Program evaluators from the Education Development Center (EDC) used a mixed-methods, quasi-experimental design to evaluate the impact on girls’ awareness and interest in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM). After the final year of the project, EDC delivered a summative report to Techbridge Girls (TBG), which was based on data collected during the five-year grant period, with a particular focus on the final year that grant funds supported programming (2017-18). Data included pre- and post-surveys with TBG participants and comparison students, participant focus groups, and
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TEAM MEMBERS:
Ginger Fitzwater
resourceprojectProfessional Development, Conferences, and Networks
EvaluATE is a national resource center dedicated to supporting and improving the evaluation practices of approximately 250 ATE grantees across the country. EvaluATE conducts webinars and workshops, publishes a quarterly newsletter, maintains a website with a digital resource library, develops materials to guide evaluation work, and conducts an annual survey of ATE grantees. EvaluATE's mission is to promote the goals of the ATE program by partnering with projects and centers to strengthen the program's evaluation knowledge base, expand the use of exemplary evaluation practices, and support the continuous improvement of technician education throughout the nation. EvaluATE's goals associated with this proposal are to: (1) Ensure that all ATE Principal Investigators and evaluators know the essential elements of a credible and useful evaluation; (2) Maintain a comprehensive collection of online resources for ATE evaluation; (3) Strengthen and expand the network of ATE evaluation stakeholders; and (4) Gather, synthesize, and disseminate data about the ATE program activities to advance knowledge about ATE/technician education. The Center plans to produce a comprehensive set of evaluation resources to complement other services, engaging several community college-based Principal Investigators and evaluators in that process.
EvaluATE's products are informed by current research on evaluation, the National Science Foundation's priorities for the evaluation of ATE grants, and the needs of ATE PIs and evaluators for sound guidance that is immediately relevant and usable in their contexts. The fundamental nature of EvaluATE's work is geared toward supporting ATE grantees to use evaluation regularly to improve their work and demonstrate their impacts. All of EvaluATE's products are available to the public. EvaluATE's findings from the annual survey of ATE grantees aid in advancing understanding of the status of technician education and illuminate areas for additional research. The new survey investigates ATE grantees' work to serve underrepresented and special populations, including women, people of color, and veterans. Survey data are available upon request for research and evaluation purposes.
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TEAM MEMBERS:
Lori WingateArlen GullicksonEmma PerkKelly RobertsonLyssa Becho
This full scale research and development collaborative project between Smith College and Springfield Technical Community College improves technical literacy for children in the area of engineering education through the Through My Window learning environment. The instructional design of the learning environment results from the application of innovative educational approaches based on research in the learning sciences—Egan's Imaginative Education (IE) and Knowledge Building (KB). The project provides idea-centered engineering curriculum that facilitates deep learning of engineering concepts through the use of developmentally appropriate narrative and interactive multimedia via interactive forums and blogs, young adult novels (audio and text with English and Spanish versions), eight extensive tie-in activities, an offline teachers’ curriculum guide, and social network connections and electronic portfolios. Targeting traditionally underrepresented groups in engineering—especially girls—the overarching goals of the project are improving attitudes toward engineering; providing a deeper understanding of what engineering is about; supporting the development of specific engineering skills; and increasing interest in engineering careers. The project will address the following research questions: What is the quality of the knowledge building discourse? Does it get better over time? Will students, given the opportunity, extend the discourse to new areas? What scaffolding does the learning environment need to support novice participants in this discourse? Does the use of narrative influence participation in knowledge building? Are certain types of narratives more effective in influencing participation in knowledge building? Evaluative feedback for usability, value effectiveness, and ease of implementation from informal educators and leaders from the Connecticut After School Network CTASN) will be included. The evaluation will include documentation on the impact of narrative and multimedia tools in the area of engineering education. Currently, there is very little research regarding children and young teen engagement in engineering education activities using narrative as a structure to facilitate learning engineering concepts and principles. The research and activities developed from this proposed project contributes to the field of Informal Science and Engineering Education. The results from this project could impact upper elementary and middle-school aged children and members from underrepresented communities and girls in a positive way.
