EAGER: MAKER: Promoting "Culturally Relevant Making" and Utilitarian Scientific Literacy to Increase Student Retention in Technology Rich Disciplines Brian Lawrence (PI), Lycurgus

事实证明，与文化相关的经验对于从STEM学科中代表性不足的群体中招聘和留住本科生非常宝贵，同样可以鼓励和提供学生在大学以外的地方获得必要的科学和工程技能。尽管如此，在“制作”这一新兴领域，无论是正式的还是非正式的，都不存在与文化相关的编程开发的最佳实践。该项目旨在通过创造一种创造空间文化来满足这一需求，这种文化赋予学生在STEM取得成功所必需的与文化相关的功利性科学素养技能。实现这一目标的部分途径是创建一个在线模块(“思维、设计和制作方面的扫盲”)，该模块在文化上与代表性不足的STEM人群相关，并可通过互联网广泛使用，供任何人(如个人、高中、高等教育机构等)使用。有兴趣参与迅速扩张的Maker运动。本单元将通过思想、创造力、设计思维、创新和创业精神等重要的制造要素，向本科生介绍制造空间文化和技术。这一方法预计将使人们认识到制造(而不是“修修补补”)的内在价值，它有助于为未被充分代表的学生在科学和工程领域的职业生涯做好准备。预计通过Make改善学生的学习，随之而来的STEM招生和留住代表性不足的学生的增加将成为确保国家科技劳动力未来的多样性和准备的关键一步。

Culturally-relevant experiences prove invaluable to the recruitment and retention of undergraduates from underrepresented groups in STEM disciplines, and likewise, can encourage and provide students with the requisite skills for science and engineering beyond college. Despite this, best practices do not exist for the development of culturally-relevant programing, be it formal or informal, in the emergent field of "Making." This project is designed to meet this need through the creation of a MakerSpace culture that confers culturally-relevant utilitarian scientific literacy skills necessary for student success in STEM. This goal will be achieved, in part, by creating an online module ("Literacy in Ideation, Design, and Making") that is culturally relevant to underrepresented STEM populations and widely available through the Internet for use by anyone (e.g. individual, high school, institution of higher education etc.) interested in engaging in the rapidly expanding Maker Movement. This module will introduce undergraduates to MakerSpace Culture and Technology through important elements of Making such as Ideation, Creativity, Design Thinking, Innovation and Entrepreneurship. The approach is expected to lead to an appreciation for the intrinsic value of Making (as opposed to "tinkering") that helps better prepare underrepresented students for a career in science and engineering. It is expected that by improving student learning through Making, the attendant increase in recruitment and retention of underrepresented students in STEM will serve as a key step toward ensuring the future diversity and preparedness of the nation's science and technology workforce.