New Perspectives in Science Education

Developing students’ capacity to represent, model, and communicate scientific ideas through visuals is central to effective primary science learning, yet classroom-ready STEAM designs that operationalise visual representation as an assessable competency remain under-specified. This study reframes an interdisciplinary visual-arts approach as a STEAM visual-representation intervention supporting scientific modelling and explanation through a scaffolded sequence of close observation, imaginative transformation, ideation planning, and expressive communication. A quasi-experimental pretest–posttest design was implemented with 256 Grade 5 students across four primary schools, comparing an intervention condition (two schools) with conventional instruction (two schools). Visual representation competency was assessed on a five-point analytic rubric across four dimensions (observation, imagination, ideation, expressiveness), and student motivation was measured using an adapted MSLQ subscale (intrinsic and extrinsic motivation). Descriptively, the intervention group showed stronger posttest gains across all four representation dimensions and an increase in intrinsic motivation, whereas extrinsic motivation remained relatively stable. Moderated regression indicated that intrinsic motivation strengthened the intervention–competency relationship (IVA × intrinsic motivation: B = 0.143, p = .019), suggesting that more autonomously motivated learners benefit most from representation-focused STEAM learning. The findings propose a practical science teaching model in which drawing, diagramming, and image-based composition function as representational practice for inquiry and communication, with explicit attention to motivational conditions that sustain iterative modelling and explanation.