The STEAM Approach As An Educational Project In A Rural Environment: Comparative Analysis In The Dominican Republic

Abstract

Since the 1990s, the Dominican Republic has been implementing considerable measures to promote education in the country. Although there are still steps to consolidate, there are noteworthy initiatives such as the Liceo Científico Dr. Miguel Canela Lázaro, which, since its creation in 2013, bases its educational project on the implementation of the STEAM methodological approach in a rural environment, differentiating itself from the rest of the centers in the province where it is located, which are based on a more traditional system. For this reason, this paper analyzes, through a combination of qualitative and quantitative dimensions, the comparison between this public secondary school and the other seventeen in the province of Hermanas Mirabal. The aim is to explore the Dominican educational context, the innovation in the development of the Liceo Científico project and to observe whether STEAM education constitutes a differential element taking into account the national test scores prior to university entrance. Finally, the particularities of the Liceo Científico and, in general, the acquisition of learning in the Dominican educational system are evaluated on a concrete level.