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Full-Text Articles in Engineering Education

The Effects Of Engineering Summer Camps On Middle And High School Students’ Engineering Interest And Identity Formation: A Multi-Methods Study, Timothy Robinson, Adam Kirn, Jenny Amos, Indira Chatterjee Nov 2023

The Effects Of Engineering Summer Camps On Middle And High School Students’ Engineering Interest And Identity Formation: A Multi-Methods Study, Timothy Robinson, Adam Kirn, Jenny Amos, Indira Chatterjee

Journal of Pre-College Engineering Education Research (J-PEER)

This multi-methods study explores changes in engineering interest and identity of middle and high school students (n = 79) attending introductory-level engineering summer camps at a large western land grant university. Middle school is a critical time when student interest, identity, and subsequently career choice begin to emerge and hence it is important that at this age students are given accurate information about engineering majors in college and future career opportunities in engineering. Data were collected over a period of two years in six summer camps. Three separate populations of middle and high school students participated in the summer …


The Impact Of Girl Scout Engineering Experiences On The Identity Development Of Middle Schoolers, Abigail M. Clark, Rachel Kajfez Jan 2023

The Impact Of Girl Scout Engineering Experiences On The Identity Development Of Middle Schoolers, Abigail M. Clark, Rachel Kajfez

Journal of Pre-College Engineering Education Research (J-PEER)

Despite years of recruitment efforts, women remain significantly underrepresented throughout engineering. While research into precollege engineering education has expanded, it has primarily focused on formal learning settings, even though students spend significantly more time outside of the classroom. The COVID-19 pandemic changed everything, including the time spent outside of the classroom in informal environments. Specifically, programs had to evolve to provide online content and at-home activities. Some programs even shut down completely. Within this context, our study sought to understand the impact of one informal engineering learning experience, a Girl Scout engineering badge, which also shifted online due to the …


Enhancing Engineering Identity Among Boys Of Color, Jerrod Henderson, Virginia Snodgrass Rangel, James Holly Jr, Rick Greer, Mariam Manuel Sep 2021

Enhancing Engineering Identity Among Boys Of Color, Jerrod Henderson, Virginia Snodgrass Rangel, James Holly Jr, Rick Greer, Mariam Manuel

Journal of Pre-College Engineering Education Research (J-PEER)

Black and Brown men continue to be underrepresented in engineering. One explanation for the dearth of Black and Latino men in engineering is that engineering (and STEM) identity often is not inclusive of People of Color. As a result, Black and Brown boys may be less likely to become interested in STEM subjects. The purpose of this study, then, was to investigate how the components of one afterschool engineering program tap into engineering identity formation among fourth- and fifth-grade Black and Brown boys. Leveraging research on the STEM and engineering identity, we argue that the program and its key components …


The Importance Of Collaborative Design For Narrowing The Gender Gap In Engineering: An Analysis Of Engineering Identity Development In Elementary Students, Mandy Mclean, Jasmine M. Nation, Alexis Spina, Tyler Susko, Danielle Harlow, Julie Bianchini Sep 2020

The Importance Of Collaborative Design For Narrowing The Gender Gap In Engineering: An Analysis Of Engineering Identity Development In Elementary Students, Mandy Mclean, Jasmine M. Nation, Alexis Spina, Tyler Susko, Danielle Harlow, Julie Bianchini

Journal of Pre-College Engineering Education Research (J-PEER)

Research suggests that, to narrow the gender gap in engineering, we should focus on helping young girls identify with engineering both because gendered attitudes emerge around kindergarten and because identity is more predictive than performance on persistence in the field. This qualitative study sought to understand the impact of collaborative engineering design on the development of engineering identities in elementary-school students and compared the findings across gender. We focused on three tiers of collaboration embedded into the engineering design process: peer groups, role models, and shared goals. More specifically, the elementary students worked in small teams and partnered with undergraduate …


The Relationship Between Engineering Identity And Belongingness On Certainty Of Majoring In Engineering For First-Generation College Students, Dina Verdín, Allison Godwin Apr 2019

