Effect of the STEM Approach on Students' Conceptual Understanding in IPAS Learning on the Properties of Light in Elementary School
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.54065/pelita.6.2.2026.1811Keywords:
STEM, Conceptual Understanding, Properties Of Light, IPAS, Elementary SchoolAbstract
The urgency of this study lies in the need to strengthen elementary students’ conceptual understanding of light properties through an engaging and contextual STEM approach. Conceptual understanding of the Properties of Light among elementary school students remains challenging when learning is predominantly oriented toward verbal explanations and provides limited investigative experience. This study aimed to analyze changes in fifth-grade students' conceptual understanding after participating in Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics (STEM) learning on the Properties of Light. The study employed a quantitative approach with a pre-experimental one-group pretest-posttest design. The sample consisted of 35 fifth-grade students at SD Negeri Sukamantri, Bandung Regency, selected purposively. Conceptual understanding was measured using 10 essay questions covering seven indicators: interpreting, classifying, explaining, inferring, comparing, summarizing, and exemplifying. The mean score increased from 46,57 on the pretest to 85,14 on the posttest. All students obtained higher posttest scores than pretest scores. The Wilcoxon Signed-Rank Test yielded Z = -5,163 with a two-sided exact p-value < 0,001 and an effect size of r = 0,873. The mean N-Gain was 0,7156 or 71,56%, which was classified as high. Improvement also occurred across all indicators of conceptual understanding, with changes ranging from 35-41 percentage points. These findings indicate a substantial within-group improvement in conceptual understanding following STEM learning. However, because the study did not use a comparison group, the results should be interpreted as evidence of within-group change rather than as a causal estimate that fully isolates the effect of STEM from other factors.
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