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1. International Construction Education Experiences: Designing a Comprehensive Research Approach

   Schneider, Verena; Grau, David; Ariaratnam, Sam (January 2022, Construction Research Congress 2022: Health and Safety, Workforce, and Education)

   Jazizadeh, F; Shealy; T, Garvin (Ed.)

   Globalization has led to increased demand for international education and education experiences by domestic students. However, the current body of knowledge regarding these experiences is scarce and mostly dominated by subjective accounts. This paper explores the research content and methods necessary to capture the impact of an abroad education and research experience. This ongoing study combines bibliometric analysis, literature review, and qualitative analysis of selected articles. Based on the body of knowledge in social sciences, student competencies impacted by an international academic intervention incorporate the following knowledge domains: (1) intercultural competence; (2) professional development; (3) intellectual growth; (4) academic development; and (5) personal development. A comprehensive review of existing approaches for assessing international student experiences was also contrasted against accepted research procedures. While a mixed-methods approach to collect data via survey instruments and face-to-face interviews can enhance the depth and breadth of the observations, collecting data at different points in time enables the capture of both immediate and sustained impacts on the student. Besides self-reported data, the evaluation of the students’ research advisors and peers should also be conducted. 

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2. Designing an international research experience for graduate students

   https://doi.org/10.3389/feduc.2023.1154786  

   Schneider, Verena; Grau, David; Ariaratnam, Samuel T. (June 2023, Frontiers in Education)

   As a result of the ongoing globalization, international student experiences are becoming fundamental to advance students’ development and knowledge. Even though such growing importance, the body of knowledge regarding international interventions is dominated by subjective accounts and lacks contrasted results. In order to design an international research experience for graduate students, recommendations on the design and content of such experiences based on the review of literature were explored. A qualitative and bibliographical analysis of 40 studies evaluating the influence of international student interventions informed about the variables that such interventions should measure and the impact of such experiences on student development. Researchers especially measured the competencies intercultural development (83%), intellectual growth (58%), personal development (58%), professional development (50%), and academic development (15%). However, most of the studies failed to develop an appropriate research design that enables researchers to capture the breadth and depth of an international intervention. Results include addressing various competencies that students can gain during their experience abroad, using mixed methods to collect the data, whereby data should be collected at different time points including before, and multiple times after the international experience by different means. 

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3. BOARD # 286: NSF REU: Multidisciplinary Collaborative Undergraduate Research Experience: Impacts on Engineering and Technology

   https://doi.org/10.18260/1-2--55650  

   Sahoo, Avimanyu; Park, Haejun (June 2025, ASEE Conferences)

   Early involvement in engineering research has proven to be a highly effective way to inspire undergraduate students to pursue advanced studies or research-intensive careers. By engaging students in real-world, hands-on research projects, they not only sharpen their problem-solving skills but also develop the intellectual independence needed to tackle complex engineering challenges. These benefits are amplified when the research experience is multidisciplinary, allowing students to engage with topics beyond the confines of their chosen major. Moreover, participation in a collaborative cohort—where continual interactions and shared learning experiences occur—helps foster a sense of community and shared purpose, further enhancing the learning process. This paper presents the outcomes and impacts of a unique undergraduate research program conducted collaboratively between Oklahoma State University, Stillwater, and the University of Alabama in Huntsville. What sets this program apart is its fusion of engineering and engineering technology disciplines, its blend of applied and fundamental research, and its focus on multidisciplinary topics such as human safety, fire protection technology, mechanical engineering technology, electrical engineering, and artificial intelligence. The program engages students from sophomore to senior levels, offering them a chance to explore various research methodologies and work on projects that span multiple fields of engineering. This exposure helps them cultivate a comprehensive understanding of engineering systems and their real-world applications. In this paper, we will delve into the structure and activities of the Research Experiences for Undergraduates (REU) program, discussing its various components as well as the educational and research outcomes it has produced. A central theme of the program is its focus on multidisciplinary research, which ranges from technical fields such as fire protection and mechanical engineering technology to more advanced areas like electrical engineering and artificial intelligence. This breadth of topics ensures that students are equipped with a wide range of skills, from analytical problem-solving to creative thinking, as they learn to approach engineering challenges from multiple perspectives. Additionally, the program’s emphasis on cohort-building activities plays a crucial role in shaping the students’ experiences. By promoting collaboration among students from different disciplines, the program encourages the cross-pollination of ideas, mutual learning, and the development of soft skills such as communication, teamwork, and leadership. The interactions fostered within the cohort help students build a network of peers who share similar academic and career aspirations, strengthening their commitment to research and professional development. The paper will also present the results of both formative and summative assessments of the program, highlighting its impacts on student learning, skill development, and long-term career trajectories. By examining these outcomes, we demonstrate how this collaborative and multidisciplinary research program has successfully nurtured the next generation of independent researchers and engineering leaders, equipping them to meet the challenges of an increasingly complex and interconnected world. 

