Unveiling the Landscape of STEM Education Research in Teaching: Teachers' Perceptions and Practices

Tannur Bakytkazy; Kuralay Nurgaliyeva; Nuri Balta; Nurman Zhumabay; Katerina Tzafilkou; Louis S.  Nadelson

doi:10.20897/ejsteme/17355

Research Article

2025, 10(1), Article No: 24

Unveiling the Landscape of STEM Education Research in Teaching: Teachers' Perceptions and Practices

Tannur Bakytkazy ¹, Kuralay Nurgaliyeva ², Nuri Balta ³ ^* , Nurman Zhumabay ⁴, Katerina Tzafilkou ⁵, Louis S. Nadelson ⁶

¹ Al-Farabi Kazakh National University, Almaty, KAZAKHSTAN ² Al-Farabi Kazakh National University, Almaty, KAZAKHSTAN ³ SDU University, , Almaty, KAZAKHSTAN ⁴ Abai Kazakh National Pedagogical University, Almaty, KAZAKHSTAN ⁵ University of Macedonia, Macedonia, GREECE ⁶ University of Central Arkansas, Arkansas, USA
^* Corresponding Author

https://doi.org/10.20897/ejsteme/17355

Published in Volume 10 Issue 1: 02 Nov 2025

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Abstract

Our research focused on empirically documenting the STEM education research perceptions and practices of K-12 physics teachers in Kazakhstan. We explored how the teachers perceived and engaged with STEM educational research while implementing integrated STEM instruction and content. We recruited 50 physics teachers from a population of teachers participating in a STEM education professional development program in Almaty, Kazakhstan. To gather data from the participants, we used a translated version of the survey developed by Booher et al. (2020), "Teacher Perceptions and Use of STEM Educational Research." We collected the teachers' responses using a Google Form distributed online to the teachers attending the professional development event. We found the teachers held diverse perspectives on the benefits and value of integrating STEM education research into their teaching practices. Moreover, our analysis indicated a strong correlation between the culture of utilizing educational research in their schools and the teachers' perceptions of the benefits of the research. The importance of enhancing teacher engagement in evidence-based decision-making and teaching practices emerged as a central theme. We elaborate on the possible implications and solutions for motivating the use of STEM education research to inform curriculum design and instructional strategies that foster high-impact learning environments.

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AMA 10th edition

In-text citation: (1), (2), (3), etc.
Reference: Bakytkazy T, Nurgaliyeva K, Balta N, Zhumabay N, Tzafilkou K, Nadelson LS. Unveiling the Landscape of STEM Education Research in Teaching: Teachers' Perceptions and Practices. European Journal of STEM Education. 2025;10(1), 24. https://doi.org/10.20897/ejsteme/17355

APA 6th edition

In-text citation: (Bakytkazy et al., 2025)
Reference: Bakytkazy, T., Nurgaliyeva, K., Balta, N., Zhumabay, N., Tzafilkou, K., & Nadelson, L. S. (2025). Unveiling the Landscape of STEM Education Research in Teaching: Teachers' Perceptions and Practices. European Journal of STEM Education, 10(1), 24. https://doi.org/10.20897/ejsteme/17355

Chicago

In-text citation: (Bakytkazy et al., 2025)
Reference: Bakytkazy, Tannur, Kuralay Nurgaliyeva, Nuri Balta, Nurman Zhumabay, Katerina Tzafilkou, and Louis S. Nadelson. "Unveiling the Landscape of STEM Education Research in Teaching: Teachers' Perceptions and Practices". European Journal of STEM Education 2025 10 no. 1 (2025): 24. https://doi.org/10.20897/ejsteme/17355

Harvard

In-text citation: (Bakytkazy et al., 2025)
Reference: Bakytkazy, T., Nurgaliyeva, K., Balta, N., Zhumabay, N., Tzafilkou, K., and Nadelson, L. S. (2025). Unveiling the Landscape of STEM Education Research in Teaching: Teachers' Perceptions and Practices. European Journal of STEM Education, 10(1), 24. https://doi.org/10.20897/ejsteme/17355

MLA

In-text citation: (Bakytkazy et al., 2025)
Reference: Bakytkazy, Tannur et al. "Unveiling the Landscape of STEM Education Research in Teaching: Teachers' Perceptions and Practices". European Journal of STEM Education, vol. 10, no. 1, 2025, 24. https://doi.org/10.20897/ejsteme/17355

Vancouver

In-text citation: (1), (2), (3), etc.
Reference: Bakytkazy T, Nurgaliyeva K, Balta N, Zhumabay N, Tzafilkou K, Nadelson LS. Unveiling the Landscape of STEM Education Research in Teaching: Teachers' Perceptions and Practices. European Journal of STEM Education. 2025;10(1):24. https://doi.org/10.20897/ejsteme/17355

Keywords

Evidence-based practice, STEM Teaching, Education Research, Teacher Development, Teacher Perceptions

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