AC 2009-1368: AN INVESTIGATION OF MIDDLE-SCHOOL STUDENTS’INTEREST IN, PERCEPTION OF, AND ATTITUDES ABOUT TECHNOLOGYAND ENGINEERINGKari Cook, Brigham Young UniversityGeoffrey Wright, Brigham Young UniversitySteve Shumway, Brigham Young UniversityRonald Terry, Brigham Young University Page 14.207.1© American Society for Engineering Education, 2009 An Investigation of Middle School Student Interest, Perception, and Attitude Toward Technology and EngineeringIntroductionRecently, technology education educators have been asked to include engineering concepts in K-12 curriculum.1 While to some this may initially appear to drift from the purposes of
children in informal settings and studies the ways in which the children do so critically, and has recently partnered with a school district to implement engineering instruction in elementary schools using Engineering is Elementary units of instruction. Page 14.319.1© American Society for Engineering Education, 2009 Children’s Conceptions and Critical Analysis of Technology Before and After Participating in an Informal Engineering ClubAbstractThis mixed-methods study examines the way in which elementary-aged children participating inan informal engineering club and using Engineering is Elementary (EiE
. Kelly Distinguished Professor of Chemistry, Education, and Engineering at Purdue University, where he has been head of the Division of Chemical Education in the Department of Chemistry and a member of the faculty of the newly constituted Department of Engineering Education. Address: Department of Chemistry, Purdue University, 560 Oval Drive, West Lafayette, IN, 47907; e-mail gmbodner@purdue.edu Page 14.1273.1© American Society for Engineering Education, 2009 Toward a Technologically Literate Society: Elementary School Teachers’ Views of the Nature of EngineeringAbstract Generating a
AC 2009-2090: TECHNOLOGY EDUCATION IN THE UNITED STATES:TEACHERS' BELIEFS AND PRACTICES IN PERSPECTIVEMark Sanders, Virginia TechThomas Sherman, Virginia TechHyuksoo Kwon, Virginia TechJames Pembridge, Virginia Tech Page 14.1170.1© American Society for Engineering Education, 2009 Technology Education in the United States: Teachers’ Beliefs and Practices in PerspectiveSince changing its name in 1985, the field/school subject known as Technology Education hasworked to transform its curriculum and teaching practice from one dominated by craft andindustry-related technologies, to “a curriculum to reflect technology.”1 Over the past threedecades
AC 2009-830: ENGAGING HIGH-SCHOOL STUDENTS IN ENGINEERING,SCIENCE, AND TECHNOLOGY USING VIRTUAL LABORATORIESMilo Koretsky, Oregon State University Milo Koretsky is an Associate Professor of Chemical Engineering at Oregon State University. He currently has research activity in areas related to thin film materials processing and engineering education. He is interested in integrating technology into effective educational practices and in promoting the use of higher level cognitive skills in engineering problem solving. Dr. Koretsky is a six-time Intel Faculty Fellow and has won awards for his work in engineering education at the university and national levels.Debra Gilbuena, Oregon State University
AC 2009-1747: THE EFFECT OF A TEACHER PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENTINTEGRATED CURRICULUM WORKSHOP ON PERCEPTIONS OF DESIGN,ENGINEERING, AND TECHNOLOGY EXPERIENCESKaren High, Oklahoma State University KAREN HIGH earned her B.S. from the University of Michigan in 1985 and her M.S. in 1988 and Ph.D. in 1991 from the Pennsylvania State University. Dr. High is an Associate Professor in the School of Chemical Engineering at Oklahoma State University where she has been since 1991. Her main technical research interests are Sustainable Process Design, Industrial Catalysis, and Multicriteria Decision Making. Her engineering education activities include enhancing mathematics, communication skills, critical
AC 2009-2198: USING ROBOTICS TO EQUIP K-12 TEACHERS: THE SILICONPRAIRIE INITIATIVE FOR ROBOTICS IN INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY(SPIRIT)Alisa Gilmore, University of Nebraska, Lincoln Alisa N. Gilmore, P.E. is a Senior Lecturer in the Department of Computer and Electronics Engineering at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln. She serves as senior technical staff for two NSF grants in the ITEST and Discovery K-12 programs associated with using robotics in the K-12 arena to motivate student achievement in STEM activities. She has been involved as a community outreach speaker, presenter, and collaborator with local schools, students, and teachers for over ten years, working to expose pre-college
conducted in a complex, globally-distributedenvironment. Multiple entities must work together on a range of project components andsystems that must, themselves, work together in order for the entire system to operate effectively.Stevens Institute of Technology has partnered with the New Jersey Technology EducationAssociation to introduce concepts and approaches of systems and global engineering to highschool technology, engineering, and science students. As part of the Systems and GlobalEngineering (SAGE) project, students in classrooms around the world have the opportunity todesign a solution to a complex problem. Students apply science and mathematics principlestoward the development of an engineered product or system; utilize state-of-the-art
