Project-based learning in STEAM subjects for socioformation: a systematic review of contributions, prevalence, and challenges

Introduction

Conventional approaches to Science Technology, Engineering, Arts, and Mathematics (STEAM) instruction are frequently criticized for overemphasizing rote memorization, offering minimal practical application, and failing to link learning to authentic contexts. However, the integration of project-based learning (PjBL) in STEAM subjects has received much attention because of its potential to engage students and expose them to real-world problem-solving (Han et al., 2016). Project-based learning has gained popularity in educational research and curriculum changes as a viable teaching strategy for integrated science education, to improve students’ competencies needed for the 21st Century (Serin, 2019). Project-based learning pedagogy attracts students’ attention and curiosity by letting them work on projects that apply to everyday situations, whereby students face challenges to develop solutions to real-world problems and questions (Almulla, 2020).

In addressing contemporary educational challenges, this review adopts a constructivist framework emphasizing learning objectives (Haatainen & Aksela, 2021) and expands to incorporate more flexible, student-centered approaches that emphasize critical and socio-critical thinking known as the socioformative approach (Flores & Esteva, 2025). This approach aims to prepare students not only intellectually but also socially, equipping them to engage responsibly with complex societal issues in a rapidly evolving and technology-driven world (Wan, 2025). Through this approach, students develop a sense of social responsibility, ethical decision-making, and preparation for the future (del Carmen López-Quesada et al., 2022). Project-based learning is known for its attributes to develop both technical and non-technical skills. Project-based learning-based education is intrinsically meaningful since it is grounded and involves mature competencies like creativity, critical thinking, collaboration, and communication. Through the socioformation approach, the teacher’s role shifts significantly from being a traditional knowledge transmitter to a guider, facilitator, and mentor while supporting both the cognitive and social development of students (Morcom & MacCallum, 2022). Thus, Project-based learning is sought to equip students with valuable life skills that instill confidence and interest, and equip them with skills and desires to become self-directed lifelong learners (Wurdinger & Rudolph, 2009).

To implement project-based learning-based instruction, students, in collaboration with teachers, identify the potential problems in their environment. Students collaborate in groups to find solutions within the environment to complex issues grounded in the curriculum (Han et al., 2016). Students choose what activities to engage in and how to tackle the challenge. Students collect data from many sources, synthesize it, examine it, and draw knowledge from it (Haatainen & Aksela, 2021). This is a genuine inquiry involving students initiating the process with their questions, embarking on a quest for resources to test ideas and draw conclusions (Larmer & Mergendoller, 2010). To this end, students discover greater significance in project work when they engage in genuine inquiry, rather than simply retrieving and copying information from books or websites.

Teachers employ various strategies to enhance student engagement and understanding of different learning subjects. These strategies collectively aim to make learning subjects more engaging, relevant, and effective for diverse students. These include inquiry-based learning, where students actively explore concepts through experiments and problem-solving, fostering critical thinking and curiosity in collaboration with peers (Twahirwa et al., 2021). Collaborative learning is widely used, encouraging students to work in groups to discuss and solve complex problems, and promoting peer learning, communication skills, and ethics (Han et al., 2016). Technology integration, such as artificial intelligence (AI), simulations, interactive software, making plans, searching for content, helps visualize abstract concepts to make PjBL more dynamic. In addition, formative assessments, like quizzes and hands-on activities, are frequently utilized to provide immediate feedback, guiding students and teachers in addressing learning gaps (Ukobizaba et al., 2021). Similarly, formative projects are used to track students’ learning improvement. Within this regard, modified PjBL approaches such as socioformation, combined with the integration of technologies like AI, are essential for learning different subjects because they foster critical thinking, interdisciplinary understanding, social responsibility, and active student engagement in real-world, technology-driven contexts.

