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Engineering Equity into Education: Micromessaging to Reach and Teach Every Student

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Conference

2015 ASEE Workshop on K-12 Engineering Education

Location

Seattle, Washington

Publication Date

June 13, 2015

Start Date

June 13, 2015

End Date

June 13, 2015

Page Count

7

Page Numbers

18.13.1 - 18.13.7

DOI

10.18260/1-2--17086

Permanent URL

https://peer.asee.org/17086

Download Count

461

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Paper Authors

biography

Meagan C Pollock National Alliance for Partnerships in Equity

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Dr. Meagan Pollock is the Director of Professional Development for the National Alliance for Partnerships in Equity. Before turning her focus on the intersection of education and equity, Meagan worked as an engineer for Texas Instruments. Meagan was a National Science Foundation Graduate Research Fellow, and she holds a PhD in engineering education from Purdue University, a MS in electrical engineering from Texas Tech University, and a BS in computer science from Texas Woman’s University. Meagan currently develops programs and products that help educators improve equity in the classroom, ultimately to increase the participation of women and students of color in high-demand, high-wage careers. As an engineer turned educator, Meagan is focused on engineering equity into education.

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Abstract

WORKSHOP PROPOSAL FORM 2015 Annual ASEE K-12 Workshop on Engineering Education “Authentic Engineering:K-12 Workshop on Engineering Education 2015 Annual ASEE Representing & Emphasizing the E in STEM” “Authentic Engineering: Representing & Emphasizing the E in STEM” Presented by Dassault Systems Saturday, June 13, 2015 8:00 A.M. – 5:00 P.M. Sheraton Seattle | Seattle | WAPlease complete this form, save it as a PDF file only and upload it through the ASEE PaperManagement system as shown in the K12 Workshop Presenter’s Kit.All notifications will be by email from the ASEE Paper Management system.NOTE: To ensure that emails are not obstructed by spam blockers, please make sure to WHITELIST theemail addresses: monolith@asee.org and conferences@asee.org and s.harrington-hurd@asee.org.Direct questions to Stephanie Harrington-Hurd, ASEE K-12 Activities Manager, at s.harrington-hurd@asee.org. Additional workshop details are available at: http://www.asee.org/K12Workshop.Thank you! Deadline Friday, January 23, 2015 by 5:00PM EST Presenters will be notified of acceptance status by March 14. Late submissions will not be accepted. Advanced Workshop Registration will open December 6, 2013. SUBMISSION INFORMATIONProvide the first and last name of each presenter, including affiliations. If there is more than onepresenter, designate one person as the organizer and provide only that person’s contactinformation. The organizer is responsible for communicating to co-presenters.Number of Presenters: 1Presenter Name(s):1) Last Pollock First Meagan Affiliation National Alliance for Partnerships in Equity2) Last First Affiliation3) Last First AffiliationContact Person’s Name: Meagan PollockContact Person’s Email: mpollock@napequity.orgContact Person’s Phone: 5127390774Contact Person’s Alternate Phone:2015-ASEE-K12-Proposal-Form_Micromessaging_Mpollock.docx Page 1 of 6 WORKSHOP PROPOSAL FORM 2015 Annual ASEE K-12 Workshop on Engineering Education “Authentic Engineering:K-12 Workshop on Engineering Education 2015 Annual ASEE Representing & Emphasizing the E in STEM” “Authentic Engineering: Representing & Emphasizing the E in STEM” Presented by Dassault Systems Saturday, June 13, 2015 8:00 A.M. – 5:00 P.M. Sheraton Seattle | Seattle | WAPlease provide a one-paragraph bio for each presenter (in the order listed above). The bio shouldnot exceed 70 words and should be written as you would want it to appear on the ASEE websiteand program materials.1) Dr.Meagan Pollock is the Director of Professional Development for the National Alliance forPartnerships in Equity. Before turning her focus on the intersection of education and equity,Meagan worked as an engineer for Texas Instruments. Meagan was a National ScienceFoundation Graduate Research Fellow, and she holds a PhD in engineering education fromPurdue University, a MS in electrical engineering from Texas Tech University, and a BS incomputer science from Texas Woman’s University.2)3) WORKSHOP INFORMATIONProposed Title:Engineering Equity into Education: Micromessaging to Reach and Teach Every StudentAbstract: Please provide a concise description that includes the workshop’s learning objectives(maximum 750 characters). The abstract is used on the ASEE website, program materials, andotherK-12 Workshop promotional activities.Culture shapes our biases and beliefs about people based on their age, gender, race, language,(dis)ability, or income