AC 2009-937: ANALYSIS OF A STATEWIDE K-12 ENGINEERING PROGRAM:LEARNING FROM THE FIELDDebra Brockway, Stevens Institute of TechnologyElisabeth McGrath, Stevens Institute of TechnologyMercedes McKay, Stevens Institute of TechnologyDawna Schultz, Stevens Institute of Technology Page 14.212.1© American Society for Engineering Education, 2009 Analysis of a Statewide K-12 Engineering Program: Learning from the FieldAbstractEngineering Our Future New Jersey (EOFNJ), an ongoing statewide initiative to infuseengineering into K-12 science, mathematics, and technology curricula, has recently concluded athree-year effort to reach 2,000
AC 2009-2364: ENHANCING K-12 SCIENCE AND ENGINEERING THROUGHSUSTAINABLE PARTNERSHIPS BETWEEN SCIENTISTS AND TEACHERSJames Maloney, California Institute of TechnologyJennifer Franck, California Institute of TechnologyTara Gomez, California Institute of TechnologyPamela Aschbacher, California Institute of Technology Page 14.569.1© American Society for Engineering Education, 2009 Enhancing K-12 Science and Engineering Through Sustainable Partnerships Between Scientists and TeachersOverview, History and MissionThe ______Classroom Connection (XXX) is a science education outreach programbuilding 1-to-1 partnerships between
AC 2009-2022: INTEGRATING ENGINEERING, MODELING, ANDCOMPUTATION INTO THE BIOLOGY CLASSROOM: DEVELOPMENT OFMULTIDISCIPLINARY HIGH-SCHOOL NEUROSCIENCE CURRICULATara Gomez, California Institute of Technology Tara Gomez received her B.S. in Molecular, Cellular and Developmental Biology from the University of California, Los Angeles. She is a Ph.D. Candidate in Biology at the California Institute of Technology. Her research is in the area of Biochemistry and protein degradation. She was the Neuroscience Curriculum Coordinator for the 2008 YESS Program.Oliver Loson, California Institute of Technology Oliver received his B.S. in the neurosciences from the University of California, Riverside. He is now
Technology JOHN D. CARPINELLI is a Professor of Electrical and Computer Engineering and Director of the Center for Pre-College Programs at the New Jersey Institute of Technology. He has served as coordinator of activities at NJIT for the Gateway Engineering Education Coalition and as a member of the Coalition's Governing Board. He previously chaired NJIT's Excellence in Teaching Awards Committee and is past chair of the University Master Teacher Committee.Howard Kimmel, New Jersey Institute of Technology HOWARD KIMMEL is Professor of Chemical Engineering and Executive Director of the Center for Pre-College Programs at New Jersey Institute of Technology. He has spent the past thirty years
AC 2009-934: PROMOTING SCIENTIFIC INQUIRY THROUGH INNOVATIVESCIENCE AND ENGINEERING CURRICULA IN GRADES 3-5Augusto Macalalag , Stevens Institute of TechnologySusan Lowes, Teachers College/Columbia UniversityKaren Guo, Teachers College/Columbia UniversityMercedes McKay, Stevens Institute of TechnologyElisabeth McGrath, Stevens Institute of Technology Page 14.993.1© American Society for Engineering Education, 2009 Promoting Scientific Inquiry through Innovative Science and Engineering Curricula in Grades 3-5IntroductionTechnological and scientific literacy are crucial for students to compete in the globaleconomy of the 21st century1,2. The widening gap in
AC 2009-492: ANALYSIS OF MIDDLE- AND HIGH-SCHOOL STUDENTS’LEARNING OF SCIENCE, MATHEMATICS, AND ENGINEERING CONCEPTSTHROUGH A LEGO UNDERWATER ROBOTICS DESIGN CHALLENGEElisabeth McGrath, Stevens Institute of TechnologySusan Lowes, Teachers College, Columbia UniversityPeiyi Lin, Teachers College, Columbia UniversityJason Sayres, Stevens Institute of Technology Page 14.215.1© American Society for Engineering Education, 2009 Analysis of Middle and High School Student Learning of Science, Mathematics and Engineering Concepts Through a LEGO Underwater Robotics Design ChallengeAbstractThe Build IT project is a university-school collaboration to
AC 2009-2335: ELICITING UNDERSERVED MIDDLE-SCHOOL YOUTHS’NOTIONS OF ENGINEERS: DRAW AN ENGINEERTirupalavanam Ganesh, Arizona State University Tirupalavanam Ganesh, Ph.D., has degrees and experience in engineering, computer science, and education. He has brought this experience to bear in previous research that examined the use of technologies in K-12 settings with diverse students. He has worked with the Children’s Museum of Houston on the development and implementation of Robotics-based STEM programming for urban youth. He is the Principal Investigator of the National Science Foundation Award# 0737616, Learning through Engineering Design and Practice.John Thieken, Arizona State University
