STEM festival organization in general education schools for student competency development

Abstract

STEM education has become an important orientation of Vietnam’s 2018 General Education Program, aiming to develop students’ qualities and competencies through the application of interdisciplinary knowledge to practical problem-solving. Among various educational approaches, STEM festivals are considered a meaningful form of experiential learning that stimulates students’ interest in learning, fosters scientific thinking and creativity, and strengthens the connection between schools and the community. This paper analyzes the theoretical foundations, objectives, organizational contents, and levels of student participation in STEM festivals. In addition, it proposes an organizational process for STEM festival activities aimed at developing students’ competencies through three stages: pre-festival preparation, implementation during the festival, and post-festival evaluation.The practical implementation at Victory Primary, Secondary and High School (Dak Lak Province, Vietnam) in 2025, through the competency assessment of 172 primary school students, showed that organizing STEM festivals based on a scientific process, competency-oriented approaches, and the collaboration of multiple educational stakeholders significantly improved students’ self-directed learning, communication and collaboration, problem-solving, and creativity competencies. The findings contribute to affirming that STEM festivals can become an effective experiential education model, thereby supporting the ongoing goals of general education reform in Vietnam.