Resources included in these libraries were submitted by ITEST projects or STELAR and are relevant to the work of the NSF ITEST Program. PDFs and/or URLs to the original resource are included in the resource description whenever possible. In some cases, full text publications are located behind publishers’ paywalls and a fee or membership to the third party site may be required for access. Permission for use must be requested through the publisher or author listed in each entry.
Contrasts in Climate Change Attitudes and STEM Dispositions Among Children Versus Adults Attending a Science and Technology Exposition
PublicationChildren and adults attending a three-day Science and Technology Exposition in Washington D.C., during April 2016 completed Climate Change Attitude Surveys and STEM Semantic Differential Surveys while visiting a booth featuring hands on demonstrations of testing various houshold appliances for consumption of standby power. Demos were conducted by middle school teachers from three states in the USA as part of a four-year Innovative Technology Experiences for Students and Teachers (ITEST) project, funded by NSF. Findings were that adults overall were more positive than children but significantly
SciGirls Profiles: Women in STEM
PublicationThese women are the innovators, problem-solvers and dreamers who live right next door. They’re passionate about their work, hobbies, families and helping to make the world a better place. They share their strategies for overcoming challenges and finding success and joy in jobs where women are underrepresented, and inspire girls to pursue all kinds of interests and career paths... After watching, complete this short survey to unlock video extras: tcptv.polldaddy.com/s/scigirls-profiles-women-in-stem
You Can Take it With You: Empowering Learners Across Contexts
PublicationA central way in which FUSE provides powerful learning affordances is by breaking down the silos of A key way in which FUSE provides powerful learning affordances is by breaking down the silos of traditional STEM disciplines, and engaging learners in more authentic, interdisciplinary, and personally meaningful experimentation ICLS 2016 Proceedings 1029 © ISLS and making (e.g., Dewey, 1897; Resnick et al., 2009). Consequently, FUSE activities have the potential to not only motivate students to engage in future STEM learning, but also to provide them with a toolkit of knowledge and practices to
Learner Choice and the Emergence of Diverse Learning Arrangements in FUSE
PublicationThis paper explores how FUSE Studios are organized, describing key design elements, the ways these differ from a traditional classroom model, and the types of diverse learning arrangements that emerge. Data in this paper was primarily collected from five classrooms in the 2013-14 school year and the analysis was refined through discussions within the research team about ongoing data collection during the 2014-15 (one classroom) and 2015- 16 (seven classrooms) school years.[See pages 1025-1032]
Developing and Recognizing Relative Expertise in FUSE
PublicationTraditional methods of STEM education position the child as a novice and create narrow opportunities for children to demonstrate and constructively utilize their developing skills, related interests and capabilities, perhaps even inadvertently suppressing them (Stevens, 2000; Bevan, Bell, Stevens, & Razfar, 2012; Barron, 2006). Researchers have explored expertise in terms of domain mastery (Ericsson, Krampe, & Tesch-Romer, 1993), developed models for how novices become domain experts (Alexander, 2003), and discussed pathways along which students move in developing science expertise (Schwarz et
Teaching and Learning Number Systems for Computational Thinking: Underrepresented Students Accessing High-Quality STEM Practices
PublicationThis book offers math educators strategies and resources for putting that principle into practice.
Modeling and Simulation: How Everything seems to Form and Grow
PublicationThe ideas in this article resulted from many years of research in engineering, physics, computer, and cognitive sciences, as well as teaching experience in college and secondary schools. While its main purpose is to discuss the universality of modeling and simulation process and its pedagogical use in teaching, there are several conclusions to be drawn.
Epistemological, Psychological, Neurosciences, and Cognitive Essence of Computational Thinking
PublicationThe construct of computational thinking (CT) was popularized a decade ago as an “attitude and skillset” for everyone. However, since it is equated with thinking by computer scientists, the teaching of these skills poses many challenges at K-12 because of their reliance on the use of electronic computers and programming concepts that are often found too abstract and difficult by young students. This article links CT – i.e., thinking generated and facilitated by a computational device – to our typical fundamental cognitive processes by using a model of mind that is aligned with research in
The Essence of Computational Thinking
PublicationA decade of discourse to capture the essence of computational thinking has resulted in a broad set of skills whose teaching continue to pose challenges because of the reliance on the use of electronic computers and programming concepts. This article not only links computational thinking skills to fundamental cognitive competencies but also describes pedagogical tools that have proven effective in teaching them at early ages.
Exploring the Engineering Design Process Through Computer-Aided Design and 3-D Printing
PublicationThis publication reports on how to use engineering design to solve problems by students in Grade 6-8. It is approximately $25 per class (if you already own a 3-D printer).