Interactive Session: Measuring the Impact of Connection to Community

Rebecca A Bates; Julie P Martin; Denise Wilson; Melani Plett; Tamara Floyd Smith

Download Paper | Permalink

Conference: 2013 ASEE Annual Conference & Exposition
Location: Atlanta, Georgia
Publication Date: June 23, 2013
Start Date: June 23, 2013
End Date: June 26, 2013
ISSN: 2153-5965
Conference Session: INTERACTIVE SESSION – Measuring the Impact on Communities
Tagged Division: Community Engagement Division
Page Count: 19
Page Numbers: 23.795.1 - 23.795.19
DOI: 10.18260/1-2--19809
Permanent URL: https://strategy.asee.org/19809
Download Count: 513

Request a correction

Paper Authors

biography

Rebecca A Bates Minnesota State University, Mankato

visit author page

Dr. Rebecca A. Bates received the Ph.D. degree in Electrical Engineering from the University of Washington in 2004. She also received the M.T.S. degree from Harvard Divinity School in 1993. She is currently professor and chair of the Department of Integrated Engineering program at Minnesota State University at Mankato. She was a 2011-12 AAAS Science & Technology Policy Fellow at the National Science Foundation.

visit author page

author page

Julie P Martin Clemson University

biography

Denise Wilson University of Washington

visit author page

Dr. Denise Wilson received the B.S. in Mechanical Engineering from Stanford University in 1988 and the M.S. and Ph.D. degrees in Electrical Engineering from the Georgia Institute of Technology in 1989 and 1995, respectively. She also earned her M.Ed. from the University of Washington in 2008 and has worked in Applied Materials. She is currently a faculty member with the Electrical Engineering Department at the University of Washington, Seattle, and she was previously with the University of Kentucky, Lexington, in a similar position from 1996 to 1999. Her research interests are split between technical investment in biological and chemical-sensing microsystems and equivalent interest in engineering education, with particular emphasis on affective and metacognitive factors that influence student success in STEM fields.

visit author page

author page

Melani Plett Seattle Pacific University

author page

Tamara Floyd Smith Tuskegee University

Download Paper | Permalink

Abstract

Interactive Session: Measuring the Impact of Connection to Community The value of community engagement in engineering learning is becoming more apparent. The number of service learning, engineering without borders, international experiences, and other community engagement programs is increasing, while the impact of such programs broadens from local communities to international experiences. This raises questions about how we assess the value of these programs for our students. This special session and accompanying resource paper will include presentations about methods used in research to assess the impact and importance of community and social interaction for engineering students. Information about quantitative, qualitative and mixed-‐methods approaches for assessing social capital, belonging, and psychological sense of community as well as the relationship between these factors and student engagement in academic work will be presented. Researchers from two separate studies will present methodologies and results from their past work and support the movement of their foundational research in academic engineering experience to programs that engage directly with the broader social community. Study 1: Research on the impact of connections to community has shown the value of these connections to student participation in their academic programs, through qualitative, quantitative, and mixed method approaches. Across a range of institution types, family is the community to which students feel most connected. More importantly, students are often strategic about how they spend their limited free time in order to fulfill the basic human need of belonging in the context of strenuous academic programs. This research has shown that participation is linked with stronger engagement in academic pursuits, suggesting that organized community activities directly associated with engineering programs may support fulfilling belong, esteem and safety needs of students. Study 2: Engineering students’ development and usage of social capital can be influential on their decisions to select engineering as a college major and persist at the undergraduate level. The communities (e.g. family, school personnel, friends) to which students have access and the degree to which they are integrated into these communities can have differential impact on the resources available to them related to pursuing engineering. The ways in which students develop social capital and the degree to which they activate resources during their undergraduate experience are also influenced by their strength of ties with related communities. The paper associated with this interactive, full length session will include background information supporting the importance of community engagement, information about methods and research instruments, potential challenges with institutional review boards, result highlights of the research studies and suggested assessment resources. In the interactive session, 40 minutes will be allocated for overviews of methods, presentations of results and discussion of the impact of social capital and community connections for engineering students. The remaining 35 minutes will be used for interaction, brainstorming and discussion supporting rigorous evaluation of community engagement. Participants will be provided with access to research instruments with suggestions for implementation and analysis. Discussion time will be used to discuss best approaches, to develop research questions that effectively assess the impact of community engagement on student experiences and to brainstorm methodologies that will address these questions. Presenters will include researchers from both studies.

