Browsing by Author "London, Jeremi S."

Now showing 1 - 13 of 13
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    Agency to Change: A Narrative Inquiry of White Men Faculty in Engineering Engaged in Broadening Participation Work
    Hampton, Cynthia (Virginia Tech, 2021-01-29)
    Transformational change for Broadening Participation in Engineering (BPE) of racial, ethnic, and gender groups has not occurred, despite continuing efforts for over four decades. BPE can be represented through particular activities to increase underrepresented students' participation at the undergraduate and graduate levels (herein referred to as BPE Work). One approach to investigating the complexity of change through BPE is through the analysis of a sub-group of faculty who engage in BPE Work within the system of engineering education. In the case of BPE, investigation of faculty engagement is limited. Further, limited exploration of the majority group's experiences (i.e., white men) exists concerning their agency and this type of work. This study investigates the experiences of engineering faculty who identify as white men and have been engaged in BPE Work using faculty agency and narrative. These narratives reveal insights into the current system that may drive, sustain, or prohibit BPE change. Using the narrative experiences of eight engineering faculty involved in BPE Work who identify as white men, this research explores the following questions: (1) What activities do white men faculty describe in their personal narratives of engaging in BPE Work; (2) How do white men faculty describe their trajectory into and through engaging in BPE Work; (3) What factors influence the actions and perspectives of white men faculty engaged in BPE Work; and (4) How do white men faculty describe the outcomes to their professional and personal lives when using their agency for BPE Work? Application of data analysis to research questions to elicit findings found in chapter 4 consisted of an accountability cycle, BPE Work activities, factors that impact (constraining or enabling) BPE Work, and outcomes to the participants' lives from engagement in BPE Work. The participants of this study shared experiences in which they expressed perspectives on BPE, reflecting on their backgrounds. Archer (2003) describes the ability to take a stance regarding society as invoking an "active agent," but that this stance is not a one-and-done situation (p. 343). This study resulted in findings for Deans and Provosts on the vital need for a normalized climate for BPE Work, the hidden essential functions of Engineering Student Support Centers, value-focused needs for tenure/promotion/merit processes for BPE Work, the trajectory of faculty development in BPE Work, the experiences that permeate into faculty life in undergraduate student development, and the need for future work in interrogating power dynamics in engineering education The need for all faculty to be involved in change alludes to a necessary understanding. The number of faculty of color and women faculty is not robust enough or supported to carry the system's burden. A need is present to take a realistic look at how white men experience BPE Work. This look is vital for policy and the identification of system constraints that need to be evaluated and used to drive BPE forward.
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    The assessment cycle: Insights from a systematic literature review on broadening participation in engineering and computer science
    Holloman, Teirra K.; Lee, Walter C.; London, Jeremi S.; Hawkins Ash, Chanee D.; Watford, Bevlee A. (American Society for Engineering Education, 2021-09-14)
    Background: In the field of engineering education, assessment and evaluation have been given insufficient attention as they relate to broadening participation. We posit that this lack of attention negatively impacts our ability to develop and implement sustainable solutions at scale. Purpose: The purpose of this article is to explore the presence of an assessment cycle in the literature related to broadening participation in engineering. The assessment cycle refers to the process by which assessment/evaluation is planned, enacted, and used to improve educational processes. Scope/Method: The scope of this study was influenced by it being situated in a larger study focused on broadening participation of Black Americans in engineering and computer science. We completed a literature map that illuminated a subset of literature broadly related to assessment/evaluation, and subsequently conducted a systematic literature review of 33 publications reporting on assessment/evaluation efforts. Our analysis of these efforts was grounded in a six-stage assessment cycle. Results: The results of this study highlight common publishing practices related to the assessment cycle in the context of broadening participation. We find that assessment/evaluation is generally published at the program level, focused on student development or academic success as a proxy for program effectiveness, and concentrated on positive claims. Conclusion: There is room to significantly improve how assessment/evaluation information is published. By highlighting productive and unproductive publishing practices related to assessment/evaluation, this research has important implications for the use and publishing of assessment/evaluation, particularly as it relates to broadening participation in engineering.
