Full Scale Development: Collaborative Research--Using Narrative in a Digital Learning Evironment to Engage Children and Teens in Engineering

史密斯学院和斯普林菲尔德技术社区学院之间的全面研究和开发合作项目计划通过Talk to Me （TTM）网站提高儿童在工程教育领域的技术素养。TTM课程的方法借鉴了布兰斯福德的“人们如何学习”和伊根的“想象教育和知识建设”来组织活动。研究的问题是：知识建构话语的质量是什么？它会随着时间的推移变得更好吗？如果有机会，学生们是否会将论述扩展到新的领域？学习环境需要什么样的框架来支持这个话语的新手参与者？叙述的使用会影响知识建构的参与吗？某些类型的叙述是否更有效地影响知识建设的参与？网站Talk to Me （TTM）将提供工程教育课程，通过使用叙述和互动多媒体，促进互动知识的建立。TTM网站将包括来自康涅狄格课后网络的非正式教育者和领导者对可用性、价值有效性和实施便利性的评估反馈。结果包括展示对工程和工程概念本质的理解，增加兴趣，综合思维和应用工程概念的能力，以及整合TTM资源。评价将包括：叙述和多媒体工具在工程教育领域的影响的文件。目前，关于儿童和青少年参与工程教育活动的研究很少，以叙事为结构促进工程概念和原则的学习。这个在线教育项目将通过互动论坛和博客、青少年小说（英语和西班牙语版本的音频和文本）、八项广泛的配套活动、社交网络连接以及面向中学生和课后项目网站负责人的电子作品集，向儿童和青少年提供由想象力教育组织的发展叙事。从这个提议的项目发展的研究和活动有助于非正式科学和工程教育领域。该项目的成果可能会对中学儿童、代表性不足的社区成员和女孩产生积极影响。

This full scale research and development collaborative project between Smith College and Springfield Technical Community College plans to improve technical literacy for children in the area of engineering education through the Talk to Me (TTM) website. The approach for the TTM curriculum draws on Bransford's "How people learn" and Egan's Imaginative Education and Knowledge Building to structure the activities. The research questions are: 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?The website Talk to Me (TTM) will provide engineering education curriculum that facilitates interactive knowledge building through the use of narratives and interactive multimedia. The TTM website will include evaluative feedback for usability, value effectiveness and ease of implementation from informal educators and leaders from the Connecticut After School Network. Outcomes include demonstrated understanding of the nature of engineering and engineering concepts, increased interest, integrative thinking and ability to apply engineering concepts, and incorporate TTM resources. 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. This online education program will deliver narratives that are developmentally structured by Imaginative Education through the engagement of children and young teens via interactive forums and blogs, young adult novels (audio and text with English and Spanish versions), eight extensive tie-in activities, social network connections and electronic portfolios for middle school age students and afterschool program site directors. 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 middle-school aged children and members from underrepresented communities and girls in a positive way.