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Increasing students’ confidence in their technological ability has been found to have a broader impact on their content knowledge in several subject areas, but most strikingly, in STEM (science, technology, engineering, and mathematics). A sample of 513 students in grades 6 through 12 in the New York City public school system were questioned on their perceived technological ability after participating in The Curriculum and Community Environmental Restoration Science (STEM + Computer Science) Project, hereafter referred to as the CCERS STEM + C Project. Also explored was the students’ access to technology to determine if this would be a factor in student self-efficacy in technology ability. Analysis revealed that science self-efficacy and technology ability were both strengthened through participation in the project. Additionally, the study found that working alongside STEM professionals and exposure to STEM careers were also contributing factors. The study aims to determine if increased access to technology would, in turn, increase students’ self-efficacy in their technology knowledge and skills and have a positive effect on their self-confidence in STEM content. The results of the study contribute to the body of research that suggests greater access to technology may be an important factor in students’ self-agency and academic achievement.

 

The rationale for this research is the ever-increasing reliance on technology in all aspects of life, but especially in the realm of education. Technology tools, use, and approaches that support inclusive student learning are supported by the empirical evidence found in this report. The research emphasized self-efficacy levels achieved in the student learning of technology-supported integrated science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM). The Curriculum and Community Environmental Restoration Science STEM + Computer Science (CCERS) makes use of web-based authentic STEM content, providing interactive technology on a dynamic environmental science platform and providing real-world environmental conundrums. Results of this study indicate that CCERS respondents have higher confidence in their technological abilities than those of the non-CCERS respondents. In addition, under-represented groups (URG) CCERS respondents, on average, have higher confidence in their technological abilities than URG non-CCERS respondents. This suggests that CCERS has a positive impact on participants' confidence in their technological abilities, a key indicator in pursuing STEM careers. This study provides practical implications for current and future research in technology-supported learning in integrated STEM learning environments and student outcomes.

 

Abstract A major blight of urban development has been the existence of environmental inequities which affect how and where low-income communities and communities of color live. Targeted communities are beginning to receive long-overdue analysis and civic action. New laws and amendments have been made to better the conditions of these historically underserved communities. Currently, in New York City, historic progress is being made by providing all residents of these affected communities with the tools to advocate for the best outcomes for their neighborhoods. It is the first time in the city’s history that the issue of environmental justice has reached such a milestone. Civic participatory action of this magnitude requires the development of alliances between all members of the community. Students from these marginalized neighborhoods can make a vital contribution in eliminating environmental racism and restoring their communities’ environmental urban footprint. To this end, the Curriculum and Community Enterprise for Restoration Science (STEM + C) Project has been working to provide long-term, hands-on, environmental restoration education and action research to the students in New York City. Restoration of the Eastern oyster in New York Harbor waterways surrounding many of these communities exposes the youth of the city to the community inequities. One of the objectives of the CCERS STEM + C Project is to study its effect on student awareness, motivation and engagement in community-based environmental restoration. Over 500 New York City school students were surveyed on self-reported factors including awareness, motivation and community engagement. Those students in the CCERS STEM + C Program had a significantly higher level of awareness and motivation in terms of community-engagement and social action. 

The Billion Oyster Project and Curriculum and Community Enterprise for the Restoration of New York Harbor with New York City Public Schools (BOP-CCERS) program is a National Science Foundation (NSF) supported initiative that involves multiple stakeholder collaborations and is led by Pace University. Within Pace, the initiative crosses over three different schools and colleges and across multiple departments. Pace University’s NSF project of focus in this article is the Innovative Technology Experiences for Students and Teachers (ITEST) program. The purpose is to increase student motivation and preparation for pursuing STEM careers. This article presents results of programming to increase student scientific identity. Findings revealed that students in the 11th grade had the highest level of scientific identity compared to other high school grades. These findings indicate that 11th grade may be an ideal timeframe for interventions to improve scientific identity. Moreover, project participants had higher levels of engagement in STEM-related activities, were more likely to watch videos made by scientists, and read articles written by scientists than those in the control group.

 

Information technology has become ubiquitous in the 21st Century. Acquiring the skills and confidence to navigate the computational arena is all but obligatory for educational and professional success. Underrepresentation of women in the wide variety of fields associated with information technology is an authentic concern for both the individual and society as a whole. Various studies have emphasized the importance of stronger representative of marginalized groups to bolster creative thinking and a variety of perspectives. The CCERS STEM + C Program is a long-term hands-on environmental restoration project that has been embedded in the New York City Department of Education public schools. Students work to restore the native oyster population to New York Harbor through both field work and working with large sets of data on the open-access platform. One of the several areas studied throughout this program is the motivation and self-efficacy of the students, especially students who are underrepresented in the STEM and technology fields. Student surveys were initiated by 764 students with 513 participants and non-participants completing the survey. Aimed at eliciting levels of several self-reported factors, the survey included a subscale measuring levels of confidence in technological abilities. Results of the survey indicated that 9th grade female students have a higher level of self-efficacy and motivation than female students in the later high school grade levels. These results are consistent with the waning motivation and interest of female students in technology and STEM found in other studies. 