The Relationship Between Engineering Identity And Belongingness On Certainty Of Majoring In Engineering For First-Generation College Students, Dina Verdín, Allison Godwin

School of Engineering Education Graduate Student Series

This paper seeks to understand the factors that support first-generation college students’ certainty of majoring in engineering. Data used in this study came from thirty-two four-year ABET- accredited institutions across the United States which has a total sample of 790 first-generation college students. We used the frameworks of engineering role identity and sense of belonging to understand the factors that influence first-generation college students’ certainty of majoring in engineering. Certainty is referred to as the degree of confidence or decisiveness an individual has with regard to their chosen occupational plans. First, we examine how first-generation college students’ engineering role identity …


"I Don't Belong With All The Really Smart Kids Here": Student Characterizations Of Belonging In Engineering, Lisa J. Musselman, Jacqueline A. Rohde, Brianna S. Benedict, Allison Godwin Aug 2018

"I Don't Belong With All The Really Smart Kids Here": Student Characterizations Of Belonging In Engineering, Lisa J. Musselman, Jacqueline A. Rohde, Brianna S. Benedict, Allison Godwin

The Summer Undergraduate Research Fellowship (SURF) Symposium

This research paper is a qualitative study of how students with diverse demographics, mindsets, and identities describe what it means to belong in engineering. Engineering students’ sense of belonging has a significant impact on students’ decisions to leave engineering. Talented students who feel that they do not belong in engineering are more likely to leave than their peers. Previous studies have focused on belonging for underrepresented students in engineering (e.g., women or minorities) or specific factors contributing to student belonging (e.g., classroom performance). However, few have explored how students describe what it means for them to belong in engineering to …


First-Generation College Students Identifying As Future Engineers, Dina Verdín, Allison Godwin Apr 2018

First-Generation College Students Identifying As Future Engineers, Dina Verdín, Allison Godwin

School of Engineering Education Graduate Student Series

This paper seeks to understand factors that influence how first-generation college students identify as engineers now and in the future. Data used in this study came from four U.S. institutions obtaining a total first-generation college student sample of 596 participants. We used future possible selves as a lens to understand how first-generation college students’ current views of themselves as engineers shape their future identities as engineers. Two separate analyses were conducted. First, a multiple regression analysis was used to determine which career future satisfaction variables predicted first-generation college students current and future identification as engineers. Second, a hierarchical regression analysis …


Understanding How Engineering Identity And Belongingness Predict Grit For First-Generation College Students, Dina Verdín, Allison Godwin, Adam Kirn, Lisa Benson, Geoff Potvin Apr 2018

Understanding How Engineering Identity And Belongingness Predict Grit For First-Generation College Students, Dina Verdín, Allison Godwin, Adam Kirn, Lisa Benson, Geoff Potvin

School of Engineering Education Graduate Student Series

Increasing the participation of underrepresented students, including first-generation college students, in engineering plays a central role in sustaining the U.S. research and innovation capacity. Diversity continues to be recognized as an asset in engineering. However, we also know that the culture of engineering has an implicit assumption about who can be and who is recognized as an engineer. There is also a complex relationship between participation in a community of practice and identity. Diverse students must not only author an identity as an engineer but also must grapple with how that identity, historically constructed as white and masculine, becomes a …


Testing For Measurement Invariance In Engineering Identity Constructs For First-Generation College Students, Dina Verdín, Allison Godwin Jan 2017

Testing For Measurement Invariance In Engineering Identity Constructs For First-Generation College Students, Dina Verdín, Allison Godwin

School of Engineering Education Graduate Student Series

This work-in-progress research study examines the response patterns of first-generation college students (FGCS) to the engineering identity measures compared to non-first- generation college students (non-FGCS). This work answers the following research question, “Do FGC and non-FGC engineering students interpret the engineering identity measurement items in a conceptually different manner?” We explore if FGCS respond to engineering identity items similarly to non-FGCS and the fairness of using these instruments for FGCS to make claims about this group. The data for this work are from a survey instrument completed by 2,916 first-year engineering college students from four U.S. institutions. We hypothesize that …