Understanding the Role of Informal STEM Educators in Creating Maker-based and Community-Centered Technology and Computer Science Learning Hubs for Urban Youth

了解非正式 STEM 教育者在为城市青年创建基于创客和以社区为中心的技术和计算机科学学习中心中的作用

• 批准号: 2005484
• 负责人: Andrew Coy
• 金额: $ 117.75万
• 依托单位: Digital Harbor Foundation
• 依托单位国家: 美国
• 项目类别: Continuing Grant
• 财政年份: 2020
• 资助国家: 美国
• 起止时间: 2020-09-01 至 2024-08-31
• 项目状态: 已结题
• 来源: https://www.nsf.gov/awardsearch/showAward?AWD_ID=2005484&HistoricalAwards=false
• 关键词: Understanding; Role; Informal; STEM; Educators

As part of its overall strategy to enhance learning in informal environments, the Advancing Informal STEM Learning (AISL) program funds innovative research, approaches, and resources for use in a variety of settings.Making, which supports interest-driven skill-development and learning, has been recognized as having the potential to engage underserved youth in STEM. Makerspaces are community spaces that allow participants to create items using tools, such as 3-D printers, computer-aided design, and digital fabrication technologies. Makerspaces and making-related programs are often inaccessible, unaffordable, or simply not available to underserved youth. Digital Harbor will partner with recreation centers, two in Pittsburgh and two in Baltimore, to research, refine and implement an equity-based approach to making that will engage underserved youth aged 12-16 in making. The project will prepare out-of-school time (OST) educators to collaboratively develop culturally sensitive curricula with underserved youth to engage them in maker-based technology and computer science experiences. The project will (1) design a professional development program that will prepare and support local educators to collaboratively design and deliver localized, maker-based, STEM curricula; (2) research the impact of these programs on both educators’ and youth’s self-efficacy, creativity, and attitudes towards STEM; and (3) develop and evaluate an online Localization Toolkit that will prepare educators in makerspaces across the nation in using an equity-based approach to create localized content. The project will result in four new maker sites (two in Baltimore and two in Pittsburgh directly impact 4 sites (10 educators and 240 youth). The project will result several resources that will support the development and educational programs of other community sites. The resources will include the Localization Toolkit, Case Studies, Best Practices, and Research Study. The Localization Toolkit has the potential to strengthen infrastructure and capacity building in OST maker-based programs, as well as other informal and formal education programs using similar pedagogies and design principles. The project will use a mixed-methods approach in researching the challenges and processes involved in establishing the four maker sites in Baltimore and Pittsburgh, the approaches and effectiveness of the professional development program on OST educators, and the impacts of the project of participation on the self-efficacy, creativity, and attitudes on participating youth and educators. The research study will apply several instruments and data collection sources to develop quantitative data, including youth attendance logs, the Upper Elementary and Middle/High School Student Attitudes toward STEM survey, a retrospective technology self-efficacy survey and pre-post surveys. In addition to project document review, the researchers will collect qualitative data through educator interviews, educator focus groups, and youth focus groups. Project research and resources will reach key audiences of learning scientists and OST educators through articles in peer-reviewed and practitioner journals, public events and professional conferences. These audiences will also be reached through the project website, which will share project resources. The project will reach OST sites across the country directly through dissemination partners, including the National Recreation and Parks Association, Association of Science and Technology Centers, and statewide out-of-school networks.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.

作为加强非正式环境中学习的整体战略的一部分，推进非正式STEM学习（AISL）计划资助创新研究、方法和资源，用于各种环境。支持兴趣驱动的技能发展和学习的制作，已被公认为具有吸引服务不足的青年参与STEM的潜力。 创客空间是一个社区空间，允许参与者使用工具创建物品，如3D打印机，计算机辅助设计和数字制造技术。 创客空间和与制作相关的项目往往无法进入，负担不起，或者根本无法提供给服务不足的年轻人。Digital Harbor将与匹兹堡的两个和巴尔的摩的两个娱乐中心合作，研究、完善和实施一种基于公平的制作方法，让12-16岁的服务不足的青少年参与制作。该项目将使校外教育工作者做好准备，与得不到充分服务的青年合作开发具有文化敏感性的课程，使他们参与基于制造者的技术和计算机科学体验。 该项目将（1）设计一个专业发展计划，帮助和支持当地教育工作者合作设计和提供本地化的、以制造者为基础的STEM课程;（2）研究这些计划对教育工作者和年轻人的自我效能、创造力和对STEM的态度的影响;以及（3）开发和评估在线本地化工具包，该工具包将帮助全国创客空间的教育工作者使用基于公平的方法创建本地化内容。该项目将产生四个新的制造商网站（两个在巴尔的摩，两个在匹兹堡直接影响4个网站（10名教育工作者和240名青年）。该项目将产生几个资源，将支持其他社区网站的发展和教育计划。这些资源将包括本地化工具包、案例研究、最佳实践和研究。本地化工具包有可能加强OST制作者计划的基础设施和能力建设，以及使用类似的体系结构和设计原则的其他非正式和正式教育计划。该项目将采用混合方法研究在巴尔的摩和匹兹堡建立四个制造商站点所涉及的挑战和过程、针对OST教育工作者的专业发展计划的方法和有效性，以及参与项目对参与青年和教育工作者的自我效能、创造力和态度的影响。这项研究将采用几种工具和数据收集来源来开发定量数据，包括青年出勤记录、小学高年级和初中/高中学生态度 对STEM调查，回顾性技术自我效能感调查和前后调查。除了项目文件审查外，研究人员还将通过教育工作者访谈、教育工作者焦点小组和青年焦点小组收集定性数据。项目研究和资源将通过在同行评审和从业者期刊上发表文章、公共活动和专业会议，接触到学习型科学家和开放源码软件教育工作者这一主要受众。还将通过共享项目资源的项目网站接触这些受众。该项目将通过传播合作伙伴，包括国家娱乐和公园协会，科学和技术中心协会，以及全州范围内的校外网络，直接到达全国各地的OST站点。该奖项反映了NSF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。