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    The Dynamics of Belonging Among Undergraduate Women in Engineering
    Glisson, Hannah Elise (Virginia Tech, 2023-09-26)
    Broadening participation in engineering has been a pressing focus of engineering education research for decades. Despite efforts to improve engineering access for historically underrepresented groups, progress has been slow. The National Academy of Engineering and other governmental and professional agencies have voiced the need to increase the presence of women in engineering as a national priority. Women have always been underrepresented in engineering spaces and are too often told either explicitly or through negative treatment that they do not belong in engineering. This messaging is a barrier to broadening engineering participation for women; when women do feel like they belong, conversely, they are more likely to enter and remain in engineering spaces. My study was designed to understand women's experiences of belonging at different organizational levels. I investigate women's perceptions, competencies, motivations, and opportunities for belonging both within their engineering programs/colleges and outside of engineering at their institutions. Using this multi-level approach, I identified connections between belonging components at each level and found that the source of women's belonging and engagement matters for their overall levels of belonging and intentions to persist in engineering. The results of this study revealed that women experience higher levels of belonging outside of engineering than within their engineering programs. However, belonging in engineering related to students' intentions to persist toward their engineering degrees, but belonging outside of engineering did not. I also found that different activities relate to women's belonging at each level, which could have implications for how we support students in finding belonging. My findings present an opportunity for educators to be intentional about how and where they help students cultivate belonging. If we can help women find greater belonging in their engineering programs/colleges, we may be able to influence the likelihood that they persist in their engineering program in a way that belonging initiatives outside of engineering may not.
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    Engineering Deans’ Perspectives on the Current State of Faculty Development Programs in Engineering Education
    Huerta, Mark; London, Jeremi S.; McKenna, Ann (Tempus Publications, 2023-08-01)
    There is little literature exploring the needs of engineering faculty and the resources available at engineering colleges to support faculty development. Engineering deans are key stakeholders within institutions well-positioned to discuss trends and practices in faculty development within engineering colleges, however their perspective has not been captured in the literature. The purpose of this exploratory qualitative study was to learn about the state of faculty development within engineering colleges through the perspective of engineering deans. A particular focus was placed on identifying salient faculty needs and resources available to support faculty development within engineering colleges. Semi-structured interviews were completed with 23 engineering deans representing three types of institutions: R1 public (n = 8), R1/R2 private (n = 6), and primarily undergraduate-focused (n = 9). A rigorous thematic analysis process was completed until a final codebook emerged with strong interrater agreement. According to the deans the primary needs for incoming faculty involved teaching, research, understanding expectations, time management, and connectivity. There were variances in the approaches and resources available at each institution especially in relation to mentorship. This study indicates that further investigating effectiveness of faculty development programs especially mentorship across the various stages of a faculty’s career would be fruitful contributions to the engineering education community.
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    The Impact of Race on Plantar Loading and Research Engagement
    Brisbane, Julia (Virginia Tech, 2022)
    African Americans (AA) are twice as likely as White Americans (WA) to experience diabetes-related foot amputation due to foot ulcers. Foot ulcers are often caused by high plantar pressure, and several factors can impact plantar loading. Thus, there is a need to determine if race is a significant predictor of plantar loading. Additionally, with the current state of racial health disparities there is a need to determine racial differences in research engagement and mistrust between AA and WA. Data was collected from 107 participants, aged 18-30, in this Institutional Review Board approved study. An EMED pressure-measurement system (Novel Electronics, St. Paul, MN, USA) was used to collect plantar loading data. Additional measurements collected from each participant included arch height index (AHI), standing height, gait speed, and weight. Participants also completed two surveys focused on research engagement and research mistrust. A multiple linear regression was used to test if race and other factors significantly predicted plantar loading. Non-parametric tests were used to test if there were significant differences in research engagement and mistrust between AA and WA. The analysis determined that race was a significant predictor for plantar loading, along with age, AHI, gait speed, sex, and body mass index (BMI). Additionally, it was found that research engagement practices and feelings of research mistrust differed significantly between AA and WA young adults. These findings could improve our understanding as to why AA are more likely to have diabetic foot ulcers than WA, and why AA are less likely to participate in research than WA.
