Global Journal of Human Social Science, G: Linguistics and Education, Volume 23 Issue 8

Some of the teachers shared their opinions and said that students, after skills development through STEM activities, would change their traditional mindset while choosing their desired careers. As the number of government jobs is limited, students prefer skill-based professions over white-collar jobs. Respondents also added that the aim of education in the last century was narrow in terms of skills and activities, but it has now widened. Students in Bangladesh have already been switching their career options and want to become more self-dependent. One of the teachers from the urban area said, STEM will enhance the learning of the students. This will help them to achieve good learning outcomes, which help them to be highly ambitious about their career. (TU-2) Teachers also hoped that the new workforce would contribute more to nation-building than the traditional one as the STEM workforces are expected to have more entrepreneur mentality. STEM students are likely to be highly skilled and are expected to work efficiently. This skilled generation will create jobs rather than look for them. • To become a skilled teacher It was found that most of the teachers perceived positively about the effectiveness of STEM education. They believe that STEM is not only necessary for science, mathematics, technology and engineering but also for other subjects. For instance, one of the teachers expressed his view as while learning about the scientific names of fruits in English, they will also learn English words (language). The majority of the teachers claimed that STEM integration would not only create scope for invention and creativity among the students but also allow teachers to become more skilled. All of the teachers claimed that for integrating STEM education, ICT skill is vital. One of the urban teachers express, ……. However, in order to prepare students for 21st-century, teachers need to be skilled too. The teachers need to be skilled in ICT, or else they will struggle to fulfill the needs of the 21st century. (TU-3) e) Teacher’s view on the fulfillment of academic expectations All teachers expressed that STEM education will fulfill teachers’ academic expectations. However, they perceived that as STEM education is a very unfamiliar approach in Bangladesh, the fulfillment of theoretical expectations through STEM education is a concerning issue. A teacher from a rural area said, When a new approach or pedagogy is introduced, teachers and students become puzzled. Most students have the same questions to what extent the teacher will deliver, and the teachers ask themselves to what extent students will accept the process. There will be an argument about meeting academic expectations. (TR-3) Teachers also elucidated that there are many teachers with a traditional mindset and they would prefer to teach in very conventional ways like “chalk and talk”. They don’t want to integrate technology and student- centric activities. The age of the teachers is perceived to be a big factor in this issue. Some teachers perceived that STEM would meet the expectations of most students. Primary students are very keen to learn in a joyful and more explorative learning environment. A few students may struggle for some days, but they will surely overcome if the teachers deliver the lesson properly. But the teachers were concerned about fulfilling the expectations of the parents. They said that the parents are mostly reluctant to breach the traditional learning system. They prefer examination scores more than activities and creativity. The teachers of the rural area shared that they faced challenges whenever they tried to involve students in the activities. For example, some parents used to say when teachers involved students in activities, “Oh, if the students work by themselves, then why you teachers are here!!” But teachers also anticipate that if STEM becomes generalized all over the country and everyone gets used to it, then the mindset of parents will also change. V. C hallenges R egarding I mplementing S tem E ducation a) Challenges Associated with Discipline Knowledge Most teachers perceive that lack of discipline knowledge and pedagogical knowledge are major barriers to integrate the STEM approach at the primary level. They also claimed that there are scarcities of qualified and skilled teachers. Similarly, the STEM teachers think that the initiative of integrating the STEM approach will be hampered due to the lack of experienced and subject-expert teachers. One of the STEM teachers said, Teachers themselves are a challenge. We do not have subject expert teachers at the primary level and they also do not possess the required skills to conduct STEM classes. (ST-1) Besides, teacher’s unwillingness to adopt a new approach is perceived as another challenge by the participants. One of the head teachers expressed, Moreover, teachers discussed that the lack of effective training to develop teacher’s capacity for discipline knowledge is another potential challenge. They think that training failed to address the necessary pedagogical knowledge as well as discipline knowledge for integrating the STEM approach in their teaching practice. Volume XXIII Issue VIII Version I 44 ( ) Global Journal of Human Social Science - Year 2023 G © 2023 Global Journals Integrating STEM Approach at Primary Education in Bangladesh: Perception and Challenges of the Teachers Our teachers are not motivated. They do not want to accept changes. Also, there is a lack of qualified teachers, which is also a big challenge. (HT-1)