engineering education at the 2009ASEE Annual Conference and Exposition in Austin, TX. To do this, the Division is sponsoringa panel session on Best Practices in K-12 and university partnerships. Submissions chosen forparticipation in this session demonstrate a true partnership between a K-12 school (or schools)and an engineering school/college at a university.Selected partnerships have proven success in the classroom and demonstrate engineeringengagement and knowledge acquisition by K-12 students through age appropriate activities andlessons. Best Practices Partnership Panel winners' papers are authored collaboratively betweenengineering and technology education faculty and K-12 teachers. Details on the partnership'sstructure and goals and the
development. Page 14.554.1© American Society for Engineering Education, 2009 “Engineering Energy Solutions” for the INSPIRES CurriculumThe INSPIRES Curriculum (INcreasing Student Participation, Interest and Recruitmentin Engineering and Science), funded by the National Science Foundation, is beingdeveloped in response to the need to recruit more students in the STEM-related fields.The curriculum seeks to accomplish this goal by exposing students to a combination ofreal-world engineering design challenges, hands-on activities, and inquiry-based learningactivities that target the ITEA Standards for Technological Literacy as well as
teachers’ beliefs and expectationsabout high school pre-engineering instruction and preparation for students’ future successengineering, we hope to contribute to the wide scale efforts currently in place to expand andimprove engineering education and foster a more technologically advanced society.IntroductionEducation research shows that instructional practice and teacher decision making are influencedby teachers’ beliefs about learning and instruction1, 2, 3. The primary goal of this current study isto develop a statistically reliable survey instrument that documents teachers’ beliefs andexpectations about high school pre-engineering instruction and preparation for students’ futuresuccess in college engineering programs and careers in engineering
know what engineers do1. They know the stereotype better thanthe reality and perceive engineers to be people lacking interpersonal skills with an interest inthings. In reality, engineers are creative people who work in teams to create solutions for manyof today’s problems, such as water purification and creating medicines to cure diseases. Studieshave shown that students respond positively to engineering when they understand its historicalcontributions and social relevance. Engineering is the application of science, technology andcreativity that has led to inventions such as iPods®, computers, telephones and airplanes2.The Graduate Teaching Fellows in K-12 Education (GK-12) program from the National ScienceFoundation (NSF) provides fellowships
Page 14.57.2© American Society for Engineering Education, 2009 A Middle School Project for Science and Math Enhancement through EngineeringAbstractThis study is focused on the impact of curricular and extra curricular engineering-basedinstructional activities on middle students’ perceptions of their ability to become engineers.Middle school students are at an age where high interest activities are essential for motivationand relevant learning. This is also the age where students’ interest can be piqued to considercareers in STEM fields. This study also looks at math content knowledge, attitudes toward mathand science, and perceptions of technology, engineering, and what defines engineering.In 2007, the
, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) subjects, and all havestudent bodies that are primarily from underrepresented minority groups (average 88%), lowincome (average 77%), and first generation to college. The goal “to involve teachers inengineering research” has been accomplished by satisfying 3 objectives linked to the intendedoutcomes and impacts. The objectives are: 1) Provide contemporary engineering researchexperiences and enhance understanding of the nature of engineering; 2) Scaffold teacherdevelopment of authentic inquiry activities for the high school classroom; and 3) Improve publicschool teachers’ knowledge about careers in engineering. Assessment of the program isintegrated into its structure providing regular feedback which is
engineering and science. Improving student awareness ofengineering and science contributes to technological literacy among the general public and alsohelps students make informed career path decisions. A significant body of literature exists on theattitudes of K-12 students and teachers towards science and scientists. This literature hasinformed the development of science education outreach programs. However, a comparablebody of literature about K-12 student attitudes towards engineering and engineers is not yet fullydeveloped.Some work has been done in this area. Yasar1 developed a survey to study K-12 teacherperceptions of engineering, primarily to determine their interest in and comfort level for teachingdesign, engineering and technology in their
