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1. Young Women Exposed Actively to the Value of Biomedical Engineering

   https://doi.org/10.1109/EMBC44109.2020.9176290  

   Thompson, Lara A.; Zhang, Nian (July 2020, 2020 42nd Annual International Conference of the IEEE Engineering in Medicine & Biology Society (EMBC))

   null (Ed.)

   To bridge the gap between the biological sciences (typically female-dominated) and engineering (typically male-dominated), biomedical engineering (BME) activities could potentially be used as a vehicle to alter female students' perception of engineering as a whole. Female's pursuit of STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering and Math) degrees is typically confined to the biological sciences and females earn a high proportion of degrees in nursing, psychology and the social sciences, yet male presence persists in physical sciences and engineering. Female's participation in engineering remains much lower than men at all degree levels. Here, research questions included do female high school students: 1) perceive engineering as relevant? 2) have an interest & aptitude towards exploring engineering in college and as a career? 3) have anxiety in terms of engineering? 4) have engineering "role-confidence"? Participants, a randomly selected pool of 28 high school students (almost exclusively female from schools throughout the DC Metro area) took part in a week-long, all-day workshop where they were exposed to female engineering mentors, peers, and activities tied to BME & Engineering. Pre and post surveys, adapted from standard STEM surveys, were administered to the pool of participants. Increases in confidence and interest in engineering and decreased anxiety were observed following female high school students' participation in hands-on activities in BME. 

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2. Combining course-based research, high impact educational practices, design thinking and strengths-based coaching to support the next generation of neuroscience researchers

   Alex Camarillo; Maria De La Torre; Philip A. Vieira (October 2021, Abstracts Society for Neuroscience)

   Historically, there has been a challenge of retaining and graduating students as STEM majors. At CSU Dominguez Hills, a regional, urban, Hispanic-Serving and Minority-Serving Institution with a large number of first-generation college students that receive Pell grants, student persistence and retention is of particular concern.The purpose of this study is to study the efficacy of combining Course-based Undergraduate Research Experiences (CUREs), High-Impact Educational Practices (HIPs), Design Thinking (DT) training and Strengths-based coaching into a First Year Seminar (FYS) course. A diverse group of first-year students from both STEM and non-STEM majors enrolled in a Neuroscience of Hedonism course where they participated in a variety of activities to 1) promote learning of basic neuroscience concepts, 2) conduct a research study using low-cost electrophysiology tools, and 3) support personal and professional development. In addition to studying long-term effects like student retention and persistence rates, we also measure recruitment of non-STEM majors to STEM majors, science identity/literacy, self-efficacy and a variety of career-related attitudes. This pilot study will provide a framework by which STEM departments can create a survey course to recruit incoming freshmen and encourage retention and persistence in STEM majors and subsequent careers. 

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3. A mobile educational platform based on peer influence and instructional scaffolding for engaging students in out-of-class activities

   https://doi.org/10.1109/ICALT52272.2021.00026  

   Fuad, Muztaba; Akbar, Monika; Gloster, Clay; Aun, Nathan; Zubov, Lynn (July 2021, 2021 International Conference on Advanced Learning Technologies (ICALT))

   null (Ed.)

   It is a well-documented challenge to keep students engaged and motivated in out-of-class activities. More students now have part- or full-time jobs and less time to study. Supporting their academic growth and success requires acknowledging the higher commitments to the jobs while providing appropriate mechanisms to make the best use of their available times. This paper presents a mobile educational platform, Dysgu, that aims to engage students in out-of-class activities. An initial study completed on this platform investigates the role of peer influence to increase student engagement in an early college class. Data indicates students prefer Dysgu for out-of-class activities compared to traditional pen- and paper-based activities. Students noted that peer influence, in the form of scores compared to the rest of the class, was highly motivating. We also observed more on-time submissions when using Dysgu. 

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4. Creating Significant Learning Experiences in an Engineering Technology Bridge Course: a backward design approach

   Villalta-Cerdas, A.; Yildiz, F. (January 2022, 2022 ASEE Virtual Annual Conference Content Access)

   Academic bridge courses are implemented to impact students’ academic success by revising fundamental concepts and skills necessary to successfully complete discipline-specific courses. The bridge courses are often short (one to three weeks) and highly dense in content (commonly mathematics or math-related applications). With the support of the NSF-funded (DUE - Division of Undergraduate Education) STEM Center at Sam Houston State University (SHSU), we designed a course for upcoming engineering majors (i.e., first-year students and transfer students) that consists of a two-week-long pre-semester course organized into two main sessions. The first sessions (delivered in the mornings) were synchronous activities focused on strengthening student academic preparedness and socio-academic integration and fostering networking leading to a strong STEM learning community. The second sessions (delivered in the afternoons) were asynchronous activities focused on discipline-specific content knowledge in engineering. The engineering concepts were organized via eight learning modules covering basic math operations, applied trigonometry, functions in engineering, applied physics, introduction to statics and Microsoft Excel, and engineering economics and its applied decision. All materials in the course were designed by engineering faculty (from the chair of the department to assistant professors and lecturers in engineering) and one educational research faculty (from the department of chemistry). The course design process started with a literature review on engineering bridge courses to understand prior work, followed by surveying current engineering faculty to propose goals for the course. The designed team met weekly after setting the course goals over two semesters. The design process was initiated with backward design principles (i.e., start with the course goals, then the assessments, end with the learning activities) and continued with ongoing revision. The work herein presents this new engineering bridge course’s goals, strategy, and design process. Preliminary student outcomes will be discussed based on the course’s first implementation during summer 2021. 

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5. Supporting Design Capabilities Across the ECE Curriculum, the Role of DAMNED Projects

   Lamparter, M. A. (January 2022, American Society for Engineering Education Annual Conference and Exhibition)

   This paper reports on the development of a second-year design course intended to support student design capabilities in a coherent four-year design thread across an Electrical and Computer Engineering (ECE) curriculum. At Bucknell University students take four years of design starting by building an Internet of Things (IoT) sensor module in first year, a robust IoT product in the second year, using the product to address societal challenges in the third year, followed by a culminating capstone experience in the fourth year. While the first year introduces students broadly to the ECE curriculum, the second-year course reported here is designed to provide students’ abilities in electronic device fabrication and test and measurement, areas students at Bucknell have had little previous exposure to. This course is designed to anchor the remainder of the design sequence by giving all students the capability to independently fabricate and test robust electronic devices. The second-year course has students individually build an IoT appliance—the Digital / Analog Modular Neopixel-based Electronic Display, or DAMNED project—by going through twelve sequential steps of design from simulation through PCB layout, device and enclosure fabrication, to application development. Because this course is most students’ first encounter with electronic fabrication and test and measurement techniques, the course has students build the project in twelve steps. Each weekly step is heavily scaffolded to allow students to work independently out of class. The paper discusses how such scaffolding is supported through design representations such as block diagrams, pre-class preparation, rapid feedback, and the use of campus makerspaces and educational software tools. The paper also shares results of making iterative improvement to the course structure using action research, and early indications that students are able transfer skills into subsequent design courses. 

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