Hands-on STEAM and inclusive education in primary school

• Autor(a) principal: Marques, M.
• Data de Publicação: 2022
• Outros Autores: Costa, Manuel F. M.
• Idioma: eng
• Título da fonte: Repositório Científico de Acesso Aberto de Portugal (Repositórios Cientìficos)
• Texto Completo: https://hdl.handle.net/1822/81589
• topic: Autism Spectrum Disorders (ASD); Hands-on Activities; Inclusive education; Primary Science Teaching; STEAM; Ciências Naturais::Ciências Físicas; Educação de qualidade

Education policies increasingly reflect the need for an improved and generalised scientific literacy. STEAM (Science, Technology, Engineering, Arts and Mathematics) education embraces this goal and many programs have been implement to target the need for an active and effective STEAM education at all school levels from kindergarten through high school. Students with Autism Spectrum Disorders (ASD) present particular further and challenges to the implementation of STEAM education approaches aiming to improve their basic scientific literacy. An individualized instruction approach is needed. Hands-on activities proved to be capable to decisively help the education process of this group of students. The study herein present was implemented at a TEACCH classroom. Five students, four boys (one of the first grade, two of the third grade and one of the fourth grade), and one girl (of the first grade) participated during the group work area of the TEACCH Program. Only two students are verbal (one boy of the third grade and one boy of the fourth grade). Several examples of the practical hands-on implementation of STEAM activities are given, carried out with elementary school students with Autism Spectrum Disorders (ASD). The children showed entusiasm and joy during the experimental activities being much more focus and committed than usual.