Network Science for All: Positioning High Need Youth for Success in Pursuing STEM Pathways
Boston University, in partnership with Sociedad Latina, will investigate the role that a middle school network science curriculum plays as both an input and outcome of science learning. This $1.5M 4-year project funded by the National Science Foundation will focus on development of skills to investigate real-world problems that have meaningful consequences for humankind across social, technical and scientific domains. This project will make use of publicly available data to allow students to be involved in project-based activities in and out of their classrooms that can have societal impact. The project team will leverage previously developed data-driven curriculum in the context of a network science lens, synthesize highly promising technical and STEM resources as well as in-school and out-of-school programs, and embed new education research advances on effective career development to evolve a construct that will best position high-need youth for future learning of science. The curriculum and career development resources will directly reach 600 principally Latinx students, 12 teachers, parents and other key stakeholders. For the purposes of this project, resources will be implemented in a range of after-school programs in Boston as well as in-school programs in Boston. Through a collective impact approach, the project will be replicable, scale to more schools throughout Massachusetts, inform related projects, and evolve to regional and national impact.
The project will create novel learning opportunities for middle school students to explore real-world project-based problems addressed through data analysis, data visualization and network modeling. This study will advance the field of interdisciplinary teaching and learning as well as strategies for supporting students and teachers through three interdependent strands: (1) Network Science for All workforce readiness curriculum modules, (2) applied evaluation metrics based on comparing students to peer groups through statewide data, and (3) sustainability and scalability embedded in the structure of the program. The project will be informed by several advisory boards aimed at leveraging the program in order to sustain and scale the effort. At Boston University, an internal advisory board will embed the project into the broad ecosystem of the university as part of a collective impact culture. A STEM advisory board will inform the science program. A formal independent external advisory board will guide the project’s efforts. Research will be conducted in two phases. In Phase 1, design-based research will be used to iteratively refine curriculum and programmatic interventions. In Phase 2, the research will examine the degree to which the program construct positions youth for success by examining the (1) varied acquisition of next generation STEM competencies for future workforce needs, (2) motivation and engagement of students and their support system, and (3) impact on shifting STEM-related career goals and pathways to achieving these goals. All materials will be available in electronic forms on a Boston University project website, will be licensed under open-source code and open content licenses, and will be freely distributed to teachers, curriculum developers, and researchers. Research findings will be widely disseminated through publications and conference proceedings.
Government & Community Affairs (GCA), Physics Department, Wheelock College: A New Model for BU Involvement in Workforce Development
GCA is the main contact with area residents and elected leaders, informing the public of community interest projects and efforts undertaken by the University. GCA has cultivated special, long-standing relationships with our local communities and strives to connect our community partners with the resources and expertise found across the University. Since 2017, GCA has been partnering with the after-school organization Sociedad Latina. We have provided Sociedad Latina with space on campus to run their six-week ‘Emprende’ entrepreneurship summer program, and organized campus tours for students. In addition, our office is proud to sponsor their annual gala and support their many events. GCA is always interested in fostering relationships that go deeper and that connect the academic mission of the University to our host communities. Together with colleagues from Physics Department in the College of Arts and Sciences and the Wheelock College of Education & Human Development, we are creating a new model which brings together academic and research expertise in STEM education, professional development and career pathways, to provide a unique opportunity to collaborate with Boston-area K-12 student programs to pursue programming and research that will have a lasting positive impact on student achievement and open up pathways for career development.
