Adi Nur Cahyono, Riza Arifudin, Rozak Ilham Aditya, Bagus Surya Maulana, Zsolt Lavicza
This study aims to investigate how the use of math trail activities and digital technology in STEM education can help to improve mathematical literacy. Exploratory design research involving teachers and eighth-grade students in a junior high school was conducted. A STEM Trails application was developed, several trails were designed, and students performed the activities. Participant observation, interviews, questionnaires, exams, and worksheets were used to collect data. Organization, annotation, data description, and statistical tests were carried out for data analysis. Based on the results of the analysis, an educational program was designed to provide students with valuable STEM experiences. This program was supported by GPS-based applications that serve as tools for students to develop mathematical literacy by solving STEM-related problems in the surrounding environment. As a result, the program promoted students' mathematical literacy. This study discovered a link between the program‘s instrumental approaches and the mathematical literacy developed throughout the instrumentation process. The findings of this study demonstrate that the integration of digital technology in STEM-based math trails can effectively enhance learners' mathematical literacy through contextualized and interactive learning experiences. It is recommended that future research should extend the implementation of STEM Trails to a wider range of learning environments and investigate its impact on students' skills and abilities in greater depth. © 2025 the Author(s), licensee by AIMS Press.
Universitas Negeri Semarang, Indonesia; Zandspace Company, Indonesia; Johannes Kepler University, Linz, Austria
