More Like this

1. Enhancing Preservice Teachers’ Intention to Integrate Engineering through a Multi-Disciplinary Partnership (Evaluation)

   Cima, F ; Pazos, P ; Kidd, JJ ; Gutierrez, KS ; Ringleb, SI ; Ayala, OM ; Kaipa, K ( January 2021 , 2021 ASEE Annual Conference)

   null (Ed.)

   Though elementary educators recognize the importance of integrating engineering in their classrooms, many feel challenged and unprepared to teach engineering content. The absence of effective engineering instruction in teacher preparation programs leaves future educators unprepared for this challenge. Ed+gineering is an NSF-funded partnership between education and engineering aimed at increasing preservice teacher (PST) preparation, confidence, and intention to integrate engineering into their teaching. Ed+gineering partners education and engineering students in multidisciplinary teams within the context of their respective university courses. As part of their coursework, the teams plan and deliver culturally responsive engineering lessons to elementary school students under the guidance of one engineering and one education faculty. This paper investigates the impact of Ed+gineering on PSTs’ knowledge of engineering practices, engineering pedagogical knowledge, self-efficacy to integrate engineering, and beliefs about engineering integration. The impact of Ed+gineering on participating PSTs was assessed using three collaborations involving students in engineering and education during Fall 2019 and Spring 2020. Preliminary results suggest that the Ed+gineering partnership positively impacted engineering-pedagogical knowledge, knowledge of engineering practices, and self efficacy for integrating engineering. The specific magnitude of the impact and its implications are discussed. 

   more » « less
2. Introducing Coding into Teacher Education: An Interdisciplinary Robotics Experience for Education and Engineering Students

   Kidd, J. ; Kaipa, K. ; Sacks, S. ; de Souza Almeida, L. M. ( April 2020 , Society for Information Technology & Teacher Education International Conference)

   Despite nationwide mandates to integrate computer science into P-6 curriculum, most P-6 preservice teachers (PSTs) are not exposed to coding or computational thinking during their professional preparation, and are unprepared to teach these topics. This study, conducted as a part of an NSF-funded project, explores a teacher preparation model designed to increase PSTs’ coding knowledge and coding self-efficacy. PSTs in an educational technology course partnered with engineering undergraduates (EUs) in a computational methods course and worked side-by-side on robotics activities to develop skill and confidence with basic programming concepts and block coding. Students utilized experience gained from these interdisciplinary partnerships to lead robotics activities with fifth and sixth grade students (FSGs) in an after-school technology club. Findings from quantitative studies suggest that the implementation of the approach resulted in a significant increase in both PSTs’ coding knowledge and coding self-efficacy. Qualitative studies revealed that most PSTs’ and EUs’ perceived value of the project was positive. 

   more » « less
3. Partnering Undergraduate Engineering Students with Preservice Teachers to Design and Teach an Elementary Engineering Lesson Through Ed+gineering

   Gutierrez, K. ; Ringleb, S. ; Kidd, J. ; Ayala, O. ; Pazos, P. ; Kaipa, K. ( June 2020 , 2020 ASEE Virtual Annual Conference Content Access, Virtual Online)

