Systems (SWCS) program was developed in Sakhnin in Israel to integrate the learning of science and technology through the extensive use of Information and Computer Technologies (ICT). The study aimed at exploring middle school students’ achievements and motivation in learning the program and discovering the factors that might affect these elements.

Sample

The participants in the study are 120 middle school students (7th-graders), divided into six separate groups: two groups (40 students) participated in the pilot study, whereas four groups (80 students) took part in the main study.

Methods

The study adopted a mixed method research design, and combined quantitative and qualitative methods that included observations in class, administering a students’ motivation questionnaire before and after studying the course, giving achievement exams, and analyzing the students’ projects.

Results

The findings showed that despite difficulties in learning the subject, the students eventually managed to gain a conceptual understanding and their self-efficacy significantly increased.

Conclusions

The flexible integration of the teachers’ instruction, the hands-on lab work, the use of ICT, and project-based learning all contributed to the participants’ success and motivation in learning the current course.

中文翻译：

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探索 STEM 整合：评估跨学科非正式课程在培养学生表现和灵感方面的有效性

摘要

背景

虽然声音是我们经常听到的日常现象，但许多研究表明，学生在理解这个主题时经常表现出学习困难。只有少数研究提出了涉及实践学习实验的计划，以为学生提供扎实的概念知识。此外，迄今为止，很少有研究从 STEM（科学、技术、工程和数学）角度处理声音主题。

目的

这项研究的必要性源于普遍缺乏根据综合 STEM 开发的学习材料，以及缺乏专门针对声音主题的跨学科内容。声音、波浪和通信系统(SWCS) 计划是在以色列的 Sakhnin 开发的，旨在通过广泛使用信息和计算机技术( ICT )来整合科学和技术的学习。本研究旨在探讨中学生学习该课程的成绩和动机，并找出可能影响这些因素的因素。

样本

该研究的参与者是 120 名中学生（七年级学生），分为六个独立的组：两组（40 名学生）参加了试点研究，而四组（80 名学生）参加了主要研究。

方法

该研究采用混合方法研究设计，定量和定性相结合的方法，包括课堂观察、学生学习前后的动机问卷调查、成绩测试和学生项目分析。

结果

调查结果显示，尽管学生在学习这门学科时遇到困难，但他们最终还是设法获得了概念上的理解，他们的自我效能感也显着提高。

结论

教师指导、动手实验室工作、ICT 的使用和基于项目的学习的灵活结合都有助于参与者在当前课程中取得成功和积极性。