NSF INCLUDES Planning Grant: Planning for an Inclusive Makerspace Alliance for Rural Students with Disabilities

University Of Maine Farmington, Farmington ME

Investigators

Abstract

This NSF INCLUDES planning grant is funded by NSF Inclusion across the Nation of Communities of Learners of Underrepresented Discoverers in Engineering and Science (NSF INCLUDES), a comprehensive national initiative to enhance U.S. leadership in discoveries and innovations by focusing on diversity, inclusion and broadening participation in STEM at scale. The goal of this planning grant is to develop a shared vision for an Inclusive Makerspace Alliance that equips and empowers the STEM education community with the knowledge, support and resources necessary to effectively engage students with disabilities in STEM learning through accessible STEM focused makerspaces. The shortage of readily available, evidence-based inclusive STEM curriculum and technologies that capitalize on rural educational opportunities for students with disabilities is a major obstacle for utilizing accessible makerspaces, especially in rural areas. Unfortunately, promising practices are often not well documented, or broadly implemented, as K-12 STEM teachers often implement STEM-rich makerspace experiences in silos, unaware of relevant research and practices around the country. This planning effort will address this broadening participation challenge by centering accessible STEM education within the context of makerspace practices in diverse rural localities. It will build a network of partners committed to all aspects of makerspaces, from design-thinking and curricula to STEM career pathways, that present barriers and opportunities to rural students with disabilities. By engaging with and supporting the NSF INCLUDES National Network, this planning grant effort will leverage diverse partnerships and existing infrastructure to scale up to a national alliance advocating for the meaningful inclusion of individuals with disabilities in STEM education and careers through makerspaces. Over a sixteen-month period, the University of Maine Farmington and its partners will focus its work on the development and actualization of a shared vision, one of the NSF INCLUDES design elements for collaborative infrastructure. The shared vision will be supported by a range of catalytic activities including: (1) surveying K-12 schools in the State of Maine on their STEM makerspaces, relevant supportive technologies, and accessibilities measures, (2) conducting site visits to investigate strengths for, and barriers to, STEM curriculum implementation, and impact in makerspaces, (3) assessing common needs and working collaboratively to determine next steps, (4) establishing a National Consortium for accessible rural STEM makerspaces, (5) providing technical advice related to inclusion through universal design and common accommodations, and (6) developing, piloting, and testing the feasibility of a publicly available, searchable, and accessible virtual repository of rural-focused curricular resources related to accessible STEM makerspaces. To ground this work, an Inclusive Makerspace Summit will be held for partner organizations to promote shared understanding and collective impact. In addition, intentional connections will be made to the NSF INCLUDES National Network through knowledge, data, and resource sharing, networking, and participation in the online community. If successful, this planning grant has the potential to lay a strong foundation for a future national alliance centered on inclusive STEM makerspaces for all students, especially rural students with disabilities. This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.