Integrating Meaningful Practices with Access to Computational Thinking: Towards Increasing the Academic and Career Success of STEM Students

罗德学院（Rhodes College）的“将有意义的实践与获得计算思维（IMPACT）相结合”项目旨在提高攻读STEM专业的低收入、有学术天赋的学生的学术和职业成功。该项目将招收对stem感兴趣的低收入学生并向他们颁发奖学金。除了奖学金之外，IMPACT还将通过一系列项目组成部分，包括第一学期的计算思维课程和第一年为有效的科学写作量身定制的写作研讨会，营造一个促进学术成功、社会包容和专业社区建设的环境。计算思维和科学写作技能是STEM劳动力中高需求的独特和广泛适用的技能，也是高度可转移的，广泛适用于所有STEM领域。许多高中生，特别是那些来自代表性不足的社区的学生，没有机会学习计算机科学。IMPACT旨在通过确定计算思维技能和大学生涯早期的科学写作训练是否会影响STEM动机信念、保留率、对STEM的坚持以及毕业后的就业成功，来弥合这一差距，并产生新的知识。我们期望从IMPACT项目中获得的见解将使美国各地的高等教育机构了解在其STEM课程中实施STEM写作和计算培训的价值。IMPACT项目将招收18名本科生并提供奖学金，通过学术课程和经验促进STEM的成功。此外，该项目将以最佳实践为基础，包括同伴指导、辅导支持、住在指定的住宅、结合计算思维的本科生研究经历、与潜在雇主的网络活动、在研究中使用计算的个性化STEM教师顾问，以及各种旨在促进群体建设的其他活动。其目的是为有学术天赋的学生创建一个学习社区，这些学生主要来自田纳西州孟菲斯地区大量低收入、未被充分代表的高中生。IMPACT学者将通过多种创意和吸引人的外展活动进行招募。IMPACT将加强学者与地区雇主之间的联系，同时为他们提供职业选择和机会。IMPACT还将提供一个可复制的、全面的、支持性的活动和服务网络，旨在提高传统上在学业成功方面面临重大障碍的学生的学业成绩、自我效能、保留率、完成度和就业。该奖项反映了美国国家科学基金会的法定使命，并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，被认为值得支持。

The Integrating Meaningful Practices with Access to Computational Thinking (IMPACT) project at Rhodes College aims to increase the academic and career success of low-income, academically talented students pursuing STEM majors. This project will recruit and award scholarships to STEM-interested low-income students. In addition to the scholarships, IMPACT will foster an environment that promotes academic success, social inclusion, and professional community-building through a suite of program components, including a first-semester course on computational thinking and a first-year writing seminar tailored to effective science writing. Computational thinking and scientific writing skills are unique and broadly applicable skills that are in high demand in the STEM workforce and are also highly transferable and broadly applicable to all STEM fields. Many high school students, particularly those who are from underrepresented communities, do not have access to computer science learning opportunities. IMPACT seeks to bridge this gap and generate new knowledge by determining whether computational thinking skills and training in scientific writing early in the college career will influence STEM motivational beliefs, retention rates, persistence in STEM, and post-graduation job placement success. We expect that the insights gained from the IMPACT program will inform institutions of higher education across the U.S. about the value of implementing STEM writing and computational training in their STEM curricula.The IMPACT project will recruit and provide scholarships to eighteen undergraduate students and promote STEM success through academic coursework and experiences. In addition, the project will build on best practices, including peer mentoring, tutoring support, living in designated residential housing, undergraduate research experiences that incorporate computational thinking, networking events with potential employers, personalized STEM faculty advisors who use computation in their research, and a variety of other activities designed to facilitate cohort-building. The aim is to create a learning community of academically talented students, primarily drawn from the large pool of low-income, underrepresented high school students in the Memphis, Tennessee area. IMPACT Scholars will be targeted for recruitment through multiple creative and engaging outreach events. IMPACT will strengthen the connection between Scholars and regional employers while exposing them to career options and opportunities. IMPACT will also provide a replicable, comprehensive, and supportive network of activities and services aimed at improving academic achievement, self-efficacy, retention, completion, and employment of students who traditionally face significant barriers to academic success.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.