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STEAM Education for an Innovative Approach to Sustainability

it is important that it be adapted to the age and developmental
stage of children and students.’
FG2 ‘Hands-on activities enable better retention and promote the de-
velopment of critical thinking.’
FG2 ‘This approach enhances pupils’ social skills and fosters a sense of
belonging and responsibility.’
FG3 ‘STEAM motivates pupils to actively participate and to master the
material more effectively.’
FG3 ‘The STEAM approach is an advanced, innovative teaching con-
cept that clearly offers advantages over traditional forms of in-
struction.’
FG4 ‘Children enjoy practical activities and experiments the most.
They need to see and experience things for themselves, and this
type of approach would certainly be engaging for both children
and educators.’
FG4 ‘Children prefer learning through play, and the STEAM approach
can be implemented in a playful manner as well.’
FG5 ‘ImplementingtheSTEAMapproachwouldcontributetoadeeper
understanding of the arts.’
Across all focus groups, positive perceptions of the STEAM approach
prevail, with particular emphasis on its potential to foster creativity,
practical skills, teamwork, and student motivation. Participants recog-
nise the approach as innovative and closely aligned with children’s nat-
ural interests, suggesting its applicability across various educational
levels, provided it is appropriately adapted.

3. Perception of the Challenges Involved (obstacles to effective implemen-
tation: limited resources, insufficient training, and time constraint):
FG1 ‘Not everyone is prepared for teamwork.’ ‘It is difficult to pro-
vide the necessary conditions for implementing the STEAM ap-
proach in our kindergartens and schools – we simply lack suffi-
cient resources.’ ‘A major challenge could be the lack of collegial-
ity among educators and teachers.’
FG2 ‘Teachers are not adequately prepared and may be resistant to
new methodologies.’
FG2 ‘The curriculum is rigid and does not allow for interdisciplinarity
or connections between subjects.’
FG3 ‘Time constraints and a lack of equipment are key challenges.’ ‘For
this type of teaching, the teacher must be well-prepared and pos-

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