STEM Education Across the Learning Continuum

1. Front Matter

   Pages i-xiv

   PDF

2. Introduction

   • Amy MacDonald, Lena Danaia, Steve Murphy

   Pages 1-8

3. Sustaining STEM: A Framework for Effective STEM Education Across the Learning Continuum

   • Steve Murphy, Amy MacDonald, Lena Danaia

   Pages 9-28

4. What Happens When the Robot Gets Eyelashes? Gender Perspective on Programming in Preschool

   • Mia Heikkilä

   Pages 29-44

5. Mathematical Signs and Their Cultural Transmission in Pretend Play

   • Maulfry Worthington

   Pages 45-65

6. A Picture Book Pedagogy for Early Childhood Mathematics Education

   • Liz Dunphy

   Pages 67-85

7. Making STEM Visible in Early Childhood Curriculum Frameworks

   • Amy MacDonald, Carmen Huser

   Pages 87-112

8. Supporting and Scaffolding Early Childhood Teachers in Positive Approaches to Teaching and Learning with Technology

   • Jennifer Munday, Natalie Thompson, Michael McGirr

   Pages 113-135

9. Digital Technologies and Numeracy—Synergy or Discord?

   • Kevin Larkin, Jodie Miller

   Pages 137-154

10. ‘Quality’ STEM Leaders in Remote Indigenous Contexts: Creating Pedagogical Capital

    • Robyn Jorgensen (Zevenbergen)

    Pages 155-173

11. Exploring Student Views and Perspectives Within a Changing Classroom Context: Developing Mathematical Inquiry Communities with Diverse Learners

    • Jodie Hunter, Roberta Hunter, Rachel Restani

    Pages 175-193

12. Affect and Engagement in STEM Education

    • Catherine Attard, Peter Grootenboer, Elise Attard, Alexandra Laird

    Pages 195-212

13. Engaging Students in STEM with Non-traditional Educational Programmes: Bridging the Gaps Between Experts and Learners

    • Jerrell C. Cassady, Joshua A. Heath, Christopher L. Thomas, Anthony A. Mangino, Mark A. Kornmann

    Pages 213-232

14. Threshold Concepts in Primary School Maths and Science: An Investigation of Some Underlying Ideas of STEM

    • Steve Thornton

    Pages 233-247

15. Pedagogical Partnerships in Primary and Secondary STEM Education

    • Lena Danaia, Steve Murphy

    Pages 249-267

16. Transforming Pedagogy in Mathematics and Science in Qatar: A Study of Teacher and Student Perspectives

    • Nigel Calder, Carol Murphy, Nasser Mansour, Abdullah Abu-Tineh

    Pages 269-292

17. Motivating Rural Students in STEM: Practices Contributing to Student Engagement with STEM in Rural Victorian Schools

    • Steve Murphy

    Pages 293-311

This is the first comprehensive book to consider STEM education from early childhood through to senior secondary education. It approaches STEM as a form of real-world, problem-based education that draws on the knowledge and skills of the science, technology, engineering and mathematics disciplines. Rather than presenting each of the separate disciplines to an equal extent, it focuses on STEM researchers’ perspectives on how their work contributes to effective STEM education in terms of building knowledge, skills and engagement. 

Gathering contributions by authors from various countries, the book explores effective STEM education from a range of perspectives within the international context. Moreover, it addresses critical issues in STEM education, including transition and trajectories, gender, rurality, socioeconomic status and cultural diversity. By doing so, it not only shares the current state of knowledge in this field, but also offers a source of inspiration for future research.

• STEM skills
• STEM capabilities
• STEM motivation
• STEM academic emotions
• Engagement in STEM education
• Early childhood STEM education
• primary and elementary school STEM education
• middle school STEM education
• secondary and high school STEM education
• motivation in STEM education
• gender issues in STEM education
• disadvantage and STEM education
• STEM pedagogy
• STEM integration
• STEM inquiry learning
• STEM educational leadership
• learning and instruction

• School of Education, Charles Sturt University, Albury, Australia

  Amy MacDonald

• School of Teacher Education, Charles Sturt University, Bathurst, Australia

  Lena Danaia

• School of Education, Charles Sturt University, Wagga Wagga, Australia

  Steve Murphy

Amy MacDonald is Associate Professor of Early Childhood Mathematics Education in the School of Education at Charles Sturt University, Albury-Wodonga, Australia. Amy is an internationally-recognised early childhood mathematics education researcher, and she has published widely in this area. Her research focuses on young children's mathematics experiences and education prior to starting school. She is also known internationally for her work on educational transitions; in particular, the ways in which children’s mathematics is noticed and built upon during transitions to school. Amy was an Australian Research Council Discovery Early Career Researcher Award (DECRA) Research Fellow for 2018-2020.


Lena Danaia is Associate Professor of Science Education in the School of Teacher Education at Charles Sturt University, Bathurst, Australia. Lena specialises in science and technology curricula and is experienced in mixed methods research with a strong focus on surveys. She has been recognised nationally for her outstanding contributions to learning and teaching, and received an Australian Learning and Teaching Council (ALTC) Teaching Excellence Award. Beyond her research and university teaching, Lena contributes significantly to STEM education through teacher professional learning sessions and school-based science workshops.


Steve Murphy is a PhD candidate and Lecturer in STEM Education in the School of Education at Charles Sturt University, Wagga Wagga, Australia.  Previously, Steve worked for more than two decades in Principal, educational leadership and teaching roles in both primary and secondary schools.  Steve is a STEM specialist, with experience in designing and delivering integrated and inquiry learning with strong digital learning elements.  Steve’s doctoral research analysed case studies of schools identified as high performing in STEM in an effort to identify practices contributing to this performance.

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