The National Science Foundation’s Division of Research and Learning in Formal and Informal Settings (DRL) has invested in several resource centers and networks in the past several years. In 2010, The National Science Foundation awarded a small Early Concept Grants for Exploratory Research (EAGER) grant to bring together the Principal Investigators (PIs) and evaluators of these resource centers to collaborate and share ideas and lessons learned. As part of that EAGER grant, and our participation in the evaluation group, Inverness Research agreed to undertake a very small and limited exploration
The Division of Research on Learning in Formal and Informal Settings (DRL) has funded five resource centers/networks to provide support to five DRL programs, to the PIs connected to those programs, and to STEM education communities. (They are Center for Advancement of Informal Science Education--ISE; Center for Advancing Research and Communication in Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics--REESE; Community for Advancing Discovery Research in Education--DR-K12; ITEST Learning Resource Center--ITEST; Learning and Youth Research and Evaluation Center--AYS.) While the activities of each vary, all conduct reviews of the portfolio, provide technical assistance to projects, and communicate results of project findings or resources to a broader field.
This EAGER project supports exploratory cross-network collaboration around accumulating, synthesizing, and communicating evidence generated by the funded projects and the networks. Specifically, the project enables sharing of data across programs; creating an online presence across the networks; collaborating to provide assistance to projects; and sharing expertise to improve network evaluations. The project will enhance infrastructure to support STEM education, learning, and education research and will expand dissemination of evidence generated by DRL projects and programs. The resulting increased coherence and the identification of productive areas of collaboration should enrich the STEM education field.
The Maryland Science Center (MSC), in collaboration with Johns Hopkins University (JHU), the University of Maryland, Baltimore (UMB), and Morgan State University (MSU), has sought the support of the National Institutes of Health SEPA (Science Education Partnership Award) Program to develop "Cellular Universe: The Promise of Stem Cells," a unique exhibition and update center with related programs that highlight the most current science in cell biology and stem cell research. Visitor surveys have shown that science museum visitors are very interested in learning about stem cell research, but know little about the science of stem cells or cell biology, which form the basis of stem cell research. The goal of this project is to help visitors learn about advances in cell biology and stem cells so that they will make informed health-related decisions, explore new career options, and better understand the role of basic and clinical research in health advances that affect people's lives. Topics to be covered include the basic biology of cells, the role of stem cells in human development, current stem cell research and the clinical research process. This exhibition will also address the controversies in stem cell research. Our varied advisory panel, including cell biologists, physiologists, adult and embryonic stem cell researchers and bioethicists, will ensure the objectivity of all content. "Cellular Universe: The Promise of Stem Cells" will be a 3,500 square-foot exhibition to be planned, designed and prototyped in Fall 2006-Winter 2009, and installed in MSC's second-floor human body exhibition hall in Spring 2009. This exhibition will build on the successful model of "BodyLink," our innovative health science update center funded by a 2000 SEPA grant (R25RR015602) and supported by partnerships with JHU and UMB.
In this chapter, I offer the National Black Male College Achievement Study (NBMCAS) as an example of how to explore and better understand the enablers of minority student achievement in STEM. Methods employed in the national study are described in the next section, followed by the presentation of an anti-deficit achievement framework for research on students of color at various junctures of the STEM pipeline, from K–12 schools through doctoral degree attainment and transitions into science research and long-term industry careers. Though informed by and conceptually similar to the framework
This research extends the investigator's prior NSF supported work to develop theoretical and empirical understanding of the double bind faced by women of color in STEM fields. That is, their race and gender present dual dilemmas as they move through STEM educational and career paths. The proposed study will identify gaps in our understanding, and identify some of the methodological problems associated with answering outstanding questions about the double bind. The major research question is: What strategies work to enable women of color to achieve higher levels of advancement in STEM academia and professions? The goal is to bring a clearer understanding of the issues which confront women of color as they pursue study of science and engineering, and what factors influence whether they leave or remain in STEM.
The work will employ a highly structured narrative analysis process to identify and quantify factors that have been successful in broadening the participation of minority women in STEM. The research design involves two separate tracks of work: 1) to conduct narrative analysis of primary documents associated with women of color in science; and 2) to conduct site visits and interviews to understand features of programs associated with successful support of women of color in undergraduate and graduate education. The first part is designed to inform the second, with the narrative analysis helping to identify features to look for in site visits and to use in development of interview protocols.
This research will focus on individual and programmatic factors that sustain women of color as they confront barriers to their career goals. It examines institutional strategies and support structures that help women of color ultimately to succeed, and social and pedagogic elements that influence their educational experiences. Although women of color have made some progress over the last three decades towards more equitable participation in STEM fields, the major efforts made to address this issue have not produced the desired outcomes; minority women continue to be underrepresented relative to white women and non-minority men. The factors that account for continued lower participation rates are not yet fully understood.