Project-based learning has emerged as a promising pedagogical method for engaging students in meaningful, real-world applications of mathematics and science concepts (Wurdinger & Rudolph, 2009). Studies were conducted on the contributions of project-based learning to enhance students’ subject performance (e.g., Holmes & Hwang, 2016; Najeeb & Memon, 2022; Gomez-del Rio & Rodriguez, 2022; Yamin et al., 2020). However, aspects such as the contributions of PjBL students’ engagement, creativity, and communication, and conceptual understanding for socioformation, combined with the integration of technologies like AI, are not sufficiently explored. In addition, mathematics and science instruction within sub-Saharan African countries is still dominated by students memorizing concepts. Project-based learning (PBL) has been widely recognized for its contributions to student achievement in mathematics and science. Yet traditional PjBL approaches often remain disciplinary and content-focused, emphasizing learning objectives over real-world or community-based problems. These limitations can reduce its effectiveness in addressing interdisciplinary challenges and preparing students for the rapidly evolving, AI-driven educational landscape. Emerging methodologies, such as socioformative projects and STEAM-based projects, offer more socially and technologically relevant approaches by integrating ethical, collaborative, and problem-solving competencies. By filling this gap, this review of literature yields the educators’ awareness and purposeful application of this innovative pedagogy to their regular instruction. This review examines the contributions, prevalence, and challenges of PBL implementation in STEAM subjects, highlighting opportunities to align PjBL with contemporary pedagogical demands such as student-centered learning, critical and creative thinking, interdisciplinary learning, digital and technological literacy, collaboration, and ethical and socio-critical awareness.

This review of literature sought to answer the following research questions:

Methodology

A systematic review was used to collect data. A systematic keyword combination made using Boolean operators (AND, OR, NOT) was used (Dinet et al., 2004). Thus, keywords such as “project-based learning”, “project-based learning and students’ engagement”, “students’ skills development”, “students’ performance in mathematics and sciences”, “challenges”, socioformative projects,” “formative projects,” “STEAM education,” “AI in PBL,” “sustainability competencies,” “socioformation,“ and “sustainable social development,” were used to access and download resources. Using search engines such as Google Scholar, Academia, Search 4 Life, Scopus, and Web of Science, 211 resources were downloaded. These databases were deemed valid, relevant, and reliable based on their high reputation for holding high-quality academic studies.

The downloaded resources were analyzed to decide which materials are to be included and excluded before analysis. At first, duplicates were removed. Hence, 28 duplicated papers were filtered out, and 183 articles remained. In addition, 116 resources were filtered out because they related to project-based learning but for other subjects rather than in STEAM subjects. In addition, reviews of literature articles were also filtered out. Further, articles presented in conference proceedings were removed because they usually have limited peer review, preliminary data, or incomplete reporting, which can affect the reliability and quality of evidence. Thus, 67 remained. Furthermore, to get eligible studies for analysis, a deep screening was conducted to filter out studies focused on PjBL in non-STEAM disciplines. In this regard, studies were excluded if they (i) addressed general pedagogy without a clear PjBL intervention, (ii) lacked empirical data on contributions, prevalence, or implementation challenges, (iii) were purely theoretical or opinion pieces, or (iv) did not provide sufficient methodological detail to judge study quality. Therefore, 32 studies remained and were used for analysis. The downloaded papers were published from 2015 to 2026. This publication range was considered to get findings that are more relevant to the current educational context. Through studies screening, a narrative synthesis approach, and statistical descriptive analysis were used.

To ensure consistency in study selection, two independent reviewers screened all titles, abstracts, and full-text articles according to the predefined inclusion and exclusion criteria. Inter-rater reliability was assessed using Cohen’s kappa, which indicated substantial agreement (κ = 0.78). Any disagreements were resolved through discussion until a consensus was reached. In addition, transparency, completeness, and quality of the study, and the risk of bias assessment were controlled for all employed literature by considering study design, sample selection, clarity of intervention implementation, and outcome measurement.

The review of literature was guided by the PRISMA framework, with clear inclusion and exclusion criteria (Sarkis-Onofre et al., 2021). Figure 1 was simplified for clarity as shown below.

Figure 1. The PRISMA diagram for sources inclusion and exclusion process.

Results

The results are drawn from 32 reviewed studies. To analyze data, results were categorized depending on reported multiple learning outcomes, such as engagement, skills, or performance, and challenges to avoid double-counting. In addition, a systematic review synthesizes the prevalence of PjBL based on the distribution of studies in STEAM subjects, education level, and the frequencies of conducted studies per country.

ii) Projects-based learning prevalance

a) Prevalence of PjBL in STEAM subjects

Figure 2 shows the extent to which Project-Based Learning prevails across different STEAM subjects. The prevalence in percentages was calculated based on 32 reviewed studies. See Figure 2.