This pathways project will design, develop and test Do-It-Yourself, (DIY), hands-on workshops to introduce and teach middle school females in underserved Latino communities computing and design by customizing and repurposing e-waste media technology, such as old cell phones or appliances -- items found in the students homes or neighborhoods. The major outcome of the project will be the creation of a workshop kit that covers the processes of DIY electronics learning taking place in the workshops for distribution of the curriculum to after school programs and other informal science venues. The PIs have implemented three pilot projects over the last three years that demonstrate the ability of hands-on DIY electronics curricula to motivate and encourage students and to enable them to acquire a deeper understanding of core engineering, mathematics and science concepts. This project would extend the approach to underserved Latino youth, particular girls of middle school age. This audience was identified because of the historically low rate of participation in STEM fields by people in this group and the particular challenges that females have in acquiring knowledge in technical STEM areas. The proposal suggests that the approach of using hands-on workshops that rely on low technical requirements -- essentially obsolete or discarded electronic equipment, primarily from homes of participants -- will encourage the target audience to experiment with items they are familiar with and that are culturally relevant. The hypothesis of the project is that this approach will lower barriers to experimenting with "circuit bending" - the hand-modifying of battery-powered children's toys to build custom electronic instruments and lead to greater participation and success of females in the target group. The project will provide free workshops in two neighborhood locations and be supported by undergraduate student mentors and volunteers and staff of two community groups that are part of the project, Machine Project and Girls, Inc. Participants will demonstrate the finished projects to the workshop group, mentors and parents. Each participant will receive a copy of the workshop handbook in both English and Spanish to take home so that parents, members of the community and caregivers can supervise and participate in future projects.
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TEAM MEMBERS:
Garnet HertzGillian HayesRebecca Black
Montana’s Big Sky Space Education: NASA ExplorationSpace at ExplorationWorks CP4SMP grant goal was to stimulate youth and adult interest in human space exploration and STEM careers in communities across Montana, through exhibits, field trips, STEM classes, and public presentations by ethnically diverse NASA women scientists and engineers.
Project partners included Dr. Dava Newman, MIT Professor of Aeronautics and Astronautics; Gui Trotti, Trotti and Associates; Dr. Angela DesJardins of the MT Space Grant Consortium at MT State University; the Montana Girl’s STEM Collaborative; the Montana Women’s Foundation ; Boeing; and the Oregon Museum of Science and Industry.
The grant’s objectives were:
stimulating general public interest in NASA’s human exploration of Space, facilitated through exhibits about space exploration and space careers, and
supporting STEM education, especially in robotics, computer science, and electro-mechanical inventions in elementary through high school students.
Outcomes included public awareness of this NASA mission, increased awareness of the role of the ISS, and increased interest of elementary girls in technology classes. This grant also led to the procurement/development of space-themed exhibits, including the national touring Black Holes exhibit, and exhibits on the ISS and the Mars rovers created by ExplorationWorks.
Four exhibits were produced: the Knowledge Station, MarsWalker, NASA Women in Aerospace (including Newman’s Biosuit) and “Women in Space,” a national touring exhibition showcasing Dr. Dava Newman’s prototype Mars BioSuit and NASA’s ethnically-diverse women scientists and engineers.
NASA CP4SMP grant support also opened the door to:
a Boeing Corporation investment in robotics systems appropriate for 1st through 8th graders,
expansion of our after-school Girl Tech for low-income girls,
the introduction of after-school and summer Sci Girls for 4th through 6th grade girls,
an annual Girl’s STEM Round-up STEM career immersion day for 5th through 12th grade girls, showcasing young Montana STEM career women as mentors
challenges in accommodating all the children and youth who wish to enroll in our year-round robotics classes.
the introduction of Girl Scout robotics-focused (“Bots and Bling”) Overnights at ExplorationWorks. Families travel 4 to 6 hours to participate in the Overnights, made possible by an ancillary grant from the Montana Women’s Foundation.
