Home⇛Journal of Interdisciplinary Perspectives⇛vol. 3 no. 7 (2025)

Teachers’ Use of STEAM and Its Impact on Kindergarten Developmental Skills in the Matatag Curriculum

Dave G. Laga

Discipline: Education

 

Abstract:

Some educators have widely applied the STEAM (Science, Technology, Engineering, Arts, and Mathematics) learning approach in early childhood education. Some also claimed that the approach had not been introduced or included in their curriculum. In the pursuit of fostering the kindergarten learners’ learning development with profound teaching and learning approach that is parallel to their needs and levels, this study was developed to investigate the influence of kindergarten teachers' awareness and integration of the STEAM-based learning approach on the developmental domains specified in the MATATAG Kindergarten Curriculum (MKC). The research focuses on kindergarten learners' cognitive, socio-emotional, physical, motor, and aesthetic skills. Utilizing a systematic-random sampling technique, the study involved 35 kindergarten teachers and 175 learners from the selected public school districts of the Department of Education in Misamis Oriental, Philippines. This study employed a descriptivecorrelational design, and data were collected through modified survey questionnaires and analyzed using descriptive statistics and multiple regression analysis. Findings revealed that teachers exhibit high awareness (M=4.81) and integration (M=4.44) of the STEAM-based learning approach. The teachers' understanding and integration of STEAM significantly influenced the developmental skills of learners, particularly cognitive skills (p=0.034), physical and motor skills (p=0.027), and aesthetic skills (p=0.010). However, no significant influence was found on socio-emotional skills (p=0.614). The findings underscore the importance of professional development programs to enhance teachers' understanding and application of STEAM, which leads to improved developmental outcomes for learners in early childhood education. It is recommended that future researchers also study the other developmental domains of the MKC, which are literacy, language, and communication, including values development, including the Science, Technology, Reading, Engineering, Arts, and Mathematics (STREAM).



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