Making Engineering Real
Project Overview
Making Engineering Real supports professional learning for K-5 educators in the Commonwealth of Virginia to integrate engineering, digital technologies, and systems thinking into instruction, design and implement lessons to support students' engineering design, use of technology, and system's thinking, and receive feedback on engineering design and technology-integrated units. The PD also includes academic year in-classroom coach support, and follow-up PD including opportunities for reflection and feedback from peers, coaches, and instructors.
The ME-REAL project will advance our understanding of (1) pedagogies (e.g., digital technology integration) and engineering contexts that support elementary students’ systems-thinking, (2) PD that facilitates teachers’ systems thinking, engineering understandings, and digital technology use, and (3) the extent to which attending to teachers’ beliefs during PD promotes instructional change and innovation adoption.
Project Goals
Improve elementary teachers’ instruction in the STEM domains of engineering, technology integration, and systems thinking
Improve elementary students’ engagement and understanding of engineering, digital technology, and systems thinking
Improve elementary student science learning among traditionally underrepresented groups in STEM (i.e., Black, Hispanic, rural, low SES)
About the Team
Jennifer Maeng, Ph.D.
Principal Investigator
University of Virginia,
Curry School of Education and Human Development
Amanda Gonczi, Ph.D.
Co-Principal Investigator
Michigan Technological University,
Greater Lakes Research Center
Robert Handler, Ph.D.
Co-Principal Investigator
Michigan Tech University, Sustainable Futures Institute
Whitney McCoy, Ph.D.
Post-doctoral Research Associate
University of Virginia,
Curry School of Education and Human Development
