Partnerships to Create Synergistic STEM Communities

This Research to Practice Work-in-Progress paper discusses the use of hands-on engineering laboratory and project activities to engage pK-12 STEM educators in order to exploit the synergy between the pK-12 STEM curriculum and the undergraduate engineering degree programs. Hands-on laboratory and project-based experiences are deemed to be among the most effective means to introduce and reinforce concepts in most engineering disciplines. The pK-12 STEM educators are engaged in structured project activities through workshops. During the ninety-minute duration of the workshop, as many as five project activities, ranging from simple resistive circuit configurations to advanced transistor and RF circuits, are first outlined, then assembled and tested by the educators. Through participation in this workshop, the STEM educators gained the opportunity to identify new and/or revise laboratory activities within their pK-12 STEM curriculum. The participants were not required to or expected to know advanced concepts in circuits and electronics. The workshop provided the experiences necessary to link the theory to practice through assembly of the electronic circuit and experimental observations. The educators worked with kits containing electrical components placed on the circuit assembly board using snap connectors and connected together to create basic and advanced circuits. The survey questionnaire administered upon conclusion of each project activity provided the feedback necessary to assess the overall process and each project activity.