Figure 2. Prevalence of PjBL in STEAM subjects.

Figure 2 represents the reviewed studies’ prevalence of PjBL across STEAM subjects. Results indicated that PjBL prevalence was highest in sciences (41%), followed by mathematics (28%). The low prevalence was found in Arts, Technology, and Engineering with 16%, 9%, and 6% of prevalence, respectively. Mathematics and science prevail since the concepts often lend themselves to real-world applications, modeling, and hands-on experiments, making it easier for educators to design projects that engage students in inquiry, experimentation, and collaborative problem-solving. In contrast, arts, technology, and engineering subjects may require more logistical and safety challenges in implementing hands-on projects, such as the need for specialized laboratory equipment and environment-related issues. Overall, the alignment between subject characteristics, practical feasibility, and available resources likely explains the uneven distribution of PjBL prevalence across these STEAM disciplines.

b) Prevalence of PjBL per educational level

The reviewed studies showed that PjBL prevails over early childhood education level through higher learning. Percentages were calculated based on 32 reviewed studies to show the extent to which PjBL prevails in each educational level. See Figure 3.

Figure 3. Reviewed studies by educational level.

The reviewed literature showed that PjBL is applied throughout higher learning. However, the highest prevalence was found in higher education and decreased while moving to lower levels of education. For instance, in higher education, it is 28%, followed by 25% in high school education, while it is 22% and 9% in elementary and early childhood education, respectively. For 16% of studies, the level of education was not specified. The distribution indicates that PjBL research is represented across all educational levels, with high interest in higher learning institutions and in high schools, suggesting attention and engagement in elementary and early childhood education.

c) Prevalence of PjBL in STEAM subjects per country

Figure 4 represents 15 countries in which studies were conducted in different countries across different continents. The percentages were calculated based on the 32 studies for each country. The percentages indicate the frequency with which a country appears in all reviewed studies. See Figure 4.

Figure 4. Prevalence of PjBL in STEAM subjects per country.

Results in Figure 4 show that studies were dominated in Indonesia (22%), Spain (13%), and Finland (9%). A medium proportion comes from countries such as Rwanda, the USA, and Turkey, with 6% each. The small portion was found for countries such as Singapore, Saudi Arabia, Uganda, Pakistan, Ukraine, Serbia, China, Portugal, Kingdom of Bahrain with 3% each. The relatively even distribution of PjBL prevalence across the countries suggests that PjBL has gained global pedagogical relevance due to its alignment with 21st-century competencies such as collaboration, problem-solving, and learner-centered instruction. However, the relatively modest percentages per country imply that the evidence base is dispersed rather than deeply concentrated within specific national contexts. However, the results limit the strength of context-specific conclusions or generalizations, given the limited sample of the reviewed studies.

Discussion

While constructivist PjBL prioritizes knowledge construction, socioformative projects focus on community service, ethical engagement, and sustainable problem-solving, providing a pedagogical buffer against uncritical reliance on AI-generated solutions. The reviewed literature showed that PjBL has emerged as a transformative approach with significant contributions to various facets of student development. The purpose of employing different teaching and learning approaches and strategies is to make students successful in different learning subjects (Han et al., 2016). The majority of the reviewed studies were conducted on the contribution of PjBL to students’ subject performance (e.g., Twahirwa et al., 2021), followed by students’ skills development, such as communication, collaboration, creativity, and critical thinking subjects (Kholid et al., 2022).

Project-based learning enhances students’ engagement by fostering active participation, collaboration, and interest through hands-on, real-world problem-solving activities. The current trend of developing 21^st-century skills requires students to be involved in constructing their knowledge. The application of project-based learning goes hand in hand with the application of active learning pedagogy, whereby students are actively engaged in solving real-world problems through authentic tasks. For instance, Pan et al. (2021) found that PjBL contributed to enhancing students’ active engagement and interest while learning science and mathematics. Thus, through project-based learning, students will find the meaning and application of learning concepts acquired in class to real-life situations, which will, in turn, enhance their interest in learning those subjects.

