• Journal of Science Education
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• v.38 no.2
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• pp.376-400
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• 2014

This study aims to examine the current status of Korean and overseas science and arts convergence programs in and out of schools to apply them in school education settings and to learn about the characteristics of overseas programs through case studies. In addition, it explores implications of the current domestic and overseas for implementation in schools. For this study, we selected 193 domestic in-school science and arts convergence programs and 106 domestic out-of-school programs. For the overseas programs, we selected those conducted by the government, research institutes, science halls, and art galleries. We also analyzed the domestic in-school programs by type of students, operation hours, areas of convergence, and the function and role of arts activities. We analyzed domestic out-of-school programs by operation time, operation method, areas of convergence, and type of activities. Moreover, we examined the overseas programs in terms of their program developers, goals, and characteristics. These findings suggest that in order for science and arts convergence education to become well established in Korean schools, it is necessary to develop programs that can be incorporated into the present science education curriculum, rather than individual content or a single class on science and arts convergence, and to diversify the range of programs. In addition, out-of-school programs should be actively considered, and intense discussions on the use of program activities and teaching materials are needed. Finally, research institutes and educational institutions should be closely linked to achieve a common goal.