Workshop for Conversations Related to Motivating Interest in Science, Mathematics, and Engineering among Oklahoma K-12 Students

University Of Oklahoma Norman Campus, Norman OK

Investigators

Abstract

A phased workshop will be held at the University of Oklahoma (OU) to engage school administrators in conversations to enhance their awareness of engineering as a discipline and to establish how the OU College of Engineering can optimally utilize its resources and expertise to support and increase student participation and engagement with engineering. The first phase of the workshop engages OU staff and administrators from rural school districts in a dialogue to understand the obstacles to mathematical and scientific literacy in the K-12 that inhibit incoming college student?s interest in and ability to pursue engineering majors. The second phase is similar in scope and mission, except that the K-12 representatives invited will include superintendents, principals and curriculum directors from urban and suburban school districts in Oklahoma. The workshop has three major objectives. The first is to increase awareness in Oklahoma?s K-12 superintendents and principals of the importance of encouraging K-12 students to prepare to study engineering at the university level. The second is to develop a plan through which OU College of Engineering, K-12 superintendents, principals, and teachers and professional and industrial partners can cooperatively facilitate and implement appropriate engineering education programs and activities for K-12 students and their parents to enhance interest and motivation in science and mathematics. The third is to identify potential strategic partners for the College of Engineering?s Sooner Engineering Education (SEED) Center from Oklahoma K-12 superintendents and principals and professional organizations and industrial donors. This workshop will attempt to discover a mutually beneficial and acceptable path for promoting engineering among K-12 and identifying how the (SEED) center or other similar engineering education centers can engage appropriate federal, state, professional, and industrial partners in a collaborative and long-term plan for increasing the number and diversity of students pursuing engineering degrees. Results from these workshops will be disseminated to engineering educators through major publications, and research results also will be disseminated directly to Oklahoma educators. The results of the workshop dialogs will be of interest to engineering programs across the nation since the Oklahoma state demographics is similar to several states in the nation. The action plan developed from the workshop should aid SEED and other institutions with similar constituents in recruiting and retaining prepared engineering students from poorly represented rural communities.