Building a Learning Ecology to Increase STEM Participation Among Middle School Girls

构建学习生态，提高中学生 STEM 参与度

基本信息

批准号：
1850543
负责人：
Nichole Pinkard
金额：
$ 99.08万
依托单位：
Northwestern University
依托单位国家：
美国
项目类别：
Standard Grant
财政年份：
2019
资助国家：
美国
起止时间：
2019-06-01 至 2022-05-31
项目状态：
已结题

来源：
https://www.nsf.gov/awardsearch/showAward?AWD_ID=1850543&HistoricalAwards=false
关键词：
Building Learning Ecology Increase STEM

项目摘要

This project will advance efforts of the Innovative Technology Experiences for Students and Teachers (ITEST) program to better understand and promote practices that increase students' motivations and capacities to pursue careers in fields of science, technology, engineering, or mathematics (STEM) by engaging in hands-on field experience, laboratory/project-based entrepreneurship tasks and mentorship experiences. The project is designed to increasie the Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics (STEM) participation of middle-school aged girls across various out-of-school (OST) programs in a midsized racially and socioeconomically diverse community. The project will research and develop a program, building on the existing Digital Youth Divas (DYD) program model, that focuses on coding, designing digital devices (e.g., sensors, devices sensitive to touch), and digital arts and design and that will intentionally address areas that are of interest to girls. The project will collaborate with EvanSTEM, a collaborative of Evanston, Illinois, community organizations that offer STEM education activities, to create a community-led initiative learning initiative that combines STEM with the arts (STEAM). The project STEAM ecosystem will focus on three components: the DYD city collective that consists of out-of-school (OST) organizations that provide STEM programming for girls; DYD Caring Adult Network (a community of parents focused on supporting STEM activities among girls); and the Divas Circle (a community of 5-8th grade girls from across Evanston who participate in DYD affiliated programming and events). This project leverages collaboration with a local community of OST providers, parents, and educators to create a system of STEM learning opportunities, social supports and technical infrastructure.The project will investigate several key research questions: (1) How can middle school girls better connect with STEM learning opportunities and how can organizations more effectively coordinate their offerings and connect them to girls?(2) What factors contribute to the creation of a local STEM ecosystem that engages and sustains girls' STEM interest and participation?(3) How can parents (or other caregivers) be engaged in supporting girls' participation in STEM and what impact does their involvement have?(4) What impact does participation have on family STEM identity and on girls' long term participation and interest in STEM activities and programs?The project will use a variety of research methods and date collection including: school district data such as student course registrations; youth surveys assessing participation levels, interest, and impacts; online participation data that will reveal levels and patterns of involvement; interviews with students, parents, and providers; and case study data of a sample of participating families. The project will share research findings widely with the educational research community through academic venues such as professional conferences and journals and with practitioners through professional development workshops and by sharing resource materials and curriculum on the www.digitalyouthnetwork.org/divas website.This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.

该项目将推进“学生和教师创新技术体验”(ITEST) 计划的工作，以更好地理解和推广实践，通过参与，提高学生在科学、技术、工程或数学 (STEM) 领域追求职业的动力和能力。实践现场经验、基于实验室/项目的创业任务和指导经验。该项目旨在提高中等种族和社会经济多元化社区中中学生对各种校外 (OST) 项目的科学、技术、工程和数学 (STEM) 参与度。该项目将在现有的数字青年女主角（DYD）项目模型的基础上研究和开发一个项目，重点关注编码、设计数字设备（例如传感器、触摸敏感设备）以及数字艺术和设计，并将有意关注女孩感兴趣的领域。该项目将与伊利诺伊州埃文斯顿合作的提供 STEM 教育活动的社区组织 EvanSTEM 合作，创建一个社区主导的将 STEM 与艺术 (STEAM) 相结合的主动学习计划。 STEAM 生态系统项目将重点关注三个组成部分：由校外 (OST) 组织组成的 DYD 城市集体，为女孩提供 STEM 编程； DYD 关爱成人网络（一个专注于支持女孩 STEM 活动的家长社区）； Divas Circle（埃文斯顿各地 5-8 年级女孩组成的社区，参加 DYD 附属节目和活动）。该项目利用与当地 OST 提供者、家长和教育工作者社区的合作，创建一个包含 STEM 学习机会、社会支持和技术基础设施的系统。该项目将调查几个关键研究问题：(1) 中学生如何更好地联系提供 STEM 学习机会，组织如何更有效地协调其服务并将其与女孩联系起来？(2) 哪些因素有助于创建当地 STEM 生态系统，吸引和维持女孩的 STEM 兴趣和参与？(3) 家长如何能（或其他照顾者）参与支持女孩参与 STEM 以及她们的参与会产生什么影响？(4) 参与对家庭 STEM 认同以及女孩对 STEM 活动和项目的长期参与和兴趣有什么影响？该项目将使用多种形式研究方法和数据收集，包括：学区数据，例如学生课程注册；评估参与水平、兴趣和影响的青年调查；在线参与数据将揭示参与水平和模式；与学生、家长和提供者的访谈；以及参与家庭样本的案例研究数据。该项目将通过专业会议和期刊等学术场所与教育研究界广泛分享研究成果，并通过专业发展研讨会以及在 www.digitalyouthnetwork.org/divas 网站上共享资源材料和课程与从业者广泛分享研究成果。该奖项反映了 NSF 的法定使命，并通过使用基金会的智力优点和更广泛的影响审查标准进行评估，被认为值得支持。