Citation
Format

Bates, R. A., & Martin, J. P., & Wilson, D., & Plett, M., & Smith, T. F. (2013, June), Interactive Session: Measuring the Impact of Connection to Community Paper presented at 2013 ASEE Annual Conference & Exposition, Atlanta, Georgia. 10.18260/1-2--19809

TY  - CPAPER
AB  - Interactive  Session:  Measuring  the  Impact  of  Connection  to  Community    The  value  of  community  engagement  in  engineering  learning  is  becoming  more  apparent.    The  number  of  service  learning,  engineering  without  borders,  international  experiences,  and  other  community  engagement  programs  is  increasing,  while  the  impact  of  such  programs  broadens  from  local  communities  to  international  experiences.    This  raises  questions  about  how  we  assess  the  value  of  these  programs  for  our  students.    This  special  session  and  accompanying  resource  paper  will  include  presentations  about  methods  used  in  research  to  assess  the  impact  and  importance  of  community  and  social  interaction  for  engineering  students.    Information  about  quantitative,  qualitative  and  mixed-‐methods  approaches  for  assessing  social  capital,  belonging,  and  psychological  sense  of  community  as  well  as  the  relationship  between  these  factors  and  student  engagement  in  academic  work  will  be  presented.    Researchers  from  two  separate  studies  will  present  methodologies  and  results  from  their  past  work  and  support  the  movement  of  their  foundational  research  in  academic  engineering  experience  to  programs  that  engage  directly  with  the  broader  social  community.    Study  1:  Research  on  the  impact  of  connections  to  community  has  shown  the  value  of  these  connections  to  student  participation  in  their  academic  programs,  through  qualitative,  quantitative,  and  mixed  method  approaches.    Across  a  range  of  institution  types,  family  is  the  community  to  which  students  feel  most  connected.      More  importantly,  students  are  often  strategic  about  how  they  spend  their  limited  free  time  in  order  to  fulfill  the  basic  human  need  of  belonging  in  the  context  of  strenuous  academic  programs.    This  research  has  shown  that  participation  is  linked  with  stronger  engagement  in  academic  pursuits,  suggesting  that  organized  community  activities  directly  associated  with  engineering  programs  may  support  fulfilling  belong,  esteem  and  safety  needs  of  students.    Study  2:  Engineering  students’  development  and  usage  of  social  capital  can  be  influential  on  their  decisions  to  select  engineering  as  a  college  major  and  persist  at  the  undergraduate  level.  The  communities  (e.g.  family,  school  personnel,  friends)  to  which  students  have  access  and  the  degree  to  which  they  are  integrated  into  these  communities  can  have  differential  impact  on  the  resources  available  to  them  related  to  pursuing  engineering.  The  ways  in  which  students  develop  social  capital  and  the  degree  to  which  they  activate  resources  during  their  undergraduate  experience  are  also  influenced  by  their  strength  of  ties  with  related  communities.    The  paper  associated  with  this  interactive,  full  length  session  will  include  background  information  supporting  the  importance  of  community  engagement,  information  about  methods  and  research  instruments,  potential  challenges  with  institutional  review  boards,  result  highlights  of  the  research  studies  and  suggested  assessment  resources.          In  the  interactive  session,  40  minutes  will  be  allocated  for  overviews  of  methods,  presentations  of  results  and  discussion  of  the  impact  of  social  capital  and  community  connections  for  engineering  students.    The  remaining  35  minutes  will  be  used  for  interaction,  brainstorming  and  discussion  supporting  rigorous  evaluation  of  community  engagement.    Participants  will  be  provided  with  access  to  research  instruments  with  suggestions  for  implementation  and  analysis.    Discussion  time  will  be  used  to  discuss  best  approaches,  to  develop  research  questions  that  effectively  assess  the  impact  of  community  engagement  on  student  experiences  and  to  brainstorm  methodologies  that  will  address  these  questions.    Presenters  will  include  researchers  from  both  studies.  
AU  - Rebecca A Bates
AU  - Julie P Martin
AU  - Denise Wilson
AU  - Melani Plett
AU  - Tamara Floyd Smith
CY  - Atlanta, Georgia
DA  - 2013/06/23
PB  - ASEE Conferences
TI  - Interactive Session: Measuring the Impact of Connection to Community
UR  - https://strategy.asee.org/19809
DO  - 10.18260/1-2--19809
ER  -