Аннотация
Reforms in the education system necessitate finding solutions to new challenges. The forces driving the education evolution, particularly globalization and digitization, facilitate the progress of science and technology. In line with contemporary educational and scientific trends, the integration of STEAM (Science, Technology, Engineering, Art, and Mathematics) education across all levels of the educational system has become an important and relevant issue. STEAM education not only enhances students’ curiosity in scientific and technical fields but also fosters their creative activities. This study aims to develop and substantiate the effectiveness of a STEAM-integrated elective course program designed for 2-grade primary school students, focusing on interconnections among science, technology, engineering, art, and mathematics to foster creative activities. The elective course program comprises four modules: "I and the world", "Art and creativity", "Engineering", and "Creative workshop". Each module introduces concepts related to a creative project, describes safety rules, familiarizes students with lines, shapes, types of plants, and appliqué techniques, and includes practical work. The course is designed to present new innovative ideas, foster creativity, develop design and management skills, acquire scientific and technical knowledge, model components, and implement engineering tasks. Participants were randomly assigned to control (n=31) and experimental (n=32) groups, with P. Torrens' Test used to assess their creative activities. Data were collected using P. Torrens' Test of Creative Thinking. The study’s findings indicated that the experimental group manifested significantly higher performance compared to the control group. This validates the effectiveness of the elective course conducted in the experimental group. Received: 25 February 2025 / Accepted: 16 May 2025 / Published: 05 July 2025