Workshop: Making and Makerspaces in Electrical and Computer Engineering Education

对强大的STEM劳动力的需求在政策圈中得到了大量讨论。特别是在美国授予的电气和计算机工程（ECE）学位数量多年来一直在下降（随后略有上升）（国家科学委员会，2016年）。虽然有充分的文件证明需要一支不断增长和有能力的欧洲经委会工作人员队伍，但如何影响大学入学率仍然是一个有相当大争议的问题。一种可能影响大学入学率的方法是支持以ECE为中心的制造和创客空间。创客空间吸引了许多对ECE相关主题有浓厚兴趣的人，包括嵌入式系统，机器人技术，人工智能，人机交互和电子制造，许多创客自我识别为与电气和计算机工程相关的兴趣（Doughnessy，2016）。然而，大学校园内外的大多数创客空间的设施主要集中在机械制造工具上，如激光切割机和3D打印机。制造不仅仅是创造塑料3D部件，而是有潜力激发真正创新的功能解决方案，以解决人们关心的问题。虽然机械工程与先进制造业的创客运动有着密切的联系，但ECE课程迄今为止在利用与创客运动的强大学科联系方面做得很少。本次研讨会将探讨如何利用制造和创客空间来吸引学生并留住学生，以及通过接触创客空间而导致的学生学习变化。这项活动将有助于促进对Makerspaces和Making在增加欧洲经委会本科生数量和质量方面的作用的理解。该讲习班具有变革潜力，因为它将为今后的项目奠定基础，这些项目将阐明Making在欧洲经委会招生方面发挥的作用。研讨会的计划建立在现有会议的基础上，以达到目标受众，并使NSF的资源集中在资源不足的方案。该团队在Maker Movement和Making工程方面拥有丰富的经验，并与ECEDHA和ASEE保持着密切的关系。这项工作的广泛影响是显著的，因为创客空间和创客运动在社区，图书馆和学校中越来越普遍，并且是美国创新生态系统的贡献者（Deloitte Center for the Edge and Maker Media，2015）。讲习班的计划使欧洲经委会现有的创客空间都参与进来，同时吸收来自资源不足学校的参与者，以建立一个多样化的网络。“创客空间在一个盒子”电子为重点的赠品将给予与会者来自HBCU，HSI和TCU。传播活动将与欧洲经委会人道主义事务部正在进行的品牌推广工作相结合，这将扩大最初讲习班的影响。在ASEE、工程院长理事会、Maker Faires和NAMEPA的后续研讨会旨在向关键受众传播。该奖项反映了NSF的法定使命，并被认为值得通过使用基金会的知识价值和更广泛的影响审查标准进行评估来支持。

The need for a robust STEM workforce is heavily discussed in policy circles. In particular there has been a multiyear decline (followed by a small rise) in the number of electrical and computer engineering (ECE) degrees awarded in the United States (National Science Board, 2016). Although the need for a growing and capable ECE workforce is well documented, how to impact college enrollments is still a matter of considerable debate. One way to potentially impact college enrollments is to support ECE-focused Making and Makerspaces. Makerspaces attract many with strong interest in ECE-related topics, including embedded systems, robotics, artificial intelligence, human-computer interaction, and electronics manufacturing, and many Makers self-identify as having interests related to electrical and computer engineering (Dougherty, 2016). However, the facilities of most makerspaces both on and off of university campuses focus primarily on mechanical fabrication tools such as laser cutters and 3-D printers. Making is more than the creation of plastic 3-D parts, but rather has the potential to stimulate truly innovative functional solutions to problems that people care about. While Mechanical Engineering has connected strongly with the Maker Movement with advanced manufacturing, ECE programs have to date done little to leverage the strong disciplinary connections with the Maker Movement.This workshop will explore how Making and Makerspaces can be used to attract students to and retain students in ECE, and the resultant changes in student learning that result from exposure to makerspaces. This activity will help advance understanding of the role Makerspaces and Making play in increasing the number and quality of ECE undergraduates. The workshop has transformative potential since it will lay the groundwork for future projects that elucidate the role Making plays in recruiting students into ECE. The plan for the workshop builds on existing meetings to reach the target audiences and enables NSF resources to be focused on under-resourced programs. The team has significant experience with both the Maker Movement and Making in engineering, and close relationships with ECEDHA and ASEE. The broader impacts of this work are significant, as Makerspaces and the Maker movement are a growing phenomenon in communities, libraries, and schools and are contributors to the United States' innovation ecosystem (Deloitte Center for the Edge and Maker Media, 2015). The plan for the workshop engages both established ECE Makerspaces while integrating participants from under-resourced schools to establish a diverse network. "Makerspace in a Box" electronic-focused giveaways will be given to participants coming from HBCUs, HSIs, and TCUs. Dissemination activities will be integrated with ongoing branding efforts by ECEDHA which will multiply the impact of the initial workshop. Follow-on workshops at ASEE, Engineering Dean's Council, Maker Faires, and NAMEPA are aimed to disseminate to critical audiences.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.