Are STEM Students Creative Thinkers?

Author:

Borg Preca Christabel1,Baldacchino Leonie2ORCID,Briguglio Marie3ORCID,Mangion Margaret2ORCID

Affiliation:

1. Department of Public Policy, University of Malta, MSD2080 Msida, Malta

2. The Edward de Bono Institute for Creative Thinking and Innovation, University of Malta, MSD2080 Msida, Malta

3. Department of Economics, University of Malta, MSD2080 Msida, Malta

Abstract

Scholarly research has increasingly examined the role of STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics) education, and that of creativity as a transversal skill. However, far fewer studies have investigated the relationship between the two, particularly in secondary-school contexts, and they have obtained inconsistent results. This paper contributes to the literature by asking: To what extent is studying STEM associated with higher levels of creativity in a secondary-school context? The study utilises a pre-existing dataset gathered in Malta (EU) from some 400 students aged between 11 and 16 years old. It yields information on both the engagement in STEM (measured by exposure to STEM chosen by students as optional subjects, and the enjoyment of STEM considered by students to be their favourite subjects), as well as creativity levels (measured by Divergent Thinking performance on Alternate Uses Tests). Correlation analysis revealed a strong positive link between the two phenomena, lending support to the notion that STEM students tend to be more creative than other students. Using regression analysis, a model is estimated to identify the possible effects of engaging in STEM subjects on creativity, once the other co-determinants of creativity are controlled. The results indicate that both the exposure to STEM subject/s and enjoyment thereof significantly and positively predict creativity, even after controlling for the other possible determinants of creativity (such as age, gender, parental education, and participation in creative activities). These findings offer encouraging insights into 21st century education and for curriculum development as they suggest that, in addition to having value in their own right, STEM subjects can contribute to the development of creativity in young people.

Funder

Endeavour Scholarship Scheme

Arts Council Malta

Publisher

MDPI AG

Subject

Cognitive Neuroscience,Developmental and Educational Psychology,Education,Experimental and Cognitive Psychology

Reference54 articles.

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