In a high-performing STEAM (Science, Technology, Engineering, Art, and Math) classroom, the process of creating is just as important as what you produce. In this article, you’ll learn about the Engineering Design Process (EDP), the role of the teacher during each stage of the project, strategies for pushing your students to deeper levels of higher-order thinking, and tools to help your students reflect on what they’ve learned. Plus, you’ll also get access to our printable, The Road to STEAM Success: The Engineering Design Process Poster & Handout.
For a STEAM lesson to be truly effective, students must not only design and produce a solution, but they also have to be thinking in a STEAM-centered way. When teachers reshape students’ mindsets before, during, and after the Engineering Design Process (EDP), they are showing students how to think like innovators and engendering a creative mindset that transfers far beyond the classroom.
One of the reasons that STEAM has such an impact on student success is that it gives way to authentic learning experiences. In a traditional lesson format, there is only one desirable outcome, a predetermined procedure that students must follow to achieve it, and learning is demonstrated by following the script and producing the same product. STEAM lessons turn that format on its head!
Rigorous STEAM activities instead require students to use a vast array of thinking strategies to develop solutions that look entirely unique. STEAM is a pedagogy in which learning is inherent within the Engineering Design Process. Students will be engaged in complex thinking, sharpening their innovation skills, and gaining content knowledge without knowing that the learning process is even taking place. The excitement and buy-in that students feel when they’re in charge of the outcome masks learning as a fun problem-solving puzzle.
But in order to get students to these effortless, monumental learning gains (all while having a blast), educators need to take the time to guide students through the processes and routines of STEAM at each stage of instruction. In this article, we’ll discuss how to get the results you want out of your STEAM activities by breaking down the thinking students should be doing (and the educators’ role) before, during, and after the project:
Intentionality and planning are key to any successful lesson but even more so with STEAM. It’s vital to get students in a STEAM mindset by teaching them the processes and procedures of the Engineering Design Process (EDP) before you dive into the project itself.
If you’re in the STEAM world, you may have heard of something called the Engineering Design Process. While there are several approaches to implementing a STEAM curriculum, the EDP is the most common. Stemming originally from professional settings, this process has been adopted as the framework for STEAM curricula in a K–12 environment with massive success. The EDP is an inquiry-based model where students learn by asking questions and discovering the answers themselves.
STEAM and EDP pair together nicely because the Engineering Design Process serves as the pedagogical tool for delivering STEAM content. Throughout the EDP, students use a variety of different thinking strategies that shift their mindset and push them to new levels of deep contemplation and innovation. To understand the purpose and structure of STEAM, teachers, and students need to become familiar with the EDP process before the project begins, as well as the roles they will need to play during each step.
Download our free The Road to STEAM Success: The Engineering Design Process Poster & Handout and use it to discuss the purpose and structure of a STEAM project.
One of the most incredible things about STEAM education and the Engineering Design Process (EDP) frame is the unmatched innovation it elicits from students. Students are at the center of each project and the educator’s role is to push students to be inquisitive, creative, and forward-thinking. Student voices and ideas take center stage as they are tasked with analyzing problems and coming up with solutions themselves.
But young learners don’t just get to these deep levels of critical thinking on their own. Educators (and curricula) must cultivate an environment where students see themselves as innovators and therefore think like innovators. So, what does that look like in a classroom, and what is happening during STEAM lessons to nurture this mindset?
Educators must consistently encourage students to see themselves as engineers, scientists, designers, and problem-solvers. In order to do that, they must be a “guide on the side” during STEAM lessons rather than a “sage on the stage” directing students to do a series of prescribed, step-by-step instructions. This shift in instruction is so vital to STEAM projects because (as part of the EDP discussed above), successful STEAM is at its very core student-led. The educator's role shifts away from delivering content (a “stand and deliver” method) to guiding students to explore the content on their own.
Shifting students’ mentalities to see themselves as capable of leading the projects and shifting educators’ mindsets to allow students to guide is crucial to fully utilizing the incredible learning gains possible in STEAM curricula. Handing the reins over to students might not seem like the most efficient way to teach all those content standards, and it really is a huge shift from traditional instructional models. However, it is this very shift that makes all the difference and really moves the needle in terms of student learning gains. Countless studies support the idea that when students are in charge of the lesson outcome, they learn faster, retain more, find more enjoyment in learning, and are more engaged in class. With a student-centered model, learners don’t even realize they’re learning because they’re so engrossed in using their own ideas to innovate solutions. Suddenly their science lesson feels like solving a giant puzzle or winning a game rather than work.
After teaching students about the Engineer-Design Process (EDP) and guiding them through the lesson (while keeping students’ voices central), the last piece of a solid STEAM curriculum is providing a space for students to reflect and share.
Self-evaluation is a key piece of the EDP process because it not only pushes students to deeper levels of critical thinking but also helps cultivate a resilient mindset. When students reflect on what they could do better in the future, they see learning as a continual process of growth and improvement. This mindset will help them find success in any field, both academic and professional.
As part of the reflection process, students should take time to report on their strengths and struggles to their classmates in an academic and coherent manner. Teachers can help students see themselves as innovators by nurturing a safe supportive environment in their classroom where failures are seen as an avenue for growth and self-reflection.
The beautiful thing about STEAM (and the reason it’s so versatile) is that it’s an educational approach and not a script. STEAM content goes hand in hand with another pedagogical framework for solving tough questions: the Engineering Design Process (EDP). With the help of instructors, students can make huge STEAM learning gains by becoming familiar with the EDP process and shifting their mindset from learners/listeners to doers/problem-solvers. Download The Road to STEAM Success: The Engineering Design Process Poster & Handout and use it in your next STEAM project.