scholarly journals EXPLORING STUDENTS’ STEM IMAGINATION PROCESS THROUGH AN ENGINEERING DESIGN PROCESS

Author(s):  
Nyet Moi Siew

This research was conducted to explore the STEM imagination of Grade 10 students from one Malaysian rural secondary school that adopted the integration of the imagination process in an Engineering Design Process (EDP) through an outreach program in STEM. Four stages of the STEM imagination process were examined: initiation, dynamic adjustment, virtual implementation and implementation. A total of 50 students aged 16 participated in a 10-hour program which engaged them in designing and building two different prototypes. Data on students’ STEM imagination were captured through teachers’ field notes based on focus group interviews and observations. The findings reveal that students needed to draw from their lived experiences to brainstorm problems and solutions around a given scenario, and to arrive at a workable solution in order to move from the initiation to the implementation stage. The findings also suggested that the EDP approach is able to create a supportive environment for nurturing STEM imagination among rural secondary school students.

2017 ◽  
Vol 75 (4) ◽  
pp. 375-393
Author(s):  
Nyet Moi Siew

This research was conducted to evaluate the scientific imagination of Grade 10 students from one Malaysian rural secondary school that adopted the integration of the imagination process in an Engineering Design Process (EDPI) through an outreach program in STEM. Three stages of scientific imagination process were evaluated: initiation, dynamic adjustment, and virtual implementation. A total of 50 students aged 16 participated in a 10-hour program, which engaged them in designing and building two different prototypes. Data on students’ scientific imagination were captured through a pre-test and post-test, and teachers’ field notes based on focus group interviews and observations. The results of paired sample t-tests showed significant differences in all three stages of scientific imagination process, except in the brainstorming of the initiation stage. The findings reveal that students required both personal experience and social or environment interactions in order to progress from the initiation stage to the virtual implementation stage. The findings also suggested that the EDPI approach is able to create a supportive environment for fostering scientific imagination among rural secondary school students. Keywords: engineering design process, scientific imagination, STEM.


2016 ◽  
Vol 15 (4) ◽  
pp. 477-493
Author(s):  
Nyet Moi Siew ◽  
Henry Goh ◽  
Fauziah Sulaiman

This research was conducted to evaluate the learning experience of Grade Ten students from two Malaysian rural secondary schools that adopted the integration of STEM in an Engineering Design Process (STEM-EDP) approach vis-á-vis an outreach challenge program. A total of 89 students undertook a ten hour program which engaged them in designing and building three different prototypes as well as answering higher order thinking questions. Data on students’ learning experience were captured through participants’ responses to a six-point Likert scale questionnaire, teachers’ field notes, and open-ended questions. The questionnaire result reveals statistically significant gains in knowledge or skills about, attitudes toward, and practices on STEM. The STEM-EDP outreach challenge program brought awareness to rural school students of their potential as problem solvers, thinkers, creators, and collaborators. Students were able to simultaneously broaden their boundaries in knowledge and competency even though they experienced difficulties in tackling challenges associated with STEM activities. Findings suggested that the STEM-EDP approach can be applied as a means for fostering creativity, problem solving skills, and thinking skills among rural secondary school students. Keywords: engineering design process, higher order thinking, outreach challenge program, rural schools, STEM.


2018 ◽  
Vol 7 (1) ◽  
pp. 66-75 ◽  
Author(s):  
M. Syukri ◽  
L. Halim ◽  
L. E. Mohtar ◽  
S. Soewarno

This study aimed to determine the impact of the integration of engineering design process (asking, imagining, planning, creating and improving) in an electrical & magnetism module to improve problem-solving skills in physics among secondary school students in Aceh, Indonesia. The quasi-experimental study was carried out with 82 form three (age 15 years old) students of a secondary school in Aceh Besar, Indonesia. The first author had randomly chosen two classes as the experimental group and two other classes as the control group. Independent samples t-test analysis was conducted to determine the difference between the physics teaching and learning module which integrated the five steps of engineering design process and the existing commonly used science “Pudak” teaching and learning module. The results of the independent samples t-test analysis showed that the use of the physics teaching and learning module which integrated the five steps of engineering design process was more effective compared to the use of the existing “Pudak” module in increasing the students’ skills in solving physics problems. The findings of the study suggest that the science learning approach is appropriate to be applied in the teaching and learning of science to enhance science problem-solving skills among secondary school students. In addition, it can be used as a guide for teachers on how to implement the integration of the five steps of engineering design process in science teaching and learning practices.


2021 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
Michael S. Rugh ◽  
Donald J. Beyette ◽  
Mary Margaret Capraro ◽  
Robert M. Capraro

Purpose The purpose of this study is to examine a week-long science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) project-based learning (PBL) activity that integrates a new educational technology and the engineering design process to teach middle and high school students the concepts involved in rotational physics. The technology and teaching method described in this paper can be applied to a wide variety of STEM content areas. Design/methodology/approach As an educational technology, the dynamic and interactive mathematical expressions (DIME) map system automatically generates an interactive, connected concept map of mathematically based concepts extracted from a portable document format textbook chapter. Over five days, students used DIME maps to engage in meaningful self-guided learning within the engineering design process and STEM PBL. Findings Using DIME maps within a STEM PBL activity, students explored the physics behind spinning objects, proposed multiple creative designs and built a variety of spinners to meet specified criteria and constraints. Practical implications STEM teachers can use DIME maps and STEM PBL to support their students in making connections between what they learn in the classroom and real-world scenarios. Social implications For any classroom with computers, tablets or phones and an internet connection, DIME maps are an accessible educational technology that provides an alternative representation of knowledge for learners who are underserved by traditional methods of instruction. Originality/value For STEM teachers and education researchers, the activity described in this paper uses advances in technology (DIME maps and slow-motion video capture on cell phones) and pedagogy (STEM PBL and the engineering design process) to enable students to engage in meaningful learning.


2019 ◽  
Vol 81 (8) ◽  
pp. 570-576
Author(s):  
Taylor Holder ◽  
Laura Pottmeyer ◽  
Frackson Mumba

Students often find it challenging to learn about complex and abstract biological processes. Using the engineering design process, which involves designing, building, and testing prototypes, can help students visualize the processes and anchor ideas from lab activities. We describe an engineering-design-integrated biology unit designed for high school students in which they learn about the properties of slime molds, the difference between eukaryotes and prokaryotes, and the iterative nature of the engineering design process. Using the engineering design process, students were successful in quarantining the slime mold from the non-inoculated oats. A t-test revealed statistically significant differences in students' understanding of slime mold characteristics, the difference between eukaryotes and prokaryotes, and the engineering design process before and after the unit. Overall, students demonstrated sound understanding of the biology core ideas and engineering design skills inherent in this unit.


Author(s):  
Kenneth W. English ◽  
Kevin F. Hulme ◽  
Kemper E. Lewis

Without a doubt, the current generation of secondary school students is very familiar with information technology. Text messaging, e-mail, and social networking websites are a normal means of communication. There is also increasing recognition of the need for diversification the engineering workforce and increasing the number of graduating engineers in the United States. This has created an opportunity to leverage leading edge Cyberinfrastructure in an outreach program targeting secondary school students. This paper demonstrates the implementation of a targeted outreach program that engages high school students in engineering design over a two-week period using state-of-the-art digital design repositories and motion simulation equipment.


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