level, often without our realization. We communicate our biases in ourworld, often unknowingly, through micromessages. The accumulation of micromessages overtime impacts a person’s belief in his or her own ability to be successful in a course, class,college, and career. This session will equip educators with strategies to support studentparticipation, persistence, engagement and success in STEM, to ultimately increase theparticipation of women and students of color in engineering careers. Join us to use engineeringthinking to infuse more equity into your classroom!Workshop Description. Please provide a detailed description of the proposed workshop that, atminimum, explicitly addresses the following (maximum 4,000 characters): a. Learning objectives b. Hands-on activities and interactive exercises2015-ASEE-K12-Proposal-Form_Micromessaging_Mpollock.docx Page 2 of 6 WORKSHOP PROPOSAL FORM 2015 Annual ASEE K-12 Workshop on Engineering Education “Authentic Engineering:K-12 Workshop on Engineering Education 2015 Annual ASEE Representing & Emphasizing the E in STEM” “Authentic Engineering: Representing & Emphasizing the E in STEM” Presented by Dassault Systems Saturday, June 13, 2015 8:00 A.M. – 5:00 P.M. Sheraton Seattle | Seattle | WA c. Materials that participants can take with them d. Practical application for teachers and outreach staffIn this interactive workshop, participants will explore ways micromessages can help achieveequity in the classroom, and improve student outcomes. Micromessages are small, subtle, oftensemi-conscious messages we send while communicating with others, whether by voice, action,or body language. These messages can be both positive or negative, stem from our implicitbiases, and affect relationships. Through an interactive scenario based activity, participants willbe able to identify micromessages and recommend positive micro-affirmations to improve equityin the classroom scenarios.During the workshop, we will discuss the various types of micromessages and how thosemicromessages impact student decisions when considering and/or selecting to enroll in coursesand programs where they are underrepresented, how to encourage persistence through the use ofmicro-affirmations, and how to inoculate students from internalizing micro-inequities that, overtime, deter students from engaging in nontraditional educational pathways.Objectives: - Participants will learn about and be able to define micromessages, including the types of communication cues in which they most often manifest, and identify how these messages can enhance student engagement. - Through an interactive scenario based activity, participants will be able to identify micromessages, including micro-affirmations and micro-inequities, and recommend micro-affirmations to improve equity in the classroom scenarios.Pedagogical Strategies:Over the course of the workshop, the following pedagogical strategies will be used: - Reflective practice - Constructivist listening - Collaborative learning - Guided inquiry - Action planningHands on activities & Interactive Exercises: 1. Participants will work in dyads using constructivist listening, as a reflection tool to develop meaning and understanding around the concept of micromessaging. 2. Participants will work in small groups to identify the types of cues in which micromessages manifest. (with manipulatives) 3. Participants will work in small groups to apply learning from the first activity in a scenario based activity. (with worksheet)2015-ASEE-K12-Proposal-Form_Micromessaging_Mpollock.docx Page 3 of 6 WORKSHOP PROPOSAL FORM 2015 Annual ASEE K-12 Workshop on Engineering Education “Authentic Engineering:K-12 Workshop on Engineering Education 2015 Annual ASEE Representing & Emphasizing the E in STEM” “Authentic Engineering: Representing & Emphasizing the E in STEM” Presented by Dassault Systems Saturday, June 13, 2015 8:00 A.M. – 5:00 P.M. Sheraton Seattle | Seattle | WA 4. Participants will work in small groups to create an action plan for implementing strategies to improve equity in the classroom. This activity highlights engineering thinking via a modified design process. (with worksheet)Takeaway MaterialsParticipants will take with them the action plan worksheet they complete as a result of learning,an infographic and strategy chart on micromessages, and an infographic and strategy chart onsupporting strong student self-efficacy in STEM.Practical ApplicationImpact is greater than intent, yet too often the impact of our unconscious actions discourage theparticipation of women and students of color from entering into and persisting in STEM. Thisworkshop is designed to allow educators immediate practical application for increasing personalawareness of how implicit bias manifests itself in the classroom, and for creating equitablelearning environments that support every student’s potential.Authentic Engineering Connection. Identify and describe how you will explicitly