Research
Current:
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Ensuring Algebra Readiness in the Middle Grades: Understanding Algebraic Reasoning
through the Lens of Number
This grant seeks to understand the relationship between middle-grades students’ numerical and algebraic reasoning, the ways that reasoning changes over time, and how instruction can leverage numerical reasoning strategies to constract algebraic reasoning.
Project Sponsor:
OSU Internal Grant
Principal Investigator:
Karen Zwanch
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Collaborative Research: REU Site: Big Data Analytics at Oklahoma State University
This grant provides a research experience for undergraduate students through big data analytics at OSU, endeavoring to increase research skills and interest in pursuing graduate school.
Project Sponsor:
National Science Foundation
Evaluator:
Amy Olson
Other Personnel:
Esra Akbas, PI
Christopher Crick, Co-PI
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STEM Pathways for Native Americans: Bridging Native Knowledge of Earth and Sky with
Traditional STEM Programming through the ‘Native Earth-Native Sky’ Program
This grant endeavors to incorporate Native American stories related to earth and space science into middle school STEM curriculum.
Project Sponsor:
NASA’s Science Activation Program
Co-PIs:
Juliana Utley
Stephanie Hathcock
Other Personnel:
Kat Gardner-Vandy, PI
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Collaborative Research: REU Site: Solar and Alternative Technologies
This grant will provide undergraduate students with summer research projects for 10 weeks developing fuel, catalysts, power, clean water, and plastics from renewable sources or using renewable energy. The overarching goal of the research projects is to reduce dependence on fossil fuels though alternative technologies for the production of energy, fuel, clean water, and/or materials and to encourage underrepresented groups in the pursuit of graduate studies by mentoring them in undergraduate research.
Project Sponsor:
National Science Foundation
Evaluator:
Jennifer Cribbs
Other Personnel:
Laura Ford, PI
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RET Site: Research Experience for Big Data and Machine/Deep Learning for Oklahoma
STEM Teachers
The proposal endeavors to create a Research Experience for Teachers (RET) focused on conducting research and developing curriculum based on Big Data and Machine Learning/Deep Learning (ML/DL). This RET site aims to utilize computing, math and science concepts inherent in the design of ML/DL algorithms, and the analysis of data to provide Oklahoma teachers with the knowledge and tools to develop innovative and interactive STEM curricula for their own classrooms. Through these computer science focused curricula, participating teachers’ students will be engaged in learning activities that develop their problem-solving skills and informed about related career opportunities.
Project Sponsor:
National Science Foundation
Evaluator:
Jennifer Cribbs
Other Personnel:
Johnson Thomas, PI
Rittika Shamsuddin, Co-PI
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Course-Based Adaptations of Ecological Belonging Intervention to Transform Engineering
Representation at Scale
Lead by an interdisciplinary research team, this grant aims to ameliorate inequities for undergraduate women and other minoritized groups in engineering. The team employs a customizable ecological intervention for students and instructor professional development workshops to address issues of student belonging in engineering as a mechanism to generate equity in outcomes among these historically minoritized student groups. Research questions will address the intervention as well as the scaling and transformation approach with instructors.
Project Sponsor:
National Science Foundation
Evaluator:
Jennifer Cribbs
Other Personnel:
Linda DeAngelo, PI
Kevin Binning, Co-PI
Allison Godwin, Co-PI
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Strategies to Assess and Address Unfinished Learning in Middle Grades Mathematics
This project will provide middle grades mathematics teachers with on-going professional development (PD) experiences over the course of one academic year. These PD experiences offered through CRSTL (Center for Research in STEM Teaching and Learning) will focus on assessing and addressing missed or unfinished student learning. Specific components of the PD will include a focus on using Open Up curriculum to address gaps in learning, using the 5 practices for orchestrating productive discussions, and implementing effective strategies and resources for mathematics instruction.
Project Sponsor:
Oklahoma State Department of Education
Principal Investigator:
Jennifer Cribbs
Other Personnel:
Karen Zwanch, Co-PI
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RET Site: Chip Designs to Simulate Semiconductor Education in Oklahoma
This project proposes authentic summer research experiences on chip designs for 8-12 and 2- year college teachers. The overarching goal is to create a lasting ecosystem and support structure to facilitate the two-way exchange of expertise between the hosting research faculty and teachers on semiconductor education. In six weeks, teachers will design well-defined pieces of circuits within the hosting faculty’s research chips and receive support to translate their experience into classroom activities. This program will be the first baby step to tap broadly into the teacher talent pool and stimulate semiconductor education and workforce development at scale in Oklahoma.
Project Sponsor:
National Science Foundation
Evaluator:
Jennifer Cribbs
Other Personnel:
John Hu, PI
Hanes Stine, Co-PI
Wooyeol Choi, Co-PI
Erin Dyke, Co-PI
Past:
- Other Projects
- An Exploratory Study Pinpointing the Factors that Influence Native Americans Interests and Aspirations for Engineering Faculty Positions
- Project Lead the Way
- OSU Teachers that Dream, Design, Build, Learn about, and Teach Aviation
- Oklahoma State University (OSU) Mathematics and Science Robert Noyce Scholarship
- G.E.T. (Geoscience Experiences for Teachers) in the Field
- NASA Downlink: Pioneers in Space-2012
- Engineering is Everywhere
- College, Career, Citizen (C3): Readiness in Rural Oklahoma
- An Exploratory Study Pinpointing the Factors That Influence Native Americans Interests
and Aspirations for Engineering Faculty Positions
Native Americans are underrepresented in engineering fields. Engineering faculty are important in order to attract and retain students in engineering because they provide positive socio-cultural experiences, role modeling, mentorship, and inclusive learning environments that reduce isolation. However, very little is known about the factors that promote Native Americans’ aspirations and persistence as engineering faculty members. This study explores those factors in order to answer the question: “Why do Native Americans go into and stay in the engineering faculty?”
This project recruits Native American engineering undergraduates, graduate students, and faculty to capture current and retrospective perceptions of their journey toward and participation in the engineering professorate. The overall objectives of this project are: (1) to conduct an exploratory pilot study of hypothesized factors and the linkages among them in several samples of Native American engineering students and faculty, including participants from Oklahoma, Minnesota, and members of the American Indian and Science and Engineering Society (AISES), and (2) to develop methods and materials in preparation for subsequent cross-sectional and longitudinal work. This is a collaborative project with researchers at the University of Minnesota.
Project Sponsor:
National Science Foundation (EAGER EEC#-1743572;)
Principal Investigator:
Sue C. Jacobs, PI
Project Personnel:
Nicole M. Colston, Senior Personnel
Sarah Johnson, Researcher
Juliana Utley, Evaluation - Project Lead the Way and Persistence in Engineering Degrees
The need for increasing the number of engineers in the US and with the push for increasing the exposure to engineering concepts at the K-12 level has led to curriculum such as Project Lead the Way. This study will aid the educational entities such as colleges of education and engineering in their work with and support of these types of pre-engineering programs. The purpose of the project is to conduct a transcript study that