A Review of Research on Engineering in K-12 Science Education

Abstract

The purpose of this study is to explore trends in interrelated engineering education and science education research within six science education research journals across the first decade since the release of the Framework for K-12 Science Education and the Next Generation Science Standards. Journals were selected using a combination of impact factors and random sampling. The resulting qualitative systematic review exposes trends that arose and fell among science education journals and scholars as reflected in 141 articles published between 2011 and 2024 in the Journal of Research in Science Teaching, Science Education, the International Journal of Science Education, School Science and Mathematics, the Journal of Science Teacher Education and Cultural Studies of Science Education. Through the analysis of 289 published research questions and purposes, themes of research and stakeholder foci were developed to uncover trends in research across this timespan. The greatest proportion of research examined student learning of science content through engineering experiences and teacher practice concerning science and engineering adjacent learning. Gaps in the literature are also described including studies in greater need of focus, most notably those that examine the roles of communities, families, learner agency, and access to engineering and science. Findings illuminate a need for improved resonance between the calls of policy for advancing access to science, STEM, and engineering education and literacies and research that remains most focused on traditional settings and structures.