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1. Impact of Engineers Without Borders USA Experiences on Professional Preparation

   William Oakes ; Paul A. Leidig ; Eric Holloway ( June 2023 , Proceedings of the 2023 ASEE Annual Conference)

   Experiential education is becoming a more important part of engineering education. Experiences range from within the classroom to extra-curricular activities. Within experiential education, community engagement is particularly promising, given its alignment with diversity research and the leveraging of university resources to address needs within our society. One of the largest engineering engagement organizations is Engineers Without Borders USA (EWB-USA), which recently celebrated 20 years of student and community engagement. This poster presents the results of a sequential mixed-methods study consisting of surveys followed by interviews for each of the alumni of EWB-USA. Surveys were designed and the results show positive impact on alumni transition into a wide range of industry settings. Interviews have identified themes of impact. These include: becoming a connected part of a larger whole, portions of the volunteer experience that participants connect with particular learning outcomes, and more. 

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2. Early access to science research opportunities: Growth within a geoscience summer research program for community college students

   https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0293674  

   Okochi, Christine ; Gold, Anne U. ; Christensen, Alicia ; Batchelor, Rebecca L. ( December 2023 , PLOS ONE)

   Vasconcelos, Sonia (Ed.)

   Undergraduate research experiences benefit students by immersing them in the work of scientists and often result in increased interest and commitment to careers in the sciences. Expanding access to Research Experience for Undergraduate (REU) programs has the potential to engage more students in authentic research experiences earlier in their academic careers and grow and diversify the geoscience workforce. The Research Experience for Community College Students (RECCS) was one of the first National Science Foundation (NSF)-funded REU programs exclusively for 2-year college students. In this study, we describe findings from five years of the RECCS program and report on outcomes from 54 students. The study collected closed- and open-ended responses on post-program reflection surveys to analyze both student and mentor perspectives on their experience. Specifically, we focus on students’ self-reported growth in areas such as research skills, confidence in their ability to do research, and belonging in the field, as well as the mentors’ assessment of students’ work and areas of growth, and the impact of the program on students’ academic and career paths. In addition, RECCS alumni were surveyed annually to update data on their academic and career pursuits. Our data show that RECCS students learned scientific and professional skills throughout the program, developed a sense of identity as a scientist, and increased their interest in and excitement for graduate school after the program. Through this research experience, students gained confidence in their ability to “do” science and insight into whether this path is a good fit for them. This study contributes to an emerging body of data examining the impact of REU programs on community college students and encourages geoscience REU programs to welcome and support more community college students.

    

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3. Using a Structured Research Framework to Improve Mentoring Capacity in a Biophysics Research Lab

   https://doi.org/10.35459/tbp.2024.000271  

   Elliott, Truitt ; Drolet, Erin ; Briganti, Jonathan S ; King, Kelsie M ; Brown, Anne M ( August 2024 , The Biophysicist)

   Undergraduate research experiences (UREs) cultivate workforce skills, such as critical thinking, project management, and scientific communication. Many UREs in biophysical research have constraints related to limited resources, often resulting in smaller student cohorts, barriers for students entering a research environment, and fewer mentorship opportunities for graduate students. In response to those limitations, we have created a structured URE model that uses an asynchronous training style paired with direct-tiered mentoring delivered by peers, graduate students, and faculty. The adaptive undergraduate research training and experience (AURTE) framework was piloted as part of the Brown Experiential Learning program, a computational biophysics research lab. The program previously demonstrated substantial increases and improvements in the number of students served and skills developed. Here, we discuss the long-term effectiveness of the framework, impacts on graduate and undergraduate students, and efficacy in teaching research skills and computational-based biophysical methods. The longitudinal impact of our structured URE on student outcomes was analyzed by using student exit surveys, interviews, assessments, and 5 years of feedback from alumni. Results indicate high levels of student retention in research compared with university-wide metrics. Also, student feedback emphasizes how tiered mentoring enhanced research skill retention, while allowing graduate mentors to develop mentorship and workforce skills to expedite research. Responses from alumni affirm that workforce-ready skills (communicating science, data management, and scientific writing) acquired in the program persisted and were used in postgraduate careers. The framework reinforces the importance of establishing, iterating, and evaluating a structured URE framework to foster student success in biophysical research, while promoting mentorship skill training for graduate students. Future work will explore the adaptability of the framework in wet lab environments and probe the potential of AURTE in broader educational contexts.

    

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4. Organizing Metaphors for Design Methods in Intermediate HCI Education

   Pivonka, Anne ; Makary, Laura ; Gray, Colin M. ( May 2022 , 4th Annual ACM SIGCHI Symposium on HCI Education (EduCHI 2022))

   Design students must develop competence in a wide range of areas in order to be successful in their future practice. Increasingly, knowledge of design methods is used to frame both a designer’s repertoire and their overall facility as a designer. However, there is little research on how students build cognitive schema in relation to design methods or how these schema relate to specific epistemological patterns of engagement. In this research paper, we report a multiple case study, capturing the experiences of four advanced undergraduate UX design students at a large research-intensive institution. Through an interview study and subsequent analysis, we describe the wide variety of organizing metaphors that these students used to frame their understanding and performance of design methods, including both principles they used to consider methods as knowledge, and the ways in which these organizing principles impacted their practice of design. We conclude with recommendations for further research on the uptake of methods-focused competence in HCI education and practice. 

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5. The Facilitator Model: Investigating a Novel Dual Credit Experience for Open-Ended Design Coursework

   https://doi.org/10.1007/s41979-022-00075-5  

   Thorne, Scott ; Strimel, Greg J. ; Mentzer, Nathan ; Sears, David ( September 2022 , Journal for STEM Education Research)

   This study explored the implementation of a novel approach to dual credit referred to as the facilitator model that can be suited for STEM-focused coursework such as courses focused on engineering, design, technology, and innovation. Unlike other models, high school teachers facilitate the implementation of a college course for both high school and college credit in collaboration with a university instructor who evaluates student learning. This novel approach was specifically implemented for an open-ended undergraduate design course within an engineering technology college, similar to many first-year engineering course experiences that emphasize project based learning, from a large research-intensive public university. For this study, the facilitator model was piloted with five high school teachers as facilitators of an undergraduate design course for dual credit at two innovative, STEM-focused public charter schools. The qualitative research design focused on examining (1) teacher needs while implementing, and perceptions of, the dual credit facilitator model for an undergraduate design course in urban public charter schools and (2) the impact of this model on student learning. This study included the collection and analysis of over 90 h of interviews, focus groups, surveys, and observations. Results provide a promising outlook for the use of the facilitator model when delivering dual credit content that is open ended and within the context of design, technology, and engineering by (1) navigating multiple institutional policies and processes related to dual-credit implementation, (2) providing ongoing support and fostering collaboration between high schools and university, (3) enabling students to earn directly transcripted college credits that count as a required course toward degree completion, and (4) increasing affordability and access to dual credit coursework. These potential advantages over other dual credit models can help address barriers that may limit access to dual credit coursework, specifically for underserved high schools. 

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