SBIR Phase I: An Internet of Things Education System Designed to Increase the Participation of Women in STEM Careers

小型企业创新研究(SBIR)第一阶段项目的更广泛影响/商业潜力是最终增加STEM职业中的妇女人数，从而使妇女能够获得更高报酬的工作，并通过增加发明未来技术的妇女人数来扩大全球创新。研究表明，玩耍和学业之间有直接联系，但很少有STEM产品能吸引10 mm以上的美国青春期前女孩。我们的假设是，通过设计一个具有运动和照明功能的互动装饰构建套件的物联网(IoT)平台，我们可以让女孩在情感和智力发展的形成阶段参与动手STEM学习。这些工具包将提供教育和探索机会，包括空间和顺序思维、机械工程、电气工程和编程。将编写和设计用户指南和在线学习模块，以在女孩中创建和建立STEM身份。我们的理论是，这种亲身体验将在女孩中产生态度和身份认同的转变，以激励她们追求更多的STEM学术机会，并进一步探索其他STEM活动。拟议的项目是一种方法，为通常不认识到自己在STEM领域的优势和能力的人群提供进入STEM体验的途径。这是通过引导他们通过物联网模块化产品平台来构建可个性化的装饰配件来实现的，因为他们追求对装饰和艺术的兴趣。建议的项目？S的目标是：(1)设计和构建硬件原型；(2)设计和构建APP原型；(3)设计并进行研究，以确定与建议的物联网模块化平台的互动会导致态度转向STEM。该项目将采用研究方法，包括大规模学习风格调查(400名用户)；主持和记录用户反馈会议，以及使用根据已发表的研究和学术评估改编的问卷进行面对面研究(15名用户)。我们的成功参数是：(1)50%的用户可以构建和编程物联网产品；(2)20%的女孩体验到STEM领域的增加；(3)短期回忆STEM技能和词汇的能力提高了15%；(4)25%的用户报告有兴趣尝试另一种STEM体验；(5)50%的用户报告他们会在房间里展示完成的产品。

The broader impact/commercial potential of this Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) Phase I project is to ultimately increase the number of women in STEM careers, thus allowing women to secure higher paying jobs and to expand global innovation by increasing the number of women who are inventing future technologies. Research demonstrates a direct connection between play and academic pursuits, yet few STEM products appeal to the 10MM+ pre-adolescent U.S. girls. Our hypothesis is that by designing an Internet of Things (IoT) platform of interactive decor building kits with motion and lighting features, we can engage girls in hands-on STEM learning during a formative time in their emotional and intellectual development. The kits will offer educational and exploratory opportunities including spatial and sequential thinking, mechanical engineering, electrical engineering, and programming. The user guides and on-line learning modules will be authored and designed to create and build a STEM identity in girls. Our theory is that this hands-on experience will create attitudinal and identity shifts in girls to motivate them to pursue additional STEM academic opportunities and further their exploration with other STEM activities.The proposed project is a method to provide an entrance to STEM experiences for a population typically not recognizing their strengths and abilities in the STEM areas. This is accomplished by leading them through an IoT modular product platform to build personalizable decor accessories as they pursue their interest in decorating and the arts. The proposed project?s objectives are: (1) design and build a hardware prototype; (2) design and build an app prototype; (3) design and conduct research to determine that interaction with the proposed IoT modular platform results in an attitudinal shift toward STEM. The project will employ research methods including a large scale learning styles survey (400 users); moderated and recorded user feedback sessions, and in-person studies (15 users) using questionnaires adapted from published research and academic assessments. Our success parameters are: (1) 50% of users can build and program the IoT product; (2) 20% of girls experience an increase in STEM areas; (3) 15% improvement in short-term recall of STEM skills and vocabulary; (4) 25% of users report an interest in trying another STEM experience; (5) 50% of users report they would display completed product in their room.