Full STEAM ahead

Education is a dynamic field with new pedagogical approaches being developed continually and traditional methods being modified in response to the changing needs of society. A prime example of this is the ongoing evolution of Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics (STEM) education. This pedagogy has influenced educational institutions both in Australia and overseas for several decades. Historically, STEM education has focused on separate discipline approaches, however, in more recent times, the approach has been revised to reflect stronger cross disciplinary connections via integrated STEM, the incorporation of the Arts (STEAM) and more recent incarnations (for example, STREAM to incorporate critical reading and writing). All these changes have been in response to an increased need for relevant skills in students and the workforce. These relevant skills can be grouped under the concept of the development of transdisciplinary literacy in students. Cross-curriculum learning proponents argue that such a focus has a range of benefits, however, there is little empirical evidence to drive the development of a practical model for its implementation in the classroom. This study aims to address this. This will be achieved by an extensive literature review examining the development of STEM and its evolution from a focus on the separate silos of learning, to integrated STEM with an appreciation for the cross-curriculum options to STEAM (and beyond) and how the new focus on transdisciplinary components of the learning environment is lacking a strong pedagogical model to translate it within the classroom. The findings from the literature review will inform the parameters of a systematic review to consolidate the empirical evidence on successful incorporation of transdisciplinary learning via the STEM/STEAM platform in high school environments.