Beyond the Double Bind is designed to transform the intellectual basis for building future programs that will better enable women of color to be successful in STEM. While focused on women of color, the results will ultimately inform strategies and programs to expand the presence of all women and minorities in STEM.
The goal of the project is to advance understanding of basic questions about learning and teaching through the development of a theory of embodied mathematical cognition that can apply to a broad range of people, settings and activities. The investigative team brings together expertise from a range of quantitative and qualitative research methodologies. A theory of embodied mathematical cognition empirically rooted in classroom learning and workplace practices will broaden the range of activities and emerging technologies that count as mathematical, and help educators to envision alternative forms of bodily engagement with mathematical problems.
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TEAM MEMBERS:
Ricardo NemirovskyRogers HallMartha AlibaliMitchell NathanKevin Leander
Until today museums have tried to identify and segment their audiences based on their demographics. After years of conducting research in the US, John Falk in 2009 introduced a descriptive and predictive framework for identifying visitors on the basis of their motivations, as related to identity. This article summarises Falk’s innovative framework as described in his book Identity and the Museum Visitor Experience (2009), in addition to his presentation at the Visitor Studies Conference at the Victoria and Albert Museum in January 2010. In addition the article draws on the author’s related
This thesis investigates how people make meaning in and from museums, through encounters with artefacts which are mediated by portable digital technologies. It provides evidence that technology can help to manage the amount of information visitors encounter, instead of increasing it, through activities which structure the use of technology. One such activity - visitor-constructed trails through museums - is studied in depth, with attention to how (and to what extent) the activity is structured, the contexts in which it takes place, and how various tools and resources mediate and support the
The Science and Math Informal Learning Education (SMILE) pathway is serving the digital resource management needs of the informal learning community. The science and math inquiry experiences offered by science and technology centers, museums, and out-of-school programs are distinct from those found in formal classrooms. Interactive exhibits, multimedia presentations, virtual environments, hands-on activities, outdoor field guides, engineering challenges, and facilitated programs are just some of the thoughtfully designed resources used by the informal learning community to make science and math concepts come alive. With an organizational framework specifically designed for informal learning resources, the SMILE pathway is empowering educators to locate and explore high-quality education materials across multiple institutions and collections. The SMILE pathway is also expanding the participation of underrepresented groups by creating an easily accessible nexus of online materials, including those specifically added to extend the reach of effective science and math education to all communities. To promote the use of the SMILE pathway and the NSDL further, project staff are creating professional development programs and a robust online community of educators and content experts to showcase best practices tied to digital resources. Finally, to guarantee continued growth and involvement in the SMILE pathway, funding and editorial support is being provided to expansion partners, beyond the founding institutions, to add new digital resources to the NSDL.
This timeline was constructed by participants during the Center for Advancement of Informal Science Education (CAISE ISE Summit) meeting in March 3-5, 2010 to document histories, capture events, and share memories about the field of informal science education. Postings were shepherded into four main strands: key events, policy, infrastructure, and learning. Along the bottom, participants marked when they entered the field.
The Math, Engineering, Science Achievement (MESA) outreach programs are partnerships between K-12 schools and higher education in eight states that for over forty years introduce science, mathematics and engineering to K-12 students traditionally underrepresented in the discipline. This exploratory study examines the influences that those MESA activities have on students' perception of engineering and their self-efficacy and interest in engineering and their subsequent decisions to pursue careers in engineering. The MESA activities to be studied include field trips, guest lecturers, design competitions, hands-on activities and student career and academic advisement.
About 1200 students selected from 40 MESA sites in California, Maryland and Utah are surveyed with instruments that build on those used in prior studies. Focus groups with a randomly selected subset of the students provide follow-up and probe the influence of the most promising activities. In the first year of the project the instruments, based on existing instruments, are developed and piloted. Data are taken in the second year and analyzed in the third year. A separate evaluation determines that the protocols are reasonable and are being followed.
The results are applicable to a number of organizations with similar aims and provide information for increasing the number of engineers from underrepresented populations. The project also investigates the correlation between student engagement in MESA and academic performance. This project provides insights on activities used in informal settings that can be employed in the classroom practice and instructional materials to further engage students, especially student from underrepresented groups, in the study of STEM.
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TEAM MEMBERS:
Christine HaileyCameron DensonChandra Austin
In this paper, we introduce the Exploratory Behavior Scale (EBS), a quantitative measure of young children's interactivity. More specifically, the EBS is developed from the psychological literature on exploration and play and measures the extent to which preschoolers explore their physical environment. A practical application of the EBS in a science museum is given. The described study was directed at optimizing parent guidance to improve preschoolers' exploration of exhibits in science center NEMO. In Experiment 1, we investigated which adult coaching style resulted in the highest level of