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    Leveraging Epistemic Exclusion as a Lens for Investigating Black Engineering Students' Undergraduate Research Experiences
    Brisbane, Julia Machele (Virginia Tech, 2024-06-04)
    Undergraduate research experiences (UREs) are presented as a mechanism for improving the persistence of Black engineering students. However, because most engineering UREs are led by faculty and staff in Colleges of Engineering, it is reasonable to assume they are not immune to the systemic racial issues that plague engineering education. Existing scholarship on epistemic exclusion theorizes that individual biases and institutional practices contribute to faculty of color's scholarship being devalued and deemed illegitimate, but this topic is underexplored in UREs. LSAMP is an NSF-funded program that provides funding for institutions to create UREs for racially minoritized students in STEM, providing a ripe context for exploring the phenomenon of epistemic exclusion in UREs. This explanatory mixed methods study examines facets of epistemic exclusion prevalent in the undergraduate research experiences of Black engineering LSAMP scholars and the practices undergirding it. The findings of this study are based on survey and interview data collected from current and former LSAMP scholars. The survey results reveal perceptions of low levels of epistemic exclusion via scholarly devaluation; and there were no significant differences in survey responses based on race, gender, or whether in an engineering discipline or not. However, the qualitative phase helped explain the quantitative results. Black engineering students, specifically, experienced epistemic exclusion in ways that differ from literature on underrepresented faculty; and they perceived UREs as an opportunity for learning knowledge – not producing it. While positive peer interactions and a welcoming lab enabled epistemic inclusion, a toxic lab culture and inadequate URE program structures enabled epistemic exclusion. These findings have implications for faculty mentors, URE program administrators, policymakers, and education researchers. They are valuable for advancing our understanding of Black engineering students participating in UREs, contributing to national efforts to broaden participation of racially minoritized students in engineering education, and diversifying the research enterprise and the engineering workforce.
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    A Multi-Case Study on the Transfer of Engineering Learning Between Capstone and Work
    Perry, Logan Andrew (Virginia Tech, 2021-04-15)
    One of the core aims of education is to prepare students who have the ability to leverage their learning beyond the classroom. This is particularly important during the transition between school and work, a period where recent graduates are expected to apply what they have learned in an educational context to address real-world problems. In engineering programs, capstone courses are typically designed to facilitate this process. By asking students to synthesize and apply both technical knowledge and professional skills in a practical application, these courses have come to play a pivotal role in preparing students for work. However, for capstone courses to be effective at accomplishing what they were designed to do, students must be able to transfer what they have learned in capstone into the workplace. Existing scholarship on transfer tends to focus on identifying the mechanisms by which transfer occurs, typically through experimental studies. Yet, few studies have thoroughly examined the transition between capstone and work, and even fewer have begun to ask what knowledge, skills, and attributes (KSAs) are transferring between the two contexts. The purpose of this qualitative multi-case study was to understand the nature of transfer between capstone and work among recent engineering graduates entering the workforce. Using Actor-Oriented Transfer as a theoretical lens, this study prioritized participants' interpretations of what transfers between the two contexts instead of the researchers' perception of what should be transferring. The perspectives of eight recent graduates from mechanical engineering and engineering science programs at four institutions were analyzed in the study. Using weekly reflective journals and interviews that took place three, six, and twelve months after beginning employment, data was analyzed to (1) identify instances of successful transfer and (2) determine what factors enable or inhibit transfer between capstone and work. Four types of KSAs emerged from the analysis: interpersonal skills, analytical skills, strategizing skills, and disposition. Additionally, the cross-case analysis revealed that four main factors influence transfer: access to support and resources, project structure, contextual differences, and attitudes. This study highlights the nature of transfer between capstone and work and draws attention to the primary types of transfer and factors that affect transfer between these two contexts. In addition, it emphasizes the importance of shifting the narrative away from experimental studies of transfer by prioritizing participant perceptions through a qualitative multi-case methodology. The results of this study have implications for researchers, instructors, and employers with an interest in the success of engineers during their critical transition from school to work.
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    Person-centered analyses in quantitative studies about broadening participation for Black engineering and computer science students
    Reeping, David; Lee, Walter C.; London, Jeremi S. (American Society for Engineering Education, 2023-05)
    Background: There have been calls to shift how engineering education researchers investigate the experiences of engineering students from racially minoritized groups. These conversations have primarily involved qualitative researchers, but an echo of equal magnitude from quantitative inquiry has been largely absent. Purpose: This paper examines the data analysis practices used in quantitative engineering education research related to broadening participation. We highlight practical issues and promising practices focused on "racial difference" during analysis. Scope/Method: We conducted a systematic literature review of methods employed by quantitative studies related to Black students participating in engineering and computer science at the undergraduate level. Person-centered analyses and variable-centered analyses, coined by Jack Block, were used as our categorization framework, backdropped with the principles of QuantCrit. Results: Forty-nine studies qualified for review. Although each article involved some variable-centered analysis, we found strategies authors used that aligned and did not align with person-centered analyses, including forming groups based on participant attitudes and using race as a variable, respectively. We highlight person-centered approaches as a tangible step for authors to engage meaningfully with QuantCrit in their data analysis decision-making. Conclusions: Our findings highlight four areas of consideration for advancing quantitative data analysis in engineering education: operationalizing race and racism, sample sizes and data binning, claims with race as a variable, and promoting descriptive studies. We contend that engaging in deeper thought with these four areas in quantitative inquiry can help researchers engage with the difficult choices inherent to quantitative analyses.
