A Needs Analysis in Developing STEM based Instruction for Higher Education

Abstract

The research was to analyze and compare the needs in developing STEM based Instruction for Higher Education to improve the six skills of the students at Ubon Ratchathani Rajabhat University and Ubon Ratchathani University. The six skills were problem solving, creative skills, self-help, rational thinking, technology, and social skills. The subjects consisted of four lecturers from Ubon Ratchathani Rajabhat University, two lecturers from Ubon Rajathani University, and 168 students from Ubon Rajathani Rajabhat University and 32 students from Ubon Ratchathani University. The research tool was the questionnaire. The analysis tools were mean, standard deviation, and the Modified Priority Needs Index (PNI_modified). The subjects were classified into four groups: two groups of the students and lecturers from Science Faculty and two groups of students and lecturers from Humanities. They were asked to answer the questionnaire about the needs analysis in developing STEM based Instruction. According to the survey of the students studying in the Science and Humanities, the results showed that the students needed to develop the creative skills  at PNI_modified=0.38, the technology skills at PNI_modified=0.37, the rational thinking skills at PNI_modified=0.36, the problem solving skills at PNI_modified=0.31,  the social skills at PNI_modified=0.31, and the self-help skills at PNI_modified=0.26, respectively. The five skills: problem solving, creative, rational thinking, technology, and social skills, have the Modified Priority Needs Index (PNI_modified) at 0.3PNI_modified0.5. This meat that the students needed to develop the five skills in the moderate level, but the self-help skills needed to be develop in the primary level because PNI_modified was less than 0.3. According to the survey of the lecturers teaching at Faculty of Science and Humanities, the results indicated that the students needed to develop the creative skill at PNI_modified=1.15, self-help skills at PNI_modified=0.85, technology skills at PNI_modified=0.68, rational thinking skills at PNI_modified=0.58, social skills at PNI_modified=0.58, and the social skill at PNI_modified=0.51, respectively. This meat that the six skills needed to be developed argently because all of the six skills had PNI_modified0.5.