The reviewed literature showed that project-based learning supports skills development, equipping students with critical thinking, communication, teamwork, and self-management. PjBL was sought as one of the teaching approaches to enhance 21^st-century skills (Serin, 2019; Wurdinger et al., 2020). Within the same vein, through project-based learning, a competence-based curriculum currently used in different countries was conceived and used to develop students’ skills such as leadership abilities, improving students’ mathematical reasoning abilities (Abidin et al., 2020), and life skills (Wurdinger & Rudolph, 2009). Teachers should teach and give authentic assessments based on students’ context to enhance their skills. We concur with Wakumire et al. (2022) argued that if students have effectively acquired subject concepts, the acquired knowledge should be transferred and used in their careers. It is expected that teaching students through project-based learning would increase the number of competent human resources ready to apply skills in their future careers.

Based on the reviewed literature, project-based learning positively impacts students’ subject performance. Project-based learning enables students to understand the content. For instance, Han et al. (2016) and Twahirwa et al. (2021) observed higher performance in mathematics and science through PjBL. Similarly, Abidin et al. (2020) found statistically significant improvements in mathematical reasoning and geometry scores when PjBL was incorporated in instructions. These findings highlight the potential of project-based learning to improve academic outcomes, particularly when aligned with the curriculum. The effectiveness of PjBL can depend heavily on how well projects are aligned with tested content, how consistently the approach is implemented, and how familiar students and teachers are with inquiry-based methods. STEAM subjects’ concepts can be abstract, and assessments often emphasize procedural knowledge. Projects that are not tightly connected to curriculum goals or exam formats may not translate into measurable test-score gains, even if they support other outcomes like engagement or problem-solving skills. Contextual factors such as time constraints, teacher expertise, and school culture can also moderate PjBL’s academic impact. The traditional teaching strategy is used to make mathematics and science subjects more abstract. However, when students receive authentic learning, as it is the key principle of project-based learning pedagogy, students are likely to understand mathematics and science concepts (Wurdinger & Rudolph, 2009). Therefore, project-based learning instructions should be employed to enhance students’ conceptual understanding.

Teachers frequently face barriers such as inadequate training, scarce resources, and insufficient institutional support when attempting to apply PjBL effectively. Problems linked to project-based learning should be taken into consideration and solutions. These include encouraging students to complete their projects, optimizing the teacher’s role as supervisor, schools to finance the students’ projects, selecting projects suitable for the available resources, and facilitating teachers in their daily activities related to Project-based learning (Cintang et al., 2018). Project-based learning highlights a burden for teachers, but as an effective way to implement a student-centered approach.

The reviewed literature showed that PjBL is mostly applied in physics and mathematics. These results reflect the role of mathematics and physics across STEM disciplines, which emphases on problem-solving and analytical skills (Wakumire et al., 2022). The reviewed literature aligns with existing literature that recognizes project-based learning is suitable to be applied while teaching and learning subjects requiring critical thinking and practical application (Abidin et al., 2020). However, the reviewed literature showed that arts, technology, and engineering are explored at a low level. These findings may be due to the insufficiency of laboratory tool kits and curricular structures.

While traditional project-based learning promotes constructivist learning and mastery of disciplinary content, the trending PjBL perspectives should emphasize learning objectives over real-world or community-based problems (Luque-González et al., 2025). Emerging methodologies, such as socioformative projects and STEAM-based projects, offer more contemporary alternatives (Tobon & Lozano-Salmorán, 2024). Socioformative projects, for example, focus on action research within communities, fostering interdisciplinary problem-solving and sustainable social development, while STEAM projects integrate creativity and cross-disciplinary collaboration (Guerra-Macías & Tobón, 2025). The applied methodologies in the reviewed studies of PjBL learning model failed today because it focuses on the “product” or “deliverable,” which can be generated by AI. In line with 21st-century requirements. Effective learning projects should emphasize social-emotional and transferable skills development. We agree with Guerra-Macías and Tobón (2025), who declared that socioformative project-based pedagogical practices are key for academic performance through transversal skills. Thus, employing socioformative pedagogical approaches can contribute to the development of transversal skills and academic performance. Incorporating these approaches highlights potential directions for PjBL to evolve, aligning it with the challenges of the AI era and the development of socially responsible competencies.

