Emotionality and STEAM Integrations in Teacher Education

Abstract

The authors consider STEM and STEAM education initiatives as forms of integrated teaching and learning. With evidence from education research and the neurosciences, a case is made for the inherent connections between emotion and learning as essential to STEAM pedagogy. In this article, the authors’ ArtScience integration project for teacher candidates (TCs) is described, and elicits the following questions: do teacher candidates (TCs) exhibit emotions directly related to the ArtScience integration project? If so, what are those emotions? How do those emotions connect with the TCs’ perceptions of integration? Anecdotal evidence and collected data in the form of reflection papers are analyzed and discussed. The authors suggest that STEAM integrations take into account the importance of emotion in multidisciplinary teaching and learning.