   Major challenges in engineering education include retention of undergraduate engineering students (UESs) and continued engagement after the first year when concepts increase in difficulty. Additionally, employers, as well as ABET, look for students to demonstrate non-technical skills, including the ability to work successfully in groups, the ability to communicate both within and outside their discipline, and the ability to find information that will help them solve problems and contribute to lifelong learning. Teacher education is also facing challenges given the recent incorporation of engineering practices and core ideas into the Next Generation Science Standards (NGSS) and state level standards of learning. To help teachers meet these standards in their classrooms, education courses for preservice teachers (PSTs) must provide resources and opportunities to increase science and engineering knowledge, and the associated pedagogies. To address these challenges, Ed+gineering, an NSF-funded multidisciplinary collaborative service learning project, was implemented into two sets of paired-classes in engineering and education: a 100 level mechanical engineering class (n = 42) and a foundations class in education (n = 17), and a fluid mechanics class in mechanical engineering technology (n = 23) and a science methods class (n = 15). The paired classes collaborated in multidisciplinary teams of 5-8 undergraduate students to plan and teach engineering lessons to local elementary school students. Teams completed a series of previously tested, scaffolded activities to guide their collaboration. Designing and delivering lessons engaged university students in collaborative processes that promoted social learning, including researching and planning, peer mentoring, teaching and receiving feedback, and reflecting and revising their engineering lesson. The research questions examined in this pilot, mixed-methods research study include: (1) How did PSTs’ Ed+gineering experiences influence their engineering and science knowledge?; (2) How did PSTs’ and UESs’ Ed+gineering experiences influence their pedagogical understanding?; and (3) What were PSTs’ and UESs’ overall perceptions of their Ed+gineering experiences? Both quantitative (e.g., Engineering Design Process assessment, Science Content Knowledge assessment) and qualitative (student reflections) data were used to assess knowledge gains and project perceptions following the semester-long intervention. Findings suggest that the PSTs were more aware and comfortable with the engineering field following lesson development and delivery, and often better able to explain particular science/engineering concepts. Both PSTs and UESs, but especially the latter, came to realize the importance of planning and preparing lessons to be taught to an audience. UESs reported greater appreciation for the work of educators. PSTs and UESs expressed how they learned to work in groups with multidisciplinary members—this is a valuable lesson for their respective professional careers. Yearly, the Ed+gineering research team will also request and review student retention reports in their respective programs to assess project impact. 

   more » « less
4. Teaching the E in STEM: A Synthesis of the Engineering Teaching Self-Efficacy Literature.

   Haines, S ; Menon, D ; Wieselmann, J ; Asim, S ( January 2023 , Association for Science Teacher Education)

   Preservice teacher preparation programs and inservice professional development enhance science teaching self-efficacy. Research has shown that elementary teachers often have low self-efficacy for teaching science and engineering. However, there is less evidence surrounding engineering teaching self-efficacy. In this systematic review of literature, we explored the research question: What does the existing literature on self-efficacy reveal about fostering elementary teachers’ engineering teaching self-efficacy? We (1) synthesize the existing research on engineering teaching self-efficacy and (2) describe trends in research and uncover gaps that exist, including recommendations for future research. Among the 117 articles included in our full systematic review of science and engineering teaching self-efficacy, only 13 empirical studies focused specifically on engineering teaching self-efficacy. With a dearth of studies in both preservice and inservice contexts, there is a need for additional research on engineering teaching self-efficacy. In particular, longitudinal studies that track change over time and measure lasting effects of interventions. Further, detailed explorations of the factors that impact engineering teaching self-efficacy across multiple contexts are needed. Findings from these studies will help STEM educators to inform the design of preservice teacher education programs as well as inservice professional development opportunities. 

   more » « less
5. “Zooming In” on Robotics during COVID-19: A Preservice Teacher, an Engineering Student, and a 5th Grader Engineer Robotic Flowers via Zoom

   Kidd, JJ: Kaipa ; Gutierrez, K ; Pazos, P ; Ayala, OM ; Ringleb, SI ( January 2020 , SITE Interactive Online 2020 Conference)

   null (Ed.)

   The COVID-19 induced school shutdown dramatically decreased students’ hands-on STEM learning opportunities. An NSF-funded program partnering preservice teachers and undergraduate engineering students to teach robotics to fifth graders was adapted to a virtual format via Zoom. A case study intimately explored one team’s experience as they engineered bio-inspired robots over five weekly sessions. Zoom recordings, written reflections, and lesson slides were analyzed to describe how the virtual context shaped the lesson and influenced the preservice teacher’s experience. All three participants successfully engineered a robotic flower indicating hands-on robotics instruction is feasible in an online format. The virtual context increased the preservice teacher’s responsibilities and sense of autonomy, and appeared to positively influence her knowledge and self-efficacy. Despite technical challenges, positive outcomes suggest the approach is worth repeating. To the authors’ knowledge, this is the first study examining a virtual robotics lesson co-taught by a preservice teacher and an engineering student. 

   more » « less