Work in Progress: Introducing Electrical and Computer Engineering to High School Math and Science Students

This paper describes the recent activities of electrical and computer engineering doctoral students in the design, development, and implementation of lessons for high school mathematics and science classes. The graduate students, called fellows, worked in secondary classrooms in the Cincinnati Public Schools District as a part of Project STEP at the University of Cincinnati, which is funded by the National Science Foundation GK-12 Program. The fellows formed partnerships with secondary math and science teachers to generate new lessons, activities, and resources to enhance the STEM skills of high school students. Additionally, the Fellows used their engineering expertise to bring authentic learning experiences into the classroom and introduced concepts in their field of engineering to underserved student populations. This paper discusses observations and reflections by the fellows regarding aspects of the activities that had the most impact on student learning and interest in engineering, which was measured by self-reported student surveys