STEM CareerLaunch: Evaluating the Feasibility of a STEM Career-Based, Collective Impact Model on Youth in Boys & Girls Clubs

STEM CareerLaunch：评估基于 STEM 职业的集体影响模型对青少年男孩的可行性

• 批准号: 1811028
• 负责人: Elizabeth Coveney
• 金额: $ 29.72万
• 依托单位: Boys & Girls Club of Fitchburg and Leominster
• 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: 2019-02-15 至 2022-01-31
• 项目状态: 已结题
• 来源: https://www.nsf.gov/awardsearch/showAward?AWD_ID=1811028&HistoricalAwards=false
• 关键词: STEM; CareerLaunch; Evaluating; Feasibility; Career

Increased exposure to STEM content and career pathways during out-of-school time contexts can significantly extend STEM learning and aspirational interests among middle and high school youth. Using a collective impact approach, the STEM CareerLaunch pilot project tests the feasibility of redesigning a widely used, national youth and career focused program for and by the National Boys & Girls Clubs of America to extend STEM learning and promote awareness, interest, and readiness for STEM-related occupations among youth. STEM CareerLaunch integrates extant STEM programs, such as First Robotics, Girls Who Code and Jason Learning, with newly developed STEM content and opportunities to create and test a comprehensive STEM learning and career program for youth. The results of this pilot will inform a more expansive effort to bring STEM CareerLaunch to an already networked 4,000 Boys & Girls Clubs, reaching over four million youth from predominately underrepresented groups in STEM, and youth participating in other afterschool/summer program throughout the United States.Approximately 100 youth and informal educators in Boys & Girls Clubs in Fitchburg and Leominster, Massachusetts will participate in this pilot feasibility study. A five-pronged approach will be instituted including: (1) high quality out of school time STEM programming, (2) connected STEM career education, (3) mentorship, (4) professional development for the informal educators, and (5) incentives such as internships and field experiences for youth participants. The developmental evaluation will focus on program implementation, participant outcomes, and scale-up. Data collection methods will include quantitative and qualitative approaches such as baseline student data, project tracking logs, retrospective surveys, focus groups, staff interviews, and observations. A summative evaluation will also be conducted.This endeavor is led by a collaborative partnership between the National Boys & Girls Clubs of America, Worcester Polytechnic Institute STEM Center, the Fitchburg and Leominster Public School Districts, and others. It is primarily funded by the Advancing Informal STEM Learning (AISL) program, which seeks to advance new approaches to, and evidence-based understanding of, the design and development of STEM learning in informal environments. It is also co-funded by the Innovative Technology Experiences for Students and Teachers (ITEST) program which is committed to better understanding and promoting practices that increase students' motivations and capacities to pursue careers in fields of science, technology, engineering, and or mathematics (STEM).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.

在校外环境中增加对STEM内容和职业道路的接触，可以显著扩大初中和高中青年的STEM学习和抱负兴趣。STEM CareerLaunch试点项目使用集体影响的方法，测试重新设计为美国国家男孩和女孩俱乐部以及由美国国家男孩和女孩俱乐部广泛使用的、以国家青年和职业为重点的计划的可行性，以扩大STEM学习，并提高年轻人对STEM相关职业的认识、兴趣和准备。STEM CareerLaunch将现有的STEM项目，如First Robotics、Girls Who Code和Jason Learning与新开发的STEM内容和机会相结合，创建和测试面向青年的全面STEM学习和职业计划。这一试点的结果将为更广泛的努力提供信息，将STEM CareerLaunch带到已经联网的4000个男孩和女孩俱乐部，覆盖到STEM中主要代表不足的群体的400多万青年，以及参加全美其他课外/暑期计划的青年。大约100名青年和非正式教育工作者将在马萨诸塞州菲奇堡和莱奥明斯特的男孩和女孩俱乐部参加这项试点可行性研究。将制定一个五管齐下的方法，包括：(1)高质量的校外STEM方案编制；(2)与STEM相关的职业教育；(3)导师制；(4)非正式教育者的专业发展；以及(5)为青年参与者提供实习和实地经验等激励措施。发展性评估将重点放在项目实施、参与者成果和扩大规模上。数据收集方法将包括定量和定性方法，如基线学生数据、项目跟踪日志、回溯性调查、焦点小组、工作人员访谈和观察。还将进行总结性评估。这项努力是由美国国家男孩和女孩俱乐部、伍斯特理工学院STEM中心、菲奇堡和莱奥明斯特公立学区等之间的合作伙伴关系领导的。它主要由推进非正式STEM学习(AISL)计划资助，该计划旨在促进对非正式环境中STEM学习的设计和发展的新方法和基于证据的理解。该奖项也是由学生和教师创新技术体验计划(ITEST)共同资助的，该计划致力于更好地理解和促进提高学生在科学、技术、工程和/或数学(STEM)领域追求职业生涯的动机和能力的实践。该奖项反映了NSF的法定使命，并通过使用基金会的智力优势和更广泛的影响审查标准进行评估，被认为值得支持。