Integrating the Teaching of Mathematics, Physics, and Engineering Courses to Improve Retention of Engineering Students at Penn State Abington

整合数学、物理和工程课程的教学，以提高宾夕法尼亚州立大学阿宾顿分校工程学生的保留率

• 批准号: 2130254
• 负责人: Michael KAGAN
• 金额: $ 75万
• 依托单位: Pennsylvania State Univ University Park
• 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: 2021-10-01 至 2027-09-30
• 项目状态: 未结题
• 来源: https://www.nsf.gov/awardsearch/showAward?AWD_ID=2130254&HistoricalAwards=false
• 关键词: Integrating; Teaching; Mathematics; Physics; Engineering

This project will contribute to the national need for well-educated scientists, mathematicians, engineers, and technicians by supporting the retention and graduation of high-achieving, low-income students with demonstrated financial need at Pennsylvania State University (PSU) Abington, located near Philadelphia. The project will support students through a combination of financial assistance and curricular and co-curricular support. Over its six-year duration, this project will fund two-year scholarships to four unique cohorts of twelve (12) high-achieving, low-income undergraduate majors in engineering disciplines at the university to reduce their need to work outside of their regular academic pursuits. Additional support will include enrolling the cohorts in special block scheduling for STEM Freshman Interest Groups and creating pairs of integrated courses (mathematics with physics and physics with engineering) to catalyze transitioning of students from solely content-oriented courses to those emphasizing problem solving. An enhanced advising, career counseling, and peer tutoring/mentoring program will be in place. In line with this, the project will partner with industry to provide the students with opportunities for internships, professional mentors, networking, and a special speaker program. The project will incorporate a networking process with industry partners, high school counselors, and other colleges to disseminate outcomes and findings related to project challenges and successes, in particular to other institutions, including other PSU campuses, working to support low-income STEM students. To increase retention and STEM degree completion of low-income, high-achieving engineering undergraduates with demonstrated financial need, the project will pursue several goals. First is to adapt and implement evidence-based curricular and co-curricular strategies for systematically supporting student academic and career pathways to success. Second is to implement, test, and study through project evaluation an innovative model for preparing highly-talented STEM students to transition from learning content to applying material and principles learned to problem solving scenarios, especially in the contexts of physics and engineering. Third is to contribute to the knowledge base to help guide other colleges to implement similar programs successfully. Fourth is to integrate the project with local industries to enhance and sustain student interest as well as to improve career preparation and job placement, directly supporting needs in the region. Insights and outcomes from qualitative and quantitative evaluation methods will generate new knowledge on which aspects of the project's support interventions, or combination of interventions, are most effective for retention, engagement, academic performance, and overall success of students. The lines of investigation will address gaps in the literature and inform other higher-education professionals seeking to support students with a combination of curricular and co-curricular interventions, especially from urban regions containing a significant population of students who are underrepresented in STEM. This project is funded by NSF’s Scholarships in Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics program, which seeks to increase the number of low-income academically talented students with demonstrated financial need who earn degrees in STEM fields. It also aims to improve the education of future STEM workers, and to generate knowledge about academic success, retention, transfer, graduation, and academic/career pathways of low-income students.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.

该项目将有助于对受过良好教育的科学家，数学家，工程师和技术人员的国家需要，通过支持高成就，低收入学生的保留和毕业，证明在宾夕法尼亚州州立大学（PSU）阿宾顿，位于费城附近的经济需要。该项目将通过财政援助和课程及课外支持相结合的方式支持学生。在其为期六年的时间里，该项目将资助为期两年的奖学金，以四个独特的12（12）个高成就，低收入的本科专业在大学的工程学科，以减少他们需要工作以外的常规学术追求。额外的支持将包括在STEM新生兴趣小组的特殊块调度中招收队列，并创建成对的综合课程（数学与物理和物理与工程），以促进学生从单纯的内容导向课程向强调解决问题的课程过渡。一个加强的咨询，职业咨询和同侪辅导/指导方案将到位。根据这一点，该项目将与行业合作，为学生提供实习，专业导师，网络和特别演讲者计划的机会。该项目将与行业合作伙伴，高中辅导员和其他学院建立网络，以传播与项目挑战和成功相关的成果和发现，特别是向其他机构，包括其他PSU校园，努力支持低收入STEM学生。 为了提高低收入，高成就的工程本科生的保留率和STEM学位完成率，该项目将追求几个目标。首先是调整和实施循证的课程和课外战略，系统地支持学生的学术和职业道路取得成功。其次是通过项目评估实施，测试和研究一种创新模式，为高天赋的STEM学生从学习内容过渡到将所学的材料和原理应用于解决问题的场景，特别是在物理和工程方面。第三是有助于知识基础，以帮助指导其他学院成功实施类似的计划。第四是将项目与当地产业结合起来，以提高和维持学生的兴趣，并改善职业准备和就业安置，直接支持该地区的需求。定性和定量评估方法的见解和结果将产生新的知识，即项目的支持干预措施或干预措施组合的哪些方面对学生的保留，参与，学业成绩和整体成功最有效。调查的路线将解决文献中的差距，并告知其他高等教育专业人士寻求通过课程和课外干预相结合来支持学生，特别是来自城市地区的学生人数众多，在STEM中代表性不足。该项目由NSF的科学，技术，工程和数学奖学金计划资助，该计划旨在增加低收入学术人才的数量，这些学生表现出经济需求，并获得STEM领域的学位。它还旨在改善未来STEM工作者的教育，并提供有关低收入学生的学术成功、保留、转学、毕业和学术/职业途径的知识。该奖项反映了NSF的法定使命，并且通过使用基金会的智力价值和更广泛的影响力审查标准进行评估，被认为值得支持。