Research Initiation: Understanding Impacts of Soft Robotics Curricula on Female Students Engineering Identity

研究启动：了解软体机器人课程对女学生工程认同的影响

• 批准号: 2106286
• 负责人: Holly Golecki
• 金额: $ 20万
• 依托单位: University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign
• 依托单位国家: 美国
• 项目类别: Standard Grant
• 财政年份: 2021
• 资助国家: 美国
• 起止时间: 2021-07-15 至 2024-06-30
• 项目状态: 已结题
• 来源: https://www.nsf.gov/awardsearch/showAward?AWD_ID=2106286&HistoricalAwards=false
• 关键词: Research; Initiation; Understanding; Impacts; Soft

Participation in K12 educational robotics is a common precursor to enrollment in engineering majors, however the gender gap in traditional pre-college robotics prevents equal access to these disciplines. We believe soft robotics may create a new pathway for students from underrepresented groups to enter engineering majors. Soft robots are those devices made from soft materials and flexible electronics enabling robots to more safely interface with humans and other living organisms. Soft robotics presents an opportunity to introduce traditional engineering principles through a human-centered perspective with the potential to diversify engineering. This project will address two aims. First, this project aims to understand changes in the engineering identity of middle and high school-aged female students after having engaged in soft robotics projects in their science classes. Second, this project aims to introduce the Principal Investigator to engineering education research, catalyzing a new research enterprise focused on access to engineering and educational robotics. The research team will utilize existing relationships with local schools to deliver a previously piloted soft robotics curriculum and study student experiences. Implementation will include a one-week, hands-on robotics short course for about 200 middle and high school students local to the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign.To date, the lack of representation of women in mechanical and electrical engineering is well-documented. However, successful pathways for women to these majors are understudied. Agency beliefs have been a useful lens for understanding how women do enter some engineering majors, such as bioengineering. The mentor-mentee research team will leverage a mixed methods approach to explore soft robotics as a new pathway to engineering Critical Engineering Agency will be a framework through which to understand the student experience. The research team will use surveys and interview instruments to help answer the overall research question: How can a soft robotics implementation impact high school students’ attitudes and self-beliefs, and therefore serve as a strategy to recruit female students to traditionally male-dominated engineering majors? Prior to the activity, students will be surveyed using engineering identity and agency belief measures. After implementation, students will complete a post-survey and the research team will interview select students to understand how the activities impacted their engineering identity. The result of this collaborative research project will be an analysis of the elements of pre-college soft robotics curriculum that may lead to diverse recruitment in engineering. Education of local stakeholders in standards-based soft robotics curriculum opens the door for further engagement in our local community. Dissemination of research results will enable broad adoption. Findings from this study will pave the way for increased representation of women and underrepresented minorities in engineering at the college level and in the engineering workforce, contributing to a diversity of solutions to society’s critical challenges. Soft robotics curricula have the potential to prepare a diverse generation of engineers and reduce the barrier to entry not only for girls, but other students from underrepresented groups.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.

参与K12教育机器人是工程专业入学的常见前兆，然而传统的大学预科机器人技术中的性别差距阻碍了平等进入这些学科。我们相信，软机器人技术可能会为来自代表性不足群体的学生进入工程专业创造一条新的途径。软机器人是由软材料和柔性电子设备制成的设备，使机器人能够更安全地与人类和其他生物体接触。软机器人提供了一个机会，通过以人为本的角度引入传统的工程原理，并有可能使工程多样化。该项目将实现两个目标。首先，本项目旨在了解在科学课上从事软机器人项目后，初中和高中女生的工程身份的变化。其次，该项目旨在将首席研究员引入工程教育研究，促进一个专注于工程和教育机器人的新研究企业。研究团队将利用与当地学校的现有关系，提供先前试点的软机器人课程，并研究学生的体验。实施工作将包括为伊利诺伊大学厄巴纳-香槟分校当地约200名初中和高中学生举办为期一周的机器人实践短期课程。然而，对妇女进入这些专业的成功途径研究不足。机构信念一直是了解女性如何进入某些工程专业（如生物工程）的有用透镜。导师-学员研究团队将利用混合方法来探索软机器人技术，作为工程的新途径关键工程机构将是一个框架，通过它来了解学生的经验。研究团队将使用调查和访谈工具来帮助回答整体研究问题：软机器人技术的实施如何影响高中生的态度和自我信念，从而作为一种策略来招募女性学生进入传统上男性主导的工程专业？ 在活动之前，学生将使用工程身份和机构信仰措施进行调查。实施后，学生将完成一项后调查，研究团队将采访选定的学生，以了解活动如何影响他们的工程身份。这个合作研究项目的结果将是对大学预科软机器人课程的元素进行分析，这可能会导致工程领域的多样化招聘。对当地利益相关者进行基于标准的软机器人课程的教育，为我们进一步参与当地社区打开了大门。研究成果的传播将有助于广泛采用。这项研究的结果将为增加妇女和代表性不足的少数民族在大学工程和工程劳动力中的代表性铺平道路，为解决社会关键挑战的多样性做出贡献。软机器人课程有可能培养出多样化的一代工程师，并降低女孩以及其他代表性不足群体的学生的入学门槛。该奖项反映了NSF的法定使命，并通过使用基金会的智力价值和更广泛的影响审查标准进行评估，被认为值得支持。