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4. Impacts Resulting from a Large-Scale First-Year Engineering and Computer Science Program on Students’ Successful Persistence Toward Degree Completion

   Ragusa, Gisele; Allen, Emily L.; Menezes, Gustavo B. (June 2020, ASEE Annual Conference Proceedings 2020)

   There is a critical need for more students with engineering and computer science majors to enter into, persist in, and graduate from four-year postsecondary institutions. Increasing the diversity of the workforce by inclusive practices in engineering and science is also a profound identified need. According to national statistics, the largest groups of underrepresented minority students in engineering and science attend U.S. public higher education institutions. Most often, a large proportion of these students come to colleges and universities with unique challenges and needs, and are more likely to be first in their family to attend college. In response to these needs, engineering education researchers and practitioners have developed, implemented and assessed interventions to provide support and help students succeed in college, particularly in their first year. These interventions typically target relatively small cohorts of students and can be managed by a small number of faculty and staff. In this paper, we report on “work in progress” research in a large-scale, first-year engineering and computer science intervention program at a public, comprehensive university using multivariate comparative statistical approaches. Large-scale intervention programs are especially relevant to minority serving institutions that prepare growing numbers of students who are first in their family to attend college and who are also under-resourced, financially. These students most often encounter academic difficulties and come to higher education with challenging experiences and backgrounds. Our studied first-year intervention program, first piloted in 2015, is now in its 5th year of implementation. Its intervention components include: (a) first-year block schedules, (b) project-based introductory engineering and computer science courses, (c) an introduction to mechanics course, which provides students with the foundation needed to succeed in a traditional physics sequence, and (d) peer-led supplemental instruction workshops for calculus, physics and chemistry courses. This intervention study responds to three research questions: (1) What role does the first-year intervention’s components play in students’ persistence in engineering and computer science majors across undergraduate program years? (2) What role do particular pedagogical and cocurricular support structures play in students’ successes? And (3) What role do various student socio-demographic and experiential factors play in the effectiveness of first-year interventions? To address these research questions and therefore determine the formative impact of the firstyear engineering and computer science program on which we are conducting research, we have collected diverse student data including grade point averages, concept inventory scores, and data from a multi-dimensional questionnaire that measures students’ use of support practices across their four to five years in their degree program, and diverse background information necessary to determine the impact of such factors on students’ persistence to degree. Background data includes students’ experiences prior to enrolling in college, their socio-demographic characteristics, and their college social capital throughout their higher education experience. For this research, we compared students who were enrolled in the first-year intervention program to those who were not enrolled in the first-year intervention. We have engaged in cross-sectional 2 data collection from students’ freshman through senior years and employed multivariate statistical analytical techniques on the collected student data. Results of these analyses were interesting and diverse. Generally, in terms of backgrounds, our research indicates that students’ parental education is positively related to their success in engineering and computer science across program years. Likewise, longitudinally (across program years), students’ college social capital predicted their academic success and persistence to degree. With regard to the study’s comparative research of the first-year intervention, our results indicate that students who were enrolled in the first-year intervention program as freshmen continued to use more support practices to assist them in academic success across their degree matriculation compared to students who were not in the first-year program. This suggests that the students continued to recognize the value of such supports as a consequence of having supports required as first-year students. In terms of students’ understanding of scientific or engineering-focused concepts, we found significant impact resulting from student support practices that were academically focused. We also found that enrolling in the first-year intervention was a significant predictor of the time that students spent preparing for classes and ultimately their grade point average, especially in STEM subjects across students’ years in college. In summary, we found that the studied first-year intervention program has longitudinal, positive impacts on students’ success as they navigate through their undergraduate experiences toward engineering and computer science degrees. 

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5. Offering Rural Elementary Teachers Modest Supports to Sustain Professional Development Outcomes in Science and Engineering.

   Summers, R; Iveland, A; Hammack, R; Inouye, M; Robinson, J; Macias, M; Boz, T; Lee, M; Galisky, J; Ringstaff, C (January 2024, ASTE)

   Our work in progress draws from an ongoing investigation of the needs of elementary teachers in small, rural school districts. Due to geographic location, rural schools often struggle to provide content-specific professional learning (PL). Smaller networks of science in these settings may also be barriers. We are exploring how targeted instructional supports that take rural teachers’ contexts into consideration can be sustained through the implementation of cost-effective modest supports. Our research examines the immediate impacts of PL, sustainability of PL outcomes when coupled with modest supports, specific impacts on engineering instruction, and student learning impacts. The intervention started with an online PL to introduce teachers to the NGSS and provide them with a foothold for three-dimensional teaching. This PL was designed for rural teachers using online platforms and resources. The program’s conceptual framework leverages a suite of modest supports previously identified to sustain PL outcomes. These supports are designed to scaffold teachers’ professional growth, provide steady encouragement, and foster community. Approximately 160 teachers across four states were recruited to participate in a 1-year online program, which started with a 5-day PL focused on NGSS-aligned science and engineering instruction. Some modest supports that have since followed, such as professional learning community (PLC) sessions and dedicated electronic supports (e.g., Google Site, shared resources, etc.). These sessions have been tailored to support teachers in these rural settings. Since the project began, we have collected responses from participating teachers about supports they believe would aid their understanding of science and engineering instructional strategies. We are continuing to collect data as teachers are planning science and engineering learning experiences for their classrooms. Our presentation will share details about teachers’ needs and rural contexts, and findings about the immediate impacts of the intervention. 

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