ORIGINAL RESEARCH article
Front. Educ.
Sec. STEM Education
Volume 10 - 2025 | doi: 10.3389/feduc.2025.1584805
This article is part of the Research TopicRural STEMM Education Research: Bridging between Uniqueness and UniversalityView all 8 articles
education: Powerful practices for integration. In Sensemaking in Elementary Science (pp. 46-63). Routledge
Provisionally accepted
- 1University of Wyoming, Laramie, United States
- 2Teton Science Schools, Jackson, Kentucky, United States
- 3Albany County School District, Laramie, Wyoming, United States
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Place-based education (PBE) integrates local environmental, cultural, and community contexts into learning, fostering engagement and identity development, particularly in STEM disciplines. This study examines the effects of a place-based STEM project on fourth, fifth, and sixth-grade students in a rural school, focusing on identity affiliations, selfperception, and community engagement. Using a case study approach with elements of participatory action research, we analyzed pre-and post-project surveys, focus group interviews, and qualitative reflections. Findings indicate that students experienced significant shifts in their identity affiliations, particularly as advocates, problem-solvers, and community members. Students developed a stronger sense of environmental responsibility and STEM competence, engaging in authentic scientific inquiry and public advocacy. The project fostered interdisciplinary learning, real-world problem-solving, and strengthened students' sense of agency through their involvement in a local wildlifevehicle collision mitigation effort. This study highlights the role of PBE in supporting STEM identity formation and civic engagement, demonstrating how locally relevant projects can empower students to see themselves as capable STEM learners and active community participants. The findings contribute to the growing body of research on place-based STEM education, emphasizing its potential for enhancing student engagement, agency, and identity development in rural contexts.
Keywords: place-based education, stem education, Elementary grades, middle grades Font: +Body (Aptos), 12 pt
Received: 27 Feb 2025; Accepted: 05 May 2025.
Copyright: © 2025 Mercier, Sivitskis, Torbert and Vallier. This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (CC BY). The use, distribution or reproduction in other forums is permitted, provided the original author(s) or licensor are credited and that the original publication in this journal is cited, in accordance with accepted academic practice. No use, distribution or reproduction is permitted which does not comply with these terms.
* Correspondence: Alison K. Mercier, University of Wyoming, Laramie, United States
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