| NSF Org: |
DRL Division of Research on Learning in Formal and Informal Settings (DRL) |
| Recipient: |
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| Initial Amendment Date: | June 14, 2019 |
| Latest Amendment Date: | July 9, 2021 |
| Award Number: | 1907002 |
| Award Instrument: | Continuing Grant |
| Program Manager: |
Arlene de Strulle
adestrul@nsf.gov (703)292-5117 DRL Division of Research on Learning in Formal and Informal Settings (DRL) EDU Directorate for STEM Education |
| Start Date: | September 1, 2019 |
| End Date: | August 31, 2023 (Estimated) |
| Total Intended Award Amount: | $1,038,035.00 |
| Total Awarded Amount to Date: | $1,076,035.00 |
| Funds Obligated to Date: |
FY 2020 = $18,000.00 FY 2021 = $381,201.00 |
| History of Investigator: |
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| Recipient Sponsored Research Office: |
2385 IRVING HILL RD LAWRENCE KS US 66045-7563 (785)864-3441 |
| Sponsor Congressional District: |
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| Primary Place of Performance: |
2385 Irving Hill Road Lawrence KS US 66045-7568 |
| Primary Place of
Performance Congressional District: |
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| Unique Entity Identifier (UEI): |
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| Parent UEI: |
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| NSF Program(s): | AISL |
| Primary Program Source: |
04002021DB NSF Education & Human Resource 04002122DB NSF Education & Human Resource |
| Program Reference Code(s): |
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| Program Element Code(s): |
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| Award Agency Code: | 4900 |
| Fund Agency Code: | 4900 |
| Assistance Listing Number(s): | 47.076 |
ABSTRACT
This project in the Advancing Informal STEM Learning (AISL) program's Innovations in Development track aims to broaden participation in STEM education among underserved populations through innovative and inclusive approaches to technology education. The project is designed to enhance knowledge and comfort with technology and develop computational thinking among women who were formerly incarcerated and are now seeking to reenter the workforce or adjust to their lives outside the criminal justice system ("women in transition") in the Midwest. While women have become the fastest growing segment of the incarcerated population, prison education and reentry programs are not well prepared to respond to this influx. Women in transition are rarely exposed to STEM education and they are generally isolated from the digital world while in prison. Consequently, they face post-incarceration challenges in accessing and using rapidly changing digital technologies. Against this backdrop, this three-year technology education project will aim to help women in transition in Kansas and Missouri develop STEM skills relevant to job applications and post-incarceration adjustments. The project may serve as a template for building evidence-based workforce preparation efforts in informal settings, and the concurrent online peer networking and app development may also facilitate adaptation for and scaling to other regions and other similarly digitally disadvantaged populations. This project is funded by the AISL program, which seeks to advance new approaches to, and evidence-based understanding of, the design and development of STEM learning in informal environments. This includes providing multiple pathways for broadening access to and engagement in STEM learning experiences, advancing innovative research on and assessment of STEM learning in informal environments, and developing understandings of deeper learning by participants.
The project design is informed by the research team's past experiences offering technology education to women in transition and other underserved populations in the Midwest. The design includes three interrelated aspects: (1) technology education, (2) web/mobile app development, and (3) original empirical research. The research team will offer hybrid (online and offline) technology training programs to 300 women in transition in Kansas and Missouri. Learners will attend weekly face-to-face technology classes at different levels (introductory, intermediate, and advanced) at public libraries. A member-only online site and an accompanying mobile application for online tutorials and virtual meet-ups will enhance exposure to different types of technologies. Starting with interest-based technology topics including online resume building, information verification, and identity protection, the team will introduce women to deeper STEM topics including elementary coding skills and computational thinking. Empirical research will examine how different modalities of offering technology education are associated with learning outcomes for women participating in the program and the association of increasing knowledge and skills in digital technologies with self-efficacy, perceived social support, employment, and reduced recidivism.
This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.
PUBLICATIONS PRODUCED AS A RESULT OF THIS RESEARCH
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PROJECT OUTCOMES REPORT
Disclaimer
This Project Outcomes Report for the General Public is displayed verbatim as submitted by the Principal Investigator (PI) for this award. Any opinions, findings, and conclusions or recommendations expressed in this Report are those of the PI and do not necessarily reflect the views of the National Science Foundation; NSF has not approved or endorsed its content.
Our project aimed to broaden participation in STEM education among underserved populations through innovative and inclusive approaches to technology education. Our goal was to enhance knowledge and comfort with technology and nurture computational thinking among women who were recently incarcerated and are now seeking to reenter the workforce and adjust to their lives outside the criminal justice system (herein “women in reentry”) in Kansas and Missouri.
Technology education and empirical research were two interrelated components of our project. We offered a technology education program to help women in reentry develop skills relevant to adjusting to an increasingly digital society. These skills put them in a better position to gain employment. We also conducted empirical research at each stage of the project (before, during, and after our education program) to both inform our program and offer insights into STEM education for other underserved populations.
We developed online courses covering online information search and validation, online resume building, online privacy and security, website building, computational thinking, digital content creation, and coding. We identified these topics through participatory design processes directly involving women in reentry. These were popular topics among women in reentry and are directly relevant to job applications and employment opportunities. More than 200 women in reentry have participated in our evidence-based technology education during the project period. Participants took courses through an online learning management site developed by project team members. In addition, we held in-person office hours at public libraries in Kansas and Missouri to support participants’ learning.
Empirical data on how to effectively introduce women in reentry to STEM education are scarce, and this project is one of the few research-informed programs in the area. In this sense, our project helps fill a gap in the literature on technology education, sociology, and communication fields. There have been increased calls for reducing recidivism, and this project provides evidence-based guidance to such efforts. Theoretical and methodological frameworks used in this study have implications for future research involving women in transition and other marginalized populations. This project provides a model of community engagement and empirical research in broadening technology education to underserved populations.
Several broader impacts flow from this project. First, our technology educational materials and empirical research findings inform reentry programs helping women leaving incarceration better adjust to an increasingly technical society. Second, STEM education for women in transition can help many of them educate their own children as about 60% of women in prison are responsible for primary care of young children. Third, our project serves as a template for developing evidence-based STEM education for other underserved populations. Finally, online education mechanisms developed under our project will assist in scaling up STEM education programs for underserved populations.
Last Modified: 11/05/2023
Modified by: Hyunjin Seo
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