Perception of primary school teachers and subject matter experts towards STEM education in Turkey

The aim of this study was to examine the opinions of primary school teachers who work in public schools in Kırşehir province, and experts who have made academic publication about STEM education. The popularization of STEM education in the world has created interpretation differences. It was deemed necessary to conduct a study to better understand the perception about STEM education. The research was carried out as a case study which is one of the qualitative research methods. Semi-structured interview form and written interview form were used as data collection tools. The collected data were analyzed using descriptive and content analysis methods. Results of the research showed that, primary school teachers only recently met with the concept of STEM education but they don't have adequate content knowledge. From the point of view of experts, STEM education is incomplete/misunderstood in Turkey, it is percieved as fashion, and it takes place in Makerlab workshops for commercial purposes. It has been stated that STEM education can provide 21st century skills, and there will be benefits for providing economic development. Primary school teachers state STEM education should include all four branches, while experts state that STEM education can be realized by utilizing at least two sub-branches in an integrated manner. In addition, according to primary school teachers, studies such as robotic coding, scratch, arduino should be included in STEM education; according to the experts, it is stated that the process could be carried out by cooperating with the experts when it is necessary.