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Abstract
Science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) play a crucial role in human society. While regions differ in their approaches, technological modernisation is a common driving force worldwide. For instance, while mathematics has been a cornerstone of education since ancient times, valued for its role in the development of civilization, ‘math anxiety’ persists into the 21st century. Furthermore, participation and performance in STEM subjects continues to see gendered disparity. This is a problem as this is rooted in sociological misconceptions and potential discrimination. In this work, we review a range of STEM education strategies currently being implemented in schools (in primary and secondary), based on available literature sources from the last decade. Drawing on the empirical findings from the review and our own practice-based analysis, related to learning anxiety around mathematics and gender gap, we lay a foundation for a specific STEM learning model designed to encourage children’s innate development, curiosity, intrinsic motivation and sustained engagement in STEM learning. This evidence-based conceptual model is based on scaffolded “learning-by-playing” and integrated art and playful activities into early years’ mathematics and science education that could give the foundation for enhanced interest and narrowed gender gap in mathematics rich science subjects.
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This is an open access article distributed under the Creative Commons Attribution License which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited.
Article Type: Research Article
EURASIA J Math Sci Tech Ed, Volume 21, Issue 12, December 2025, Article No: em2747
https://doi.org/10.29333/ejmste/17493
Publication date: 03 Dec 2025
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