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    Potential engineers: A systematic literature review exploring Black children's access to and experiences with STEM
    London, Jeremi S.; Lee, Walter C.; Hawkins Ash, Chanee D. (American Society for Engineering Education, 2021-09-14)
    Background: As engineering remains central to the US economy, it is imperative that the innovators of this field reflect the world in which we live. Despite decades of concerted effort to broaden participation in engineering, representation continues to lack. Purpose: The purpose of this paper is to provide education researchers and practitioners with a clear understanding of barriers to the participation of Black American children in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM). Our interest is driven by the role that precollege STEM experiences play in children's likelihood of becoming potential engineering students. Scope/Method: We conducted a systematic literature review of 41 articles focused on Black children in precollege STEM contexts. Each article underwent individual review to gain deeper insight into key contextual factors that enable and constrain these potential engineers. Results: We situate our research findings in Perna's college choice model to highlight the key factors that may influence one's career and college decisions. The contextual factors are associated with the (1) social, economic, and policy context (e.g., racism, sexism, and classism); (2) STEM educational and community context (i.e., social perceptions and access); and (3) the local support context (i.e., teachers and family). Conclusions: Our results represent the early workings of a “glass ceiling” above the heads of potential engineering students. The underrepresentation of Black Americans who thrive in engineering is a byproduct of the lack of accessibility to quality and advanced learning experiences that too often plague K–12 schools and communities that serve high populations of Black Americans. Such findings have implications for research and practice.
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    Project-Based Learning Promotes Students' Perceived Relevance in an Engineering Statistics Course: A Comparison of Learning in Synchronous and Online Learning Environments
    Huang, Wen; London, Jeremi S.; Perry, Logan A. (Routledge, 2022-11)
    Understanding statistics is essential for engineers. However, statistics courses remain challenging for many students, as they find them rigid, abstract, and demanding. Prior research has indicated that using project-based learning (PjBL) to demonstrate the relevance of statistics to students can have a significant effect on learning in these courses. Consequently, this study sought to explore the impact of a PjBL intervention on student perceptions of the relevance of engineering and statistics. The purpose of the intervention was to help students understand the connection between statistics and their academic majors, lives, and future careers. Four mini-projects connecting statistics to students' experiences and future careers were designed and implemented during a 16-week course and students' perceptions were compared to those of students who took a traditional statistics course. Students enrolled in the experimental group (a synchronous learning experience) and the control group (an online learning experience) were sent the same survey at the end of the semester. The survey results suggest that the PjBL intervention could potentially increase students' understanding of the usefulness of statistics and effectively enhance their perceptions of belonging to the engineering community. This study summarizes the results of this PjBL intervention, the limitations of the research design, and suggests implications for improving future statistics courses in the context of engineering.
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    Student Approaches and Performance in Element Sequencing Tasks Using 2D and Augmented Reality Formats
    McCord, Kieren H.; Ayer, Steven K.; Perry, Logan A.; Patil, Karan R.; London, Jeremi S.; Khoury, Vanessa; Wu, Wei (MDPI, 2022-03-29)
    In civil and construction engineering education research, a focus has been on using 3D models to support students’ design comprehension. Despite this trend, the predominant mode of design communication in the industry relies on 2D plans and specifications, which typically supersede other modes of communication. Rather than focusing on the presentation of less common 3D content as an input to support students’ understanding of a design, this paper explores more common 2D inputs, but compares different visualization formats of student output in two educational interventions. In the first intervention, students document a construction sequence for wood-framed elements in a 2D worksheet format. In the second, students work with the same wood-framed design, but document their sequence through an augmented reality (AR) format where their physical interactions move full-scale virtual elements as if they were physically constructing the wood frame. Student approaches and performance were analyzed using qualitative attribute coding of video, audio, and written documentation of the student experience. Overall, results showed that the 2D worksheet format was simple to implement and was not mentally demanding to complete, but often corresponded with a lack of critical checks and a lack of mistake recognition from the students. The AR approach challenged students more in terms of cognitive load and completion rates but showed the potential for facilitating mistake recognition and self-remediation through visualization. These results suggest that when students are tasked with conceptualizing construction sequences from 2D documentation, the cognitive challenges associated with documenting a sequence in AR may support their recognition of their own mistakes in ways that may not be effectively supported through 2D documentation as an output for documenting and planning a construction sequence. The results presented in this paper provide insights on student tendencies, behaviors, and perceptions related to defining construction sequences from 2D documentation in order for educators to make informed decisions regarding the use of similar learning activities to prepare their students for understanding the 2D design documents used in industry.