In the implementation of the project-based learning (PjBL) model, several structured steps guide the learning process, especially when supported by artificial intelligence (AI). To implement projects, students apply mathematical concepts with the aid of AI tools to get innovative solutions or products. Then, both teachers and students reflect and evaluate their learning experiences and outcomes to reinforce their conceptual understanding (Sayyid & Rahmatullah, 2025). However, few of the reviewed studies involved automated activities that can be generated by AI. For instance, Santos et al. (2026)’s results showed that GAI with computational and dynamic geometry tools provides patterns of mathematical correctness, justifying classroom-oriented task types in mathematics. The more recent methodologies, like socioformative projects (Flores & Esteva, 2025) may be effective since they do not focus on the final product, but on ethical interaction with the community, the ethical life project, and face-to-face collaborative work to solve local needs, competencies that AI does not possess.

The reviewed literature highlighted challenges linked to the incorporation of PjBL in education. Lack of support, the teachers’ reluctance, and lack of enough confidence to use PBL, difficulty in time management, and the context where PjBL is implemented, designing reliable assessment tools, played a fundamental role in hindering the effective use of PjBL effectively (Aldabbus, 2018) indicating an area where more support is needed. It was first suggested that the culture of using PjBL should be spread among schools through workshops, seminars, and training sessions. Second, teachers should be given in-service training on how PjBL is applied. Third, the curriculum should be authentic and purposefully designed to be taught by PjBL. Finally, a special budget for projects should be offered by schools.

The duration of PjBL implementation across the reviewed literature varies considerably depending on the research design and educational context, ranging from short-term instructional units to multi-year longitudinal interventions. Experimental and quasi-experimental studies, such as those by Tika and Agustiana (2021), Twahirwa et al. (2021), and Demir and Önal (2021), generally implemented PjBL over a limited instructional period, typically a few weeks to one academic term. The authors focused primarily on immediate impacts on academic achievement and attitudes. In contrast, the longitudinal study by Han et al. (2016) extended PBL implementation across three consecutive academic years (2008–2010), allowing for sustained exposure and stronger effect sizes in mathematics achievement. Also, Kricsfalusy et al. (2018) examined PjBL within semester-long integration embedded in a programmatic curriculum rather than a short intervention. More recent AI-enhanced PBL studies, such as Ruiz Viruel et al. (2025) and Wan (2025), also appear to follow controlled experimental durations aligned with academic terms. While most studies employed short- to medium-term PjBL implementations. Only a few adopted extended or longitudinal designs, suggesting that sustained, multi-year evaluation of PjBL remains moderately limited in the literature.

Conclusion

This review underscores the substantial benefits of PjBL in enhancing learning outcomes in line with socioformation. Socioformative pedagogical practices are influenced by socio-emotional skills; the skills needed to be cautiously developed in the 21st-century era. In this regard, enhancing socio-emotional skills is essential for improved student performance. Socioformative projects can extend PjBL beyond classroom achievement by emphasizing community-based problem solving, ethical responsibility, and sustainable development, thereby fostering socially responsive competencies alongside academic learning. Socioformative projects involve flexible proposals centered on critical and socio-critical thinking to contribute to sustainable social development, featuring interdisciplinarity and a high degree of student agency. It is through social learning projects that students communicate, collaborate, and interact with their peers and teachers in a social setting. Such kinds of projects will enhance transferable skills in students, the skills which AI aided projects fail to develop.

Based on the reviewed evidence, this study concludes that project-based learning shows promising potential to support students’ engagement, skill development, and conceptual understanding of STEAM subjects. The findings indicate positive tendencies of universal effects and success. Despite the limited reviewed studies, PjBL appears to be effective if factors such as implementation quality, curriculum alignment, teacher preparedness, and resource availability are observed. However, this review acknowledges persistent challenges that must be addressed to effectively apply PjBL in STEAM education. Given the limited number of studies and the underrepresentation of socioformative applications across STEAM subjects, further rigorous and context-sensitive research is needed to generalize PjBL’s overall effectiveness. In addition, future studies should expand into underexplored subjects for diverse educational settings to build a more comprehensive evidence base.

Declarations and statements