Knowledge Test was 1.0. The post EIDS scores indicatedgains in academic and school identities, and knowledge of the work of engineers which alsoappeared in her interview responses: “An environmental engineer does things to help the outdoors, like the environment, and the thing it mainly works to keep clean or help is water, soil, and the air.” “[Mechanical engineers]…probably design a better way, like, they had…on the news this morning that was talking about engineers and how they were, they needed engineers to find better technology to get the bumpers and the parts of their car stronger so they can, so they don’t crash and it damages that much, and the damage is less
energy issue – modes ofprivate vehicle transportation. The module was developed and modified by graduate studentsfrom Clarkson University with the support of an NSF GK-12 grant. The energy module wasdesigned based on themes from STS and project-based learning models of instruction, andcontains elements of instruction and practice in formal decision making. Module content iscorrelated to New York State (NYS) and National Learning Standards for Science, Mathematics,and Technology, with a focus on science inquiry and the “extended process skills” covered byNYS Standards 1, 2, 6, and 7: • Standard 1 - Analysis, Inquiry and Design. Students will use mathematical analysis, scientific inquiry, and engineering design, as appropriate, to pose
relative to studentselsewhere in the system.16 Page 14.961.4 Table 1. School Profiles from Data Provided by District Exam Theme Exam School/ School/ Theme Theme School/ Math & Health & School/ School/ Humanities Science Technology Engineering Non-STEM % % % % %Low Income 28.0 62.6 64.0
schools gradually became schools of physics andmathematics; medical schools became schools of biological science, business schools becameschools of finite mathematics” (p. 111). As Cajas5 noted, this is still true decades later: The way in which future technologists (e.g., engineers or medical doctors) are generally prepared is the following: Students first take science classes with the assumption that such classes can be applied to specific technological problems (e.g., engineering problems, medical problems). The justification of taking science classes (physics for example in the case of engineers or physiology in the case of medicine) is that these classes are the bases of their future professional
activities promoted greater gains inpositive attitudes toward engineering for the female students than for the male students.Implications from this study can inform teachers’ use of engineering design activities in scienceclassrooms for the purpose of teaching about engineering and also teaching science content at adeep conceptual level. Results may also be of interest to science curriculum developers andengineering educators involved in developing engineering outreach curricula for middle schoolstudents. With many states promoting STEM initiatives to encourage the rigorous teaching ofscience, technology, engineering and mathematics, the results of this study may help strengthenthe results of those efforts.References1. Ferguson, R.L. (2007
created “to develop the nextgeneration of leaders in nanoscale science and engineering teaching and learning, with anemphasis on NSEE [nanoscale science and engineering education] capacity building, providing astrong impact on national science, technology, engineering, and mathematics education.” Oneinitiative of the NCLT is a professional development program designed to facilitate 7-12 gradescience teachers’ development of NSE content knowledge and integration of NSE concepts intothe current secondary science curricula. Teachers who participate in the NCLT’s professionaldevelopment program were required to integrate at least one NSE lesson during the school year
the University of Colorado at Boulder: her early work there addressed concerns about the digital divide.Lonny Grafman, Humboldt State University Lonny Grafman is an Instructor of Environmental Resources Engineering and Appropriate Technology at Humboldt State University; the co-founder and instructor in a full immersion, Spanish language and appropriate technology summer program in Parras, Mexico; and the executive editor of the International Journal for Service Learning in Engineering. In addition, he is the President of the Appropedia Foundation, sharing knowledge to build rich, sustainable lives. Lonny seeks ways to increase knowledge of the world through exposure and synthesis
, respectively.Linda Weavers, Ohio State University Linda K. Weavers is the John C. Geupel Chair and Professor in the Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering and Geodetic Science at The Ohio State University. In addition, Dr. Weavers is co-Director of the National Institute of Water Resources (NIWR) Water Resources Center for the State of Ohio. After obtaining her B.S. in Civil Engineering from the University of Minnesota, she received M.S. and Ph.D. degrees in Environmental Engineering Science from the California Institute of Technology. Dr. Weavers’ research is multi-pronged with research projects in the area of advanced oxidation processes (including sonochemistry, ozonation, and