As technology and engineering (T&E) education seeks to survive a shortage of teachers and funding, among other factors, it must proceed with caution. The field should remain true to its hands-on, design-based roots but must also provide rigorous instruction that applies STEM skills and situates it as a valuable stakeholder among the core…

Few of the papers published in journals and conference proceedings on problem-based learning (PBL) are empirical studies, and most of these use self-report as the measure of PBL (Beddoes, Jesiek, & Borrego, 2010). The current study provides a theoretically derived matrix for coding and classifying PBL that was objectively applied to official…

There is a long history of research efforts aimed at understanding the relationship between homework activity and academic achievement. While some self-report inventories involving homework activity have been useful for predicting academic performance, self-reported measures may be limited or even problematic. Here, we employ a novel method for…

As the emphasis on STEM education increases, the "E" (engineering) in the acronym is gaining more attention in K-12 education. K-12 educators are urged to develop new and creative strategies for engaging youth in science and engineering activities that encourage them to be inventors and not just consumers. The Inquiry By Engineering…

Engineering designers must make evidence-based decisions when applying the practical tools and techniques of their discipline to human problems. Information literacy provides a structure for determining information gaps, locating appropriate and relevant information, applying that information effectively, and documenting and managing the knowledge…

While teaching methods tend to be updated frequently, the implementation of new innovative assessment tools is much slower. For example project based learning has become popular as a teaching technique, however, the assessment tends to be via traditional reports. This paper reports on the implementation and evaluation of using website development…

In a kindergarten classroom, exclamations like "Oh no!" may be causes for concern. However, when the students in Mrs. Grabia's classroom shouted "Oh no!" and "Uh oh!" during an engineering-infused 5E lesson, it meant that a persistent little robot had pushed its way out of the fences they had created. It also meant…

Teaching STEAM (science, technology, engineering, art, and math) in elementary school could be even more promising than teaching STEM. This is due to its ability to cross multiple subject areas and its appeal to multiple types of learners. Intentional integration of the arts in science and engineering lessons has the potential to more deeply…

Addressing the sustainability challenges in the forest sector in Mozambique requires capacity building for higher education and training of new skilled expert and future decision-makers. Our approach was to develop a study module on and pedagogical approaches to industrial environmental engineering and sustainability. The idea was to develop a…

Whether you teach elementary school students, secondary school students, or college students, you can include upcycling activities in your class to promote both design skills and an environmental ethic. This article shares how a teacher at one school is doing just this, providing suggestions for those who have different material processing…

Project-based learning (PBL) facilitates significant learning, but it poses a major assessment challenge for assessing individual content knowledge. We developed and implemented an assessment approach and tool for a mandatory undergraduate systems engineering PBL-based course. We call this type of assessment "student-oriented"…

Good communication skills are of utmost importance in the education of engineering students. It is necessary to promote not only their education, but also to prepare them for the demanding and competitive job market. The purpose of this study was to compare the attitudes towards communication skills after formal instruction between the students of…

Although engineering education has been practiced at the undergraduate level for over a century, only fairly recently has the field broadened to include the elementary level; the pre-college division of the American Society of Engineering Education was established in 2003. As a result, while recent education standards require engineering in…

Standards for early learning (e.g., children ages 0-5; prekindergarten, preschool, and younger) vary widely in their technical quality and specificity. The Center on Standards and Assessment Implementation (CSAI) recently conducted a literature review to determine the landscape in early learning standards and science, specifically centered on the…

Engineering is a small but growing part of K-12 education. Curricula that use the principles and practices of engineering are providing opportunities for elementary, middle, and high school students to design solutions to problems of immediate practical and societal importance. Professional development programs are showing teachers how to use…