Undergraduate Facilitators’ Perspectives of Engineering Summer Programs
- Conference
- Location
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Seattle, Washington
- Publication Date
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June 14, 2015
- Start Date
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June 14, 2015
- End Date
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June 17, 2015
- ISBN
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978-0-692-50180-1
- ISSN
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2153-5965
- Conference Session
- Tagged Division
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Student
- Page Count
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12
- Page Numbers
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26.1615.1 - 26.1615.12
- DOI
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10.18260/p.24951
- Permanent URL
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https://peer.asee.org/24951
- Download Count
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568
Paper Authors
Rachel Jannette McFalls Mississippi State University
Rachel is a first year masters student in Aerospace Engineering at Mississippi State University. She graduated from Mississippi State University with a B.S. in Aerospace Engineering in May 2014. Her current research interests include K-12 STEM education, first-year engineering, retention, transition, and engineering identity.
Carla Danielle Grimes Mississippi State University
Danielle is a first year doctoral student in Biomedical Engineering at Mississippi State University. She graduated Cum Laude from Mississippi State University with a Biological Engineering bachelor's degree in May 2014, and Danielle was inducted into the Bagley College of Engineering Student Hall of Fame in April 2014. Her research interests include females in engineering and K-12 STEM education.
M. Jean Mohammadi-Aragh
Mississippi State University
orcid.org/0000-0002-3094-3734
Dr. M. Jean Mohammadi-Aragh is an assistant research professor with a joint appointment in the Bagley College of Engineering dean’s office and the Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering at Mississippi State University. Through her role in the Hearin Engineering First-year Experiences (EFX) Program, she is assessing the college’s current first-year engineering efforts, conducting rigorous engineering education research to improve first-year experiences, and promoting the adoption of evidence-based instructional practices. In addition to research in first year engineering, Dr. Mohammadi-Aragh investigates technology-supported classroom learning and using scientific visualization to improve understanding of complex phenomena. She earned her Ph.D. (2013) in Engineering Education from Virginia Tech, and both her M.S. (2004) and B.S. (2002) in Computer Engineering from Mississippi State. In 2013, Dr. Mohammadi-Aragh was honored as a promising new engineering education researcher when she was selected as an ASEE Educational Research and Methods Division Apprentice Faculty.
Rani W. Sullivan Mississippi State University
Rani Warsi Sullivan is an associate professor of aerospace engineering at Mississippi State University. She received her PhD, MS, and BS in Aerospace Engineering from Mississippi State University. Dr. Sullivan has teaching and research interests in the area of engineering mechanics, mechanical vibrations, aerospace structures and polymer viscoelasticity. She maintains a strong interest in developing methods to increase experiential education. Her current research involves the characterization of the time-dependent deformation of polymer matrix nanocomposites and the use of fiber optic strain sensing for development of an in-flight structural health monitoring system for an all-composite unmanned aerial vehicle.
James Warnock Mississippi State University
James Warnock is the Interim Associate Dean for Undergraduate Studies in the Bagley College of Engineering at Mississippi State University. His background is in biomedical engineering and he has been a big proponent of self-directed learning and active learning in his classes and was the first person to introduce problem-based learning in the department of agricultural and biological engineering at MSU. James is also the Adjunct Director for training and instruction in the professional services department at ABET. In this role, Warnock oversees the development, planning, production and implementation of the ABET Program Assessment Workshops, IDEAL and the assessment webinar series. He also directs activities related to the workshop facilitator training and professional development.
Abstract
Undergraduate Facilitators’ Perspectives of Engineering Summer Programs Universities often use summer programs to educate, recruit, and inspire K-12 students regarding future fields of study. Engineering summer programs for high school students are offered at universities all over the country. It is often reported that students who attend an engineering summer program are retained in undergraduate engineering programs at higher rates than those students who did not participate in a summer program. Multiple calls to increase the number of engineering graduates have resulted in engineering summer programs becoming a popular method to recruit and retain additional undergraduate engineering students. Along with the increased interest in summer programs comes the need for more staff for such programs, which has created an opportunity for advanced undergraduate students to design and facilitate summer programs. This paper investigates the experiences of two undergraduate facilitators of two different engineering summer programs at a large land-grant university in the southern United States. For this study an auto-ethnographic approach was taken, in which the authors and facilitators first collaboratively developed a series of short-answer prompts related to our two research questions: 1) How can undergraduate students effectively facilitate engineering summer programs for K-12 students? and 2) How can the experience for an undergraduate student facilitating engineering summer programs be improved? Examples of the short-answer prompts that each facilitator answered independently include: 1) What was the goal of your summer program?, 2) How was the goal of the program achieved?, 3) To what extent did you as a engineering undergraduate feel that the goal was achieved?, 4) How did you get involved with the program?, 5) Describe your experience facilitating your summer program and how it may or may not have impacted your engineering identity, and 6) What were some lessons learned while being a facilitator of the program? Each prompt was answered independently and then analyzed for themes and trends. This paper is a first step towards better understanding how undergraduates can effectively support staffing needs for engineering summer programs. Additionally, the two experiences described herein serve as exemplars of the roles that advanced undergraduate students can serve in support of summer programs. Finally, by analyzing the perceived success of the programs with respect to the different program goals and motivations, we provide tricks of the trade for both undergraduate and graduate students who would like to be or are already involved in planning or leading an engineering summer program.
McFalls, R. J., & Grimes, C. D., & Mohammadi-Aragh, M. J., & Sullivan, R. W., & Warnock, J. (2015, June), Undergraduate Facilitators’ Perspectives of Engineering Summer Programs Paper presented at 2015 ASEE Annual Conference & Exposition, Seattle, Washington. 10.18260/p.24951
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