The ITEEA 6E Learning ByDesign™ Model: Maximizing Informed Design and Inquiry in the Integrative STEM Classroom

When the "Next Generation Science Standards" ("NGSS") document, (NRC, 2013) was released in April 2013, teachers in the profession had mixed emotions. Many viewed the standards as invasive to their classrooms, while others found them a refreshing take on what technology and engineering educators have been doing for years. Curriculum designers everywhere look for the perfect way to plan and integrate content in order to give students the want and need to learn. Can teachers legitimately combine inquiry and design in a way that makes sense and builds on the ability to deliver Integrative STEM--by strengthening the T and E (Technology and Engineering)? How can they implement research-based strategies using engineering concepts to ensure that materials developed have a strong Integrative STEM focus? The author proposes that a new, modified model, based on the Biological Sciences Curriculum Study's (BSCS) 5E Instructional Model (Bybee, 1997), will maximize the concepts of "Design and Inquiry" in an "Integrative" way (Sanders, 2009). The ITEEA 6E Learning byDeSIGN™ Model provides a student-centered framework for instruction that leverages the T and E of STEM as it integrates content in a purposeful and informed way.