Content Analysis of International STEM Education Research Journals

STEM education emerged as a focus for educators and researchers in the United States as more states and schools implement integrated, STEM-driven curricula and instruction in order to improve students’ STEM literacy, critical thinking skills, and 21st century workforce skills (Bybee, 2013). This study used content analysis (Grbich, 2013; Hsieh & Shannon, 2005) to investigate recent trends in STEM education research by analyzing all of the published articles in three international STEM education research journals. The criteria for journal selection were publication origination date, number of articles published, and ability to obtain the journals through student-accessible databases or journal websites. Data included the number and types of STEM subjects, whether or not the STEM subjects were integrated, the date of publication, and the setting and participants. Findings from this study suggest that STEM education research articles tend to focus on two or more STEM silos, with the number of iSTEM education research articles increasing in publication over time. Future research in STEM education should include K–12 settings to complement the work already being performed in higher education settings. ReferencesBybee, R. W. (2013). The case for STEM education: Challenges and opportunities. Arlington, VA: National Science Teachers Association.Grbich, C. (2013). Qualitative data analysis: An introduction. Los Angeles, CA: SAGE.Hsieh, H. F., & Shannon, S. E. (2005). Three approaches to qualitative content analysis. Qualitative Health Research, 15(9), 1277–1288. doi:10.1177/104973230527668

College of Education News

Summit Looks at STEM Education Research and Impact on Communities and School

AGENT-BASED MODELING AND SIMULATION APPROACHES IN STEM EDUCATION RESEARCH

The development of best practices that deliver quality STEM education to all students, while minimizing achievement gaps, have been solicited by several national agencies. ABMS is a feasible approach to provide insight into global behavior based upon the interactions amongst agents and environments. In this review, we systematically surveyed several modeling and simulation approaches and discussed their applications to the evaluation of relevant theories in STEM education. It was found that ABMS is optimal to simulate STEM education hypotheses, as ABMS will sensibly present emergent theories and causation in STEM education phenomena if the model is properly validated and calibrated

Creating the STEM Education Research Institute: SERI

poster abstractSERI, The STEM Education Research Institute, is a new initiative of the Office of the Vice Chancellor for Research, based on collaboration among the Schools of Science, Education, and Engineering and Technology. This presentation will provide an overview of the mission, vision, and goals of SERI. It will also detail the organizational structure and leadership of SERI, and describe some of the initial projects SERI has undertaken. SERI offers a range of support to all IUPUI faculty interested in STEM Education research, including project development, evaluation, and dissemination. We are particularly interested in meeting researchers who wish to create educational components associated with new or ongoing research projects

Work in progress: Data explorer - Assessment data integration, analytics, and visualization for STEM education research

Citation: Weese, J. L., & Hsu, W. H. (2016). Work in progress: Data explorer - Assessment data integration, analytics, and visualization for STEM education research.We describe a comprehensive system for comparative evaluation of uploaded and preprocessed data in physics education research with applicability to standardized assessments for discipline-based education research, especially in science, technology, mathematics, and engineering. Views are provided for inspection of aggregate statistics about student scores, comparison over time within one course, or comparison across multiple years. The design of this system includes a search facility for retrieving anonymized data from classes similar to the uploader's own. These visualizations include tracking of student performance on a range of standardized assessments. These assessments can be viewed as pre- and post-tests with comparative statistics (e.g., normalized gain), decomposed by answer in the case of multiple-choice questions, and manipulated using pre-specified data transformations such as aggregation and refinement (drill down and roll up). Furthermore, the system is designed to incorporate a scalable framework for machine learning-based analytics, including clustering and similarity-based retrieval, time series prediction, and probabilistic reasoning. © American Society for Engineering Education, 2016

Research trends in international science, technology, engineering, and mathematics education conference series: An analysis of a decade of proceedings

This paper reports on the results of a descriptive analysis of 675 publications included in the proceedings of five editions of the International Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics in Education Conferences held in Australia, Canada, and China over 9 years between 2012 and 2021. Peer-reviewed academic journals are traditional sources of high quality and established research. Yet these papers might take months and sometimes years to get published. On the other hand, an analysis of research foci represented at international STEM conferences can be used as a source of the most recent trends in the field, and the developments of STEM education research across time and by national origins. In this analysis, 675 abstracts from five editions of the International STEM in Education Conference were coded into eight topics, followed by a descriptive analysis of the results. Four countries were consistently the top four contributors: Australia, Canada, China, and the United States. Thus, the study conducted a descriptive analysis and discussion of the trends among these countries. The results revealed trends in STEM education research, among which policy, curriculum, assessment; K-12 teaching and learning, are dominant topics of research investigation, while postsecondary STEM teaching and learning are less investigated. The results also demonstrated the dominance of some topics over others among the countries that most contributed to the conferences. For instance, Canada dominated in the studies of culture, gender, and social issues and in postsecondary STEM education. China paid much less attention to these topics, while putting more emphasis on historical and epistemological perspectives on STEM, policy and curriculum, and K-12 teaching and learning. Australian research focused on policy and curriculum; K-12 teaching and learning; and industry. Meanwhile, the United States showed the least difference in percentages between topics. Overall the analysis indicates a relatively low interest in postsecondary STEM education research, despite the growing demand for STEM professionals. This highlights the need for STEM education research focused on institutions of higher education. This analysis interprets the trend results in light of the issues in STEM education confronting various national jurisdictions

