The development and application of a STEAM programbased on traditional Korean culture

Abstract

The purpose of this research was to develop a STEAM program in the context of teaching and learning a traditional Korean instrument and implement it in a high school class to determine the program's effectiveness. The STEAM program was developed through a continuous consultation process between a development team and external experts, including an "artisan of Korean music." This program was implemented for six weeks in an 11th grade science class, which consisted of twenty-six students. The twenty-six students who participated in this research study engaged in semi-structured interviews to determine how the students became aware of the STEAM program and verify the applicability of the program. The results are as follows: students recognized the meaning and necessity of STEAM education as a problem-solving procedure that resulted in increased STEAM literacy and a development of concepts through sharing opinions. Most students indicated that they would frequently make use of the knowledge they learned in the STEAM program in their science class because it allowed them to have a better understanding of the problem-solving process. Therefore, STEAM programs in science class are apt to contribute to STEAM literacy through the integration of science, technology and art as well as develop creative problem-solving abilities by introducing new ideas.