Are STEM Students Creative Thinkers?
Scholarly research has increasingly examined the role of STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics) education, and that of creativity as a transversal skill. However, far fewer studies have investigated the relationship between the two, particularly in secondary-school contexts, and th...
| Main Authors: | , , , |
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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MDPI AG
2023-06-01
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| Series: | Journal of Intelligence |
| Subjects: | |
| Online Access: | https://www.mdpi.com/2079-3200/11/6/106 |
| _version_ | 1797594085516640256 |
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| author | Christabel Borg Preca Leonie Baldacchino Marie Briguglio Margaret Mangion |
| author_facet | Christabel Borg Preca Leonie Baldacchino Marie Briguglio Margaret Mangion |
| author_sort | Christabel Borg Preca |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Scholarly research has increasingly examined the role of STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics) education, and that of creativity as a transversal skill. However, far fewer studies have investigated the relationship between the two, particularly in secondary-school contexts, and they have obtained inconsistent results. This paper contributes to the literature by asking: <i>To what extent is studying STEM associated with higher levels of creativity in a secondary-school context?</i> The study utilises a pre-existing dataset gathered in Malta (EU) from some 400 students aged between 11 and 16 years old. It yields information on both the engagement in STEM (measured by exposure to STEM chosen by students as optional subjects, and the enjoyment of STEM considered by students to be their favourite subjects), as well as creativity levels (measured by Divergent Thinking performance on Alternate Uses Tests). Correlation analysis revealed a strong positive link between the two phenomena, lending support to the notion that STEM students tend to be more creative than other students. Using regression analysis, a model is estimated to identify the possible effects of engaging in STEM subjects on creativity, once the other co-determinants of creativity are controlled. The results indicate that both the exposure to STEM subject/s and enjoyment thereof significantly and positively predict creativity, even after controlling for the other possible determinants of creativity (such as age, gender, parental education, and participation in creative activities). These findings offer encouraging insights into 21st century education and for curriculum development as they suggest that, in addition to having value in their own right, STEM subjects can contribute to the development of creativity in young people. |
| first_indexed | 2024-03-11T02:17:41Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-be4ff466fd464c0e9e1d44f738cae9f0 |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 2079-3200 |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-03-11T02:17:41Z |
| publishDate | 2023-06-01 |
| publisher | MDPI AG |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Journal of Intelligence |
| spelling | doaj.art-be4ff466fd464c0e9e1d44f738cae9f02023-11-18T11:04:40ZengMDPI AGJournal of Intelligence2079-32002023-06-0111610610.3390/jintelligence11060106Are STEM Students Creative Thinkers?Christabel Borg Preca0Leonie Baldacchino1Marie Briguglio2Margaret Mangion3Department of Public Policy, University of Malta, MSD2080 Msida, MaltaThe Edward de Bono Institute for Creative Thinking and Innovation, University of Malta, MSD2080 Msida, MaltaDepartment of Economics, University of Malta, MSD2080 Msida, MaltaThe Edward de Bono Institute for Creative Thinking and Innovation, University of Malta, MSD2080 Msida, MaltaScholarly research has increasingly examined the role of STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics) education, and that of creativity as a transversal skill. However, far fewer studies have investigated the relationship between the two, particularly in secondary-school contexts, and they have obtained inconsistent results. This paper contributes to the literature by asking: <i>To what extent is studying STEM associated with higher levels of creativity in a secondary-school context?</i> The study utilises a pre-existing dataset gathered in Malta (EU) from some 400 students aged between 11 and 16 years old. It yields information on both the engagement in STEM (measured by exposure to STEM chosen by students as optional subjects, and the enjoyment of STEM considered by students to be their favourite subjects), as well as creativity levels (measured by Divergent Thinking performance on Alternate Uses Tests). Correlation analysis revealed a strong positive link between the two phenomena, lending support to the notion that STEM students tend to be more creative than other students. Using regression analysis, a model is estimated to identify the possible effects of engaging in STEM subjects on creativity, once the other co-determinants of creativity are controlled. The results indicate that both the exposure to STEM subject/s and enjoyment thereof significantly and positively predict creativity, even after controlling for the other possible determinants of creativity (such as age, gender, parental education, and participation in creative activities). These findings offer encouraging insights into 21st century education and for curriculum development as they suggest that, in addition to having value in their own right, STEM subjects can contribute to the development of creativity in young people.https://www.mdpi.com/2079-3200/11/6/106STEMcreativitydivergent thinking21st century skillssecondary education |
| spellingShingle | Christabel Borg Preca Leonie Baldacchino Marie Briguglio Margaret Mangion Are STEM Students Creative Thinkers? Journal of Intelligence STEM creativity divergent thinking 21st century skills secondary education |
| title | Are STEM Students Creative Thinkers? |
| title_full | Are STEM Students Creative Thinkers? |
| title_fullStr | Are STEM Students Creative Thinkers? |
| title_full_unstemmed | Are STEM Students Creative Thinkers? |
| title_short | Are STEM Students Creative Thinkers? |
| title_sort | are stem students creative thinkers |
| topic | STEM creativity divergent thinking 21st century skills secondary education |
| url | https://www.mdpi.com/2079-3200/11/6/106 |
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