address theways in which your lesson or activity is representative of the processes, habits of mind andpractices used by engineers, or is demonstrative of work in specific engineering fields.i At leastone of those must be within the first four listed, below; i.e., do not only check “other”. Check allthat apply: Use of an engineering design process that has at least one iteration/improvement Attention to specific engineering habits of mind Attention to engineering practices (as described in the NGSS/Framework and as practiced by engineers) Attention to specific engineering careers or fields related to the lesson/activity Other (please describe below)Provide a description of how you will explicitly address these aspects of authentic engineering inyour workshop (maximum 2,000 characters):Engineering habits of mind: This workshop integrates systems thinking, collaboration, andoptimism.Engineering practice: Educators will be invited to reverse-engineer issues of equity in theclassroom, and utilizing a user-centered design approach, educators will devise personalsolutions for transforming their practice and classroom.Engineering Careers: In addition, this workshop will highlight various opportunities inengineering fields, particularly for women and people of color.2015-ASEE-K12-Proposal-Form_Micromessaging_Mpollock.docx Page 4 of 6 WORKSHOP PROPOSAL FORM 2015 Annual ASEE K-12 Workshop on Engineering Education “Authentic Engineering:K-12 Workshop on Engineering Education 2015 Annual ASEE Representing & Emphasizing the E in STEM” “Authentic Engineering: Representing & Emphasizing the E in STEM” Presented by Dassault Systems Saturday, June 13, 2015 8:00 A.M. – 5:00 P.M. Sheraton Seattle | Seattle | WADiversity. This year is the American Society for Engineering Education’s “Year of Action onDiversity.” It is essential that we have a diverse engineering workforce to solve diverseproblems. To do that and to have an engineering-literate public, it is essential that we reach everypreK-12 student with high-quality engineering education, drawing on issues of access and equityin the classroom and in the curriculum. Reviewers would like to know how your proposedworkshop will address diversity.Provide a description of how you will explicitly address diversity – e.g., diversity with respect togender/sex, ethnicity or race, special education inclusion, socio-economic status, or LGBT status– in your workshop (maximum 2,000 characters):The premise and goal of this workshop is to ultimately improve diversity in engineering. Theconcept of micromessaging draws on the literature on implicit biases, a key topic in thisworkshop. It is the biases of the masses that have kept diversity at bay within engineering andother high tech fields. Understanding ones biases, and how they affect our interactions withothers, can begin to transform, albeit incrementally, access to engineering for every type ofperson – regardless of race, gender, class, sexuality or ability.Are there any online components to the proposal or presentation? (Note that these onlinecomponents may only be available to presenters or those who have their wireless subscriptions,since wireless may not be available during the workshop sessions.) No Yes Please describe:Grade Level Target Audience (check all that apply): Primary (EC–2) Elementary (3–5) Middle School (6-8) High School (9-12)Maximum Number of Participants:25+ If this number is greater than 25, please describe how your workshop will equally engage all participants.2015-ASEE-K12-Proposal-Form_Micromessaging_Mpollock.docx Page 5 of 6 WORKSHOP PROPOSAL FORM 2015 Annual ASEE K-12 Workshop on Engineering Education “Authentic Engineering:K-12 Workshop on Engineering Education 2015 Annual ASEE Representing & Emphasizing the E in STEM” “Authentic Engineering: Representing & Emphasizing the E in STEM” Presented by Dassault Systems Saturday, June 13, 2015 8:00 A.M. – 5:00 P.M. Sheraton Seattle | Seattle | WAAll Seating is Classroom (tables and chairs).Audio Visual Equipment Requests:Note: An LCD projector, screen and podium with attached microphone are provided. Requestsfor additional equipment or resources (e.g., internet connection or laptops) will incur extracharges. If you do not have additional requests, please indicate with “Not applicable.” Reminder:Presenters must register and pay the registration fee to support their workshop attendance and audio/video costs. Thank you for completing this proposal form! Please review this document prior to submitting it to ensure that all items are complete. ASEE USE ONLYDate Received:Received By:Proposal ID Number:2015-ASEE-K12-Proposal-Form_Micromessaging_Mpollock.docx Page 6 of 6

Pollock, M. C. (2015, June), Engineering Equity into Education: Micromessaging to Reach and Teach Every Student Paper presented at 2015 ASEE Workshop on K-12 Engineering Education, Seattle, Washington. 10.18260/1-2--17086

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