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    Supporting Parent Engagement at Home: Parent Perceptions of Important Knowledge in Educating their Children in Engineering Activities of Varying Structure
    Paradise, Tawni Michon (Virginia Tech, 2022-08-23)
    To diversify the engineering workplace, we need to broaden participation in engineering. One way to broaden participation is through encouraging integration of engineering activities at home where parents, or more broadly caregivers, facilitate or support engineering activities for their children. This idea is reinforced by previous literature that identifies that (1) elementary-aged children can and should do engineering activities, (2) parents have a longstanding and significant impact on their children in many different ways, (3) parent-child relationships are unique and offer great potential for positive outcomes, and (4) parents can be effective in teaching engineering. While at-home engineering activities are already prevalent, the support resources attached to them are currently lacking for parents. This research is motivated by a desire to understand how parents think about and engage in engineering activities with their children to inform the most effective ways to support parents. This research is scoped to specifically look at the knowledge that 12 parents utilize in engineering activities and identify or perceive as being important in these activities. Given that there are many different types of engineering activities that exist, three different engineering activities that varied by level of structure were included in this study. The well-structured, semi-structured, and ill-structured activities all included a Marble Run toy and a storybook about Mars Rovers that was meant to support an authentic context for the activities. A multiple case study approach was used, where each case represented one of the activities with four parent participants in each case. Data collected for each parent participant included a pre-survey, observed activity engagement, reflection, and pre- and post-interviews. All of this data was coded with a priori codes from the Pedagogical Content Knowledge framework and emergent codes. The findings of this research highlight the role of the following on parent-child engagement in an engineering activity: the rhythm and routine of the parent-child dyad, external influences and independent individual experiences of the parent and the child, parents' ideas about engineering, and the structure of the activity. While the Pedagogical Content Knowledge framework was a useful tool for classification of knowledge, the research findings highlight the role of past experiences and external resources in shaping parents' views on the best way to support their children which is not well documented in this framework. These findings suggest that Frames of Practice may be a better theory to use in thinking about and studying parent-child engagement. Parents utilize existing frames of practice for engaging with their children to dictate the general teaching strategies to utilize. Within specific activities, they also refer to similar neighboring experiences and external resources to refine their frames of practice and modify their strategies used. While parents implement engineering knowledge and strategies, they do not recognize that what they are doing is engineering. There is also variation in the quantity and quality of strategies that are needed for engagement in the different activities, with less structure indicating more skills required of the facilitator and more positive outcomes for the child. For stakeholders invested in parent engagement, this research suggests that we need to (1) validate parents' existing and effective ideas about teaching and engineering by giving parents language that will help them refine their frames of practice through reflection, (2) encourage the use of more advanced pedagogical strategies or engineering strategies, (3) explicitly explain the value of them using the word engineering with their child and the value of continuing to use and talk about the engineering strategies they already implement (brainstorming, planning) with their child, and (4) ensure that parents see the potential engineering connections in the activity.
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    This Is Bigger Than Me: A Multiple Case Narrative Analysis of Sociopolitical Development within Black Engineers' Career Journeys
    Lightner, Taylor Courtney (Virginia Tech, 2023-08-02)
    Exploring the stories of Black engineers provide an opportunity to challenge dominant narratives about the apolitical nature of engineering work and realize the potential of bridging the socio-technical divide. Sociopolitical development (SPD) is an inclination towards social justice, the motivation to address social inequality in surrounding environments, and the formation of social agency to address contextual oppression. The purpose of this multiple case narrative study is to explore the process of SPD within five Black engineers' narratives who are inspired to address social inequities through their engineering work. The overarching research question is: How does the SPD process unfold through the career narratives of Black engineers? Through the multiple settings surrounding Black engineers' career development, this research provides insight into how engineering stakeholders influence the cultural values underlying the nature of engineering work. Throughout their career narratives, Black engineers' awareness, behavior, and evaluations of critical consciousness evolve. Events shaping their SPD are also mapped to the socio-ecosystems. The movement through SPD elements depict the holistic nature of the SPD process for Black engineers experiences in childhood, formal education, and the workforce. These results contribute to engineering education literature by: (1) presenting a counter-narrative of engineering work that accounts for the perspectives of Black engineers; (2) highlighting the sense of agency that is necessary to integrate social justice elements in engineering practice; (3) emphasizing the utility of critical consciousness development in establishing a sense of fulfillment in engineering identity; and (4) discussing the influence of critical reflection and social identities on political efficacy and action. Insights from this study should compel engineering stakeholders to reflect on how engineering values perpetuate inequities in engineering pathways and engagement.