and promote their creative use through a structured story-plot expansion in short-story writing. A self-rating

pictogram-based self-reported checklist comprising 68 words relating to STEM concepts and thematic

triangulation purposes, data were also derived from four language instructors' observation checklists and

students' feedback forms. Results revealed considerable vocabulary gains, with students reporting improved

recognition and confidence in using STEM vocabulary, enjoyment, and perceived relevance of the activities

following the intervention. Instructor observations highlighted active participation, strong engagement, and the

feasibility of a wider use of the integrated STEM-ESL lessons with some adjustment. The quantitative and

qualitative data triangulation supports the effectiveness of the module in promoting conceptual understanding

and language development. This study contributes to interdisciplinary learning research by presenting a CSR-

communicate effectively in English is recognised as a critical 21st-century competency. Many countries are

investing significantly to strengthen education to produce students who master scientific concepts and

communicate them successfully in English. In Malaysia, where English is taught as a second language and

STEM subjects are delivered predominantly in Bahasa Melayu and English in Dual Language Programme

(DLP) schools, meeting the demand for this competency presents significant challenges. Even though there are

efforts to strengthen STEM education, many secondary school students still struggle with the specialised

vocabulary required to comprehend and express STEM concepts when the language of instruction is not the

native language (Macaro et al., 2018). Othman’s (2024) study similarly highlighted that students learning

develop both scientific literacy and expressive writing skills through intriguing hands-on and engaging

activities. This is reiterated from 2013 studies by the Ministry of Education (MOE), which indicate that

teaching and learning of STEM subjects are mostly teacher-centred, depriving students of the opportunities to

be critical, creative, and innovative.

designed to address this gap. It was conducted among Form 2 students in a secondary boarding school in

Putrajaya, Malaysia. The key STEM concepts and vocabulary in English were introduced, and then students

were guided to apply the knowledge creatively in short-story writing. By integrating STEM enrichment with

narrative expressions, the initiative sought to enhance students’ STEM-related vocabulary, improve their

English writing skills, and increase their engagement and motivation through innovative, cross-disciplinary

3. What aspects of the STEM-ESL integration module do students find the most valuable?

This project is supported through a CSR initiative to demonstrate a replicable model to foster scientific literacy

an educational innovation with potential global relevance.

responsibility (CSR) in education. Together, these strands highlight the need for tested integration modules

that combine hands-on STEM activities with ESL writing.

Content and Language Integrated Learning (CLIL) provide a framework for merging subject content with

language instruction (Arús-Hita & Bárcena, 2024). CLIL advocates for the purposeful use of the target

tasks remain a primary mode of assessment, making writing support vital for STEM students’ academic

success.

Recent research reinforces creative writing and storytelling as a powerful means for vocabulary acquisition in

acquisition of a specialised vocabulary essential for engaging with scientific and technical content.

In a related study, Karim and Mustapha (2020) found that creative tools such as digital mind maps stimulated

critical and creative thinking in ESL writing courses, thereby indirectly strengthening vocabulary learning.

Seng et al. (2020), who share the same notion, concluded that integrating the 21st-century learning skills, such

cognitive growth. Together, these findings posit that narrative-based pedagogies, whether through short stories,

digital storytelling, or creative mapping, are not only effective for general ESL learning but are also crucial for

preparing STEM students to access and communicate disciplinary knowledge through enriched vocabulary.

Despite the clear theoretical alignment between CLIL and STEM language learning, empirical work on

Baldwin (2020) postulated that web-based inquiry environments within STEM frameworks can promote

real promise for integrated approaches, but they also reveal the scarcity of robust, replicable models that

explicitly link hands-on STEM activities with English language outcomes, particularly in Malaysian lower-

secondary contexts, where such innovations are most needed.

Collaborative initiatives have been recognised as valuable enablers for educational innovation, particularly

when schools partner with external organisations. These enhance resources and expertise, where structured

collaboration can directly strengthen classroom learning. Among others, Owens and Hite (2022) documented

that global collaboration projects in STEM settings enhance students’ communication competencies and offer

real-world opportunities to apply English in technical contexts. This report shows how partnerships through

instructional collaboration models and industry-linked projects can support interdisciplinary efforts like

STEM–ESL integration by providing authentic contexts and additional resources for language development.

combined these strands into a tested, replicable module that combines hands-on STEM exploration, targeted

STEM vocabulary instruction, and creative writing tasks, particularly within the Malaysian ESL context.

Moreover, although collaboration and partnership models are often discussed as enabling factors, empirical

evidence of their roles in sustaining integrated STEM–ESL innovations remains scarce (Owens & Hite, 2022).

Therefore, in response to this scarcity, the replicable STEM-ESL module in the current study is potentially the

first that directly links hands-on STEM activities with the acquisition of related thematic vocabulary in

that introduces STEM concepts and vocabulary in English and then challenges students to embed these

elements into original short stories. Supported through collaborative partnerships, the project seeks to provide

evidence of how such a module can enhance vocabulary acquisition and student engagement.

combining numeric evidence and descriptive accounts ensures a comprehensive understanding of the module’s

impact on language learning and engagement.

This study involved a total of 80 Form 2 students from a public boarding secondary school in Malaysia and

integrated a CSR-funded module through a 5-hour STEM-ESL Creative Writing workshop. The selection of

the participants considered a single cohort that learns most subjects (including STEM) predominantly in

Bahasa Melayu, as in the case of most schools in the country, using a convenience sampling technique, as they

were accessible within the CSR programme. The 80 sample size was deemed adequate for statistical analysis

based on prior CLIL and STEM-ESL intervention studies that highlighted medium to large effect sizes for

vocabulary acquisition (Sun et al. 2025), while acknowledging the limitations of convenience sampling and

(recognise), 2 (can explain briefly), and 3 (can explain and use in a sentence) for research question 1. For

language instructors, comprised 17 items (with open-ended spaces for qualitative notes) that covered the

dimensions of student engagement, STEM-language integration, creativity, and collaboration, and qualitative

notes for research question two. Student feedback was collected to gauge their perspectives on the aspect(s) of

intervention delivery with demonstrations of STEM experiments and language activities, and post-test

vocabulary checklist and student feedback. The four language instructors also completed their observation

checklists and reflective comments. The quantitative data were analysed for descriptive statistics to summarise

vocabulary scores, which included means, standard deviations (SDs), and Cohen’s d. A paired-samples t-test

assesses the pre-post vocabulary gains, while effect size (Cohen’s d) quantifies the magnitude of improvement.

The instructor and student open responses were coded thematically (Braun & Clarke, 2006) for engagement,

challenges, creativity, and feasibility, as well as valuable learning aspects. The data were anonymised, stored

securely, and used solely for research purposes. The school administration and the participants also granted

their permissions.

observational data on participation and language application, as well as student feedback. The scores from the

Table 1 shows that students’ STEM thematic vocabulary knowledge improved significantly after participating

in the STEM-ESL creative writing module. The pre-intervention mean score was 1.94 (SD = 0.45), which