The Billion Oyster Project and Curriculum and Community Enterprise for the Restoration of New York Harbor with New York City Public Schools (BOP-CCERS) program is a National Science Foundation (NSF) supported initiative and collaboration led by Pace University. One of Pace University’s NSF projects is STEM+C (Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics plus Computing) designed to work with teachers and students in New York City public schools. This article presents results of a study conducted on the STEM Summer Institute at Pace University in Summer 2022. The purpose was to engage both teachers and students in harbor restoration and experiential learning in New York City including learning about vital ecology projects related to New York’s harbor such as oyster restoration, which is critical to cleaning pollutants in the New York Harbor. Findings revealed that students indicated improved oyster knowledge and restoration skills, scientific skills, collecting and analyzing data, and knowledge about STEM careers. Participating teachers indicated a positive impact on their knowledge of content and harbor restoration, pedagogical knowledge used to engage students in hands-on scientific learning, and methods of engaging and motivating their own students. Moreover, teachers indicated a positive outcome for exposing their students to STEM career options. 

The Billion Oyster Project and Curriculum and Community Enterprise for the Restoration of New York Harbor (BOP-CCERS) program is a National Science Foundation (NSF) supported initiative and collaboration of multiple institutions and organizations led by Pace University and is in collaboration with New York City Public Schools. This large-scale project, Innovative Technology Experiences for Students and Teachers (ITEST), generated a large amount of data through programming that engaged both teachers and students. This article presents the third part to the study with focus on the Digital Platform and results from the student Symposium presentations. Part 1 focused on Underrepresented Minority (URM) student interest in STEM as motivated by the original project. Part 2 focused on URM student engagement with teachers to support students in teaching science through experiential learning and lessons that connect science to the real world, particularly through science in the New York Harbor. Moreover, the second part of the study focused on teacher engagement in the program, and what the researchers had learned in the process. The third aspect of the study, and primary focus on this paper, had found additional positive results cited by the teachers in the study both using the Digital Platform and after the project outcomes from the student Symposium presentations. 

The role of classroom teachers in the development of a well-designed curriculum is paramount. For this reason, teachers were asked to participate in the use and evaluation of a remote learning environmental restoration curriculum. The purpose of the study was to determine whether the participating teachers increased their content knowledge of STEM concepts and content related to the environmental restoration, specifically in terms of New York Harbor and oyster restoration, by participating in a remote learning curriculum pilot. New York City public school teachers of grades 6 through 12 instructed their students in the remote learning computer science curriculum lessons for one semester. A reflective survey was administered to the teachers at the conclusion of the semester and the findings indicated that 89% of the participating teachers experienced an increase in their knowledge of STEM concepts and content related to harbor and oyster restoration. The study was limited by the element of time and the model can be augmented in future iterations by increasing the length of the study to a full year of school and across several grade levels. 

This qualitative study chronicles one of the fundamental pillars of the Curriculum and Community Enterprise for Restoration Science (CCERS). The professional development is focused on curricula that are grounded in the community-based environmental restoration of the waterways of New York Harbor. Centered on the restoration of the native oyster population, hundreds of New York City public school teachers take part in this experience with the intent of increasing their own place-based pedagogical content knowledge and skills. Most of the participants teach in school with populations that are underrepresented in post-secondary STEM majors and STEM related careers. Professional learning activities for teachers and community scientists were offered throughout the 2021 calendar year. Professional Learning Activity Surveys were administered and teachers responded to questions about how they participated in CCERS events, the ways in which CCERS participation has impacted their teaching practice, whether they use CCERS activities for student research, and ways CCERS participation impacts student STEM career interest. An intended outcome is to instill a STEM identity in students identifying as URM and to bring STEM career awareness to these students. More than 72% of the teachers in the professional development sessions agreed that the professional learning activities were effective in providing new STEM content knowledge and best practices for teaching. The majority also reported that the sessions enabled them to increase their students’ engagement with STEM and interest in STEM careers. 

Underrepresented and marginalized students have challenges when connecting their personal identities to STEM identities. This has a direct impact on the post-secondary educational and career choices of these students. Some factors which contribute to the disenfranchisement of marginalized students include inequity in academic preparation, students’ lack of self-efficacy and self-identity in STEM, students’ lack of connection to the STEM curriculum and students’ lack of role models and mentors. Although the opportunities in the STEM workforce are abundant and lucrative, students who identify as students of color, female and/or English language learners are poorly represented in the STEM professions. Through the CCERS STEM + C Program, students are asked to expand their STEM identity through near-peer mentoring, encounters with STEM experts and individual STEM Research projects that are focused on the environmental restoration of New York Harbor, its watershed and the native oyster population.