Recent reforms in science education have supported the inclusion of engineering and their practices in K-12 curricula. To this end, many classrooms have incorporated engineering units that include design challenges. Design is an integral part of engineering and can help students think in creative and interdisciplinary ways. In this study, we…

Background: As engineering becomes increasingly incorporated into precollege classrooms, it is important to explore students' ability to engage in engineering practices. One of these practices, "engaging in argument from evidence," has been well studied in science education. However, it has not yet been fully explored in engineering…

Engineering design-based STEM integration is one potential model to help students integrate content and practices from all of the STEM disciplines. In this study, we explored the intersection of two aspects of pre-college STEM education: the integration of the STEM disciplines, and the NGSS practice of engaging in argument from evidence within…

Background: Integration of engineering into middle school science and mathematics classrooms is a key aspect of STEM integration. However, successful pedagogies for teachers to use engineering talk in their classrooms are not fully understood. Purpose/Hypothesis: This study aims to address this need with the research question: How does a middle…

Variance heterogeneity is a common feature of educational data when treatment differences expressed through means are present, and often reflects a treatment by subject interaction with respect to an outcome variable. Identifying variables that account for this interaction can enhance understanding of whom a treatment does and does not benefit in…

Although engineering design is dependent upon the use of science and mathematics, the actual prototype, model, or solution that pre-college students generate can be accomplished without the students explicitly using scientific or mathematical concepts. It is therefore important to explore how students apply science and mathematics concepts when…

Quality science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) experiences during the early years provide young learners with a critical foundation for future learning and development. Engineering design is a context that can be used to facilitate connections and learning across STEM, however there is limited research examining the use of…

Assessment of students' critical thinking and problem solving in engineering is a real challenge for classroom teachers and researchers. Yet, students demonstrate evidence of learning through multiple means, including written reflections. The purpose of this study was to explore how students in grades 5 and 7 reflect on what they had learned about…

Recent reforms in education call for science teachers to incorporate STEM concepts into their curricula. This study explores the association among student and teacher demographics, and student learning of engineering content and attitudes towards STEM after participation in an elementary or middle school engineering-based science curricula.…

Current reform efforts in science education around the world call on teachers to use integrated approaches to teach science. As a part of such reform efforts in the United States, engineering practices and engineering design have been identified in K-12 science education standards. However, there is relatively little is known about effective ways…

Recent U.S. national documents have laid the foundation for highlighting the connection between science, technology, engineering and mathematics at the K-12 level. However, there is not a clear definition or a well-established tradition of what constitutes a quality engineering education at the K-12 level. The purpose of the current work has been…

In many countries around the world, there has been an increasing emphasis on improving science education. Recent reform efforts in the USA call for teachers to integrate scientific and engineering practices into science teaching; for example, science teachers are asked to provide learning experiences for students that apply crosscutting concepts…

Improving K-12 Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics (STEM) education has a priority on numerous education reforms in the United States. To that end, developing and sustaining quality programs that focus on integrated STEM education is critical for educators. Successful implementation of any STEM program is related to the curriculum…