Hot Topics and Frontier Evolution of Game In Stem Learning Research: A Bibliometric Mapping from 2002 to 2022

The aim of the present study is to explore the evolving trend of research directions in the field of game in STEM learning. This research uses Scopus search analysis, Microsoft Excel software, and VOS viewer software. Based on 1489 articles (488 selected documents) selected from Scopus indexed journals, co-authorship, co-citation, co-occurrence, cluster, and content analysis were conducted. The results of the quantitative analysis showed that hugely important work on games of STEM education, namely computer game and digital game base learning. The literature on games in STEM education has explored fourteen hot themes during the last couple of decades: STEM, digital game, active learning, game based learning,  game, project based learning, serious game, creative self efficacy, teaching concept, learning content, industri 4.0, STEM activities, game element, and  interactive learning environment. The bibliometric study conducted gives a thorough and complete picture of STEM education research that may be valuable for scholars interested in furthering future understanding in this field

A systematic review of STEM education research in the GCC countries: trends, gaps and barriers

Abundant research conducted in many countries has underlined the critical role of Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics (STEM) in developing human capital in fields important to a nation’s global competiveness and prosperity. In the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) States, recent long-term policy plans emphasize the ever-increasing need of transition to a knowledge-based economy and preparing highly qualified nationals with credentials in STEM fields to meet the current and future needs of the labor market. Yet, despite multiple educational reforms and substantial resources, national and international indicators of student performance still demonstrate insignificant improvement in GCC students’ achievement in STEM subjects. Demonstrably, the GCC youth still lack interest in STEM careers and represent low enrollment rates in STEM fields. This paper presents the results of a systematic review conducted on STEM education research in GCC countries. The review seeks to contribute to the body of the existing STEM literature, explore the factors influencing student participation in STEM, and identify the gaps in STEM education research in those countries

Preparing Post-Secondary Learners for Indiana's leading Industries

poster abstractThe Advanced Manufacturing Industry in Indiana has increased nearly twice as rapidly as most other States. While the demand for higher skilled workers increases, the production of trained employees has not. The STEM Education Research Institute (SERI) has collaborated with Employ Indy, Project Lead the Way (PLTW), and the Excel Center to facilitate a 16-week pilot. This pilot connects competencies from PLTW with five Industry Certifications desired by businesses and colleges surveyed throughout the state. The eighteen week pilot begins the second week of April and has a four week job shadowing component at the eight week mark. The target population is disconnected/discouraged adult learners that have no training in manufacturing. Industry Certifications include: OSHA 10, Certified Logistic Associate, Certified Logistics Technician, Autodesk Inventor and National Career Readiness Certification. This program also offers the opportunity for students to complete a PLTW course and receive duel credit through Ivy Tech or IUPUI. A mixed methods research/evaluation design has been constructed and reviewed. It will be implemented throughout the duration of this pilot. The results will be used formatively to refine the pilot before running a second pilot in the late Fall of 2015

Evaluating K-12 STEM Education Programs in Indiana: The SERI/I-STEM Partnership

poster abstractThe Indiana Science Initiative (ISI) is a K-8 systemic science and literacy program managed by the I-STEM Resource Network involving 2,000+ teachers and 53,000+ students in grades K-8 using research-developed curricular modules. The poster will present data and preliminary analysis on three key program evaluation areas. First, initial data will be presented on student performance at ten schools where all teachers at all grade levels implemented the ISI during both the pilot and first year. Secondly, the poster will present the preliminary analysis of data from the Lilly Science Coaches, which is a program that places Lilly staff and scientists with ISI teachers to support science program implementation through regular or semi-regular classroom visits. Finally, results of change in teachers’ self-efficacy as measured via the Science Teaching Efficacy Belief Instrument (STEBI) will be reported. The early indications of these data are positive towards the success of the programs. This evaluation represents a partnership between the STEM Education Research Institute at IUPUI (SERI) and the I-STEM Resource Network. A summary of implications for this type of partnership are also presented