Girlstart will implement a comprehensive suite of informal STEM education programs that directly reach 2,500 4th-8th grade girls and their parents. This project will increase interest in and understanding of STEM disciplines by inspiring and engaging girls and their parents; it will establish linkages between formal and informal STEM education; and it will stimulate parents to support girls’ STEM learning endeavors by becoming informed proponents for high-quality STEM education. Over the course of 48 months—from fall 2012 to fall 2016—Girlstart seeks to develop new, robust, NASA-rich curriculum for its nationally-replicated Girlstart Summer Camp program, as well as year-long curriculum for its recognized Girlstart After School program. Curricula will be prepared for a range of ages and abilities and include links to electives, higher education majors, and careers. Girlstart will also conduct public and community STEM education programs throughout the region in NASA content areas. In addition, Girlstart will develop relevant, hands-on exhibits at the Girlstart STEM Center in Austin, Texas. Through this project, Girlstart will: (1) Increase facility and mastery in STEM skills. (2) Increase participants’ interest in pursuing STEM subjects and careers. (3) Increase participants’ understanding and mastery of the scientific method and the engineering design process as systems for problem solving and scientific discovery. (4) Increase participants’ understanding that there are multiple applications of STEM in everyday life. (5) Increase participants’ understanding of higher education as key to expanding career options. (6) Increase participants’ confidence and interest in conducting STEM activities. (7) Increase participants’ awareness of STEM careers.
This article focuses on three approaches to STEM in out-of-school time that would be instructive for any organization seeking to develop STEM opportunities for teen girls. While Techbridge and Queens Community House focused on reaching populations most underrepresented in STEM—girls of color and those from immigrant and low-income families—the strategies they used could be applied to any population of adolescent girls.
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TEAM MEMBERS:
Harriet MosatcheSusan Matloff-NievesLinda KekelisElizabeth Lawner
This presentation given at the 2013 Materials Research Society (MRS) Spring Meeting examines evidence for the effectiveness of STEM education programs at the National High Magnetic Field Laboratory.
Currently, there are policy debates regarding the efficacy and legality of single sex formal and informal education programs. This issue is particularly poignant in science education due to the historical marginalization of women in these fields. This marginalization has resulted in women being positioned as a stigmatized group within many science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) related fields. Research points to adolescence as the age where this sense of marginalization begins to develop. As a result, policy responses have utilized various frameworks such as: increased access
This full-scale project addresses the need for more youth, especially girls, to pursue an interest in engineering and eventually fill a critical workforce need. The project leverages museum-based exhibits, girls' activity groups, and social media to enhance participants' engineering-related interests and identities. The project includes the following bilingual deliverables: (1) Creative Solutions programming will engage girls in group oriented engineering activities at partner community-based organizations, where the activities highlight altruistic, personally relevant, and social aspects of engineering. Existing community groups will use the activities in their regular meeting structure. Visits to the museum exhibits, titled Design Your World will reinforce messages; (2) Design Your World Exhibits will serve as a community hub at two ISE institutions (Oregon Museum of Science and Industry and the Hatfield Marine Science Center). They will leverage existing NSF-funded Engineer It! (DRL-9803989) exhibits redesigned to attract, engage, and mobilize a more diverse population by showcasing altruistic, personally relevant, and social aspects of engineering; (3) Digital engagement through targeted use of social media will complement program and exhibit content and be an online portal for groups engaged in the project; (4) A community action group (CAG) will provide professional development opportunities to stakeholders interested in girls' STEM identity (e.g. parents, STEM-based business professionals) to promote effective engineering messaging throughout the community and engage them in supporting project participants; and (5) Longitudinal research will explore how girls construct and negotiate engineering-related identities through discourse across the project activities and over time.