Fostering Elementary School Students Engineering Skills Through Ethno STEM Approach

Abstract

Problem-solving will run well if there is an engineering activity. Thus, students engineering skills become essential in problem solving. This research aims to assess and analyze the engineering skills of elementary school students who experienced the Ethno-STEM approach through the pounding technique eco print compared to those with the conventional approach. This research uses a quasi-experiment research method with a non-equivalent pretest-posttest control group design. The lesson is implemented with a blended learning system by integrating several subjects: enviromental education, science, and mathematics. The sample of the research is 48 fourth-grade students in Purwakarta. The students engineering skills test instrument is used to obtain data before and after learning. Results show that the improvement of engineering skills of elementary school students who received the Ethno-STEM approach through the pounding eco print is better than those who experienced conventional lessons.