Full Scale Development: Collaborative Research--Using Narrative in a Digital Learning Evironment to Engage Children and Teens in Engineering

史密斯学院和斯普林菲尔德技术社区学院的这一全面研发合作项目计划通过Talk to Me(TTM)网站提高儿童在工程教育领域的技术素养。TTM课程的方法借鉴了布兰斯福德的《人是如何学习的》和伊根的想象力教育和知识建设来组织活动。研究的问题是：知识建构话语的性质是什么？随着时间的推移，情况会变得更好吗？如果有机会，学生们会将话语扩展到新的领域吗？学习环境需要什么样的脚手架来支持本次演讲中的新手参与者？叙事的使用对知识建构的参与有影响吗？某些类型的叙事在影响知识构建的参与方面是否更有效？网站Talk to Me(TTM)将提供工程教育课程，通过使用叙事和互动多媒体促进交互式知识构建。TTM网站将包括来自康涅狄格州课后网络的非正式教育工作者和领导人对可用性、价值有效性和实施容易程度的评估反馈。结果包括对工程和工程概念的本质的理解，提高兴趣，综合思维和应用工程概念的能力，并纳入TTM资源。评估将包括：关于叙事和多媒体工具在工程教育领域的影响的文件。目前，关于儿童和青少年参与工程教育活动的研究很少，利用叙事作为一种结构来促进学习工程概念和原则。这一在线教育计划将提供由想象力教育通过互动论坛和博客让儿童和青少年参与的发展结构的叙事，青少年小说(英语和西班牙语版本的音频和文本)，八项广泛的联系活动，社交网络联系和面向中学生和课后计划网站主任的电子文件夹。根据这一拟议项目开展的研究和活动有助于非正规科学和工程教育领域。该项目的结果可能会以积极的方式影响中学适龄儿童和来自代表性不足社区的成员和女孩。

This full scale research and development collaborative project between Smith College and Springfield Technical Community College plans to improve technical literacy for children in the area of engineering education through the Talk to Me (TTM) website. The approach for the TTM curriculum draws on Bransford's "How people learn" and Egan's Imaginative Education and Knowledge Building to structure the activities. The research questions are: What is the quality of the knowledge building discourse? Does it get better over time? Will students, given the opportunity, extend the discourse to new areas? What scaffolding does the learning environment need to support novice participants in this discourse? Does the use of narrative influence participation in knowledge building? Are certain types of narratives more effective in influencing participation in knowledge building?The website Talk to Me (TTM) will provide engineering education curriculum that facilitates interactive knowledge building through the use of narratives and interactive multimedia. The TTM website will include evaluative feedback for usability, value effectiveness and ease of implementation from informal educators and leaders from the Connecticut After School Network. Outcomes include demonstrated understanding of the nature of engineering and engineering concepts, increased interest, integrative thinking and ability to apply engineering concepts, and incorporate TTM resources. The evaluation will include: documentation on the impact of narrative and multimedia tools in the area of engineering education.Currently, there is very little research regarding children and young teen engagement in engineering education activities using narrative as a structure to facilitate learning engineering concepts and principles. This online education program will deliver narratives that are developmentally structured by Imaginative Education through the engagement of children and young teens via interactive forums and blogs, young adult novels (audio and text with English and Spanish versions), eight extensive tie-in activities, social network connections and electronic portfolios for middle school age students and afterschool program site directors. The research and activities developed from this proposed project contributes to the field of Informal Science and Engineering Education. The results from this project could impact middle-school aged children and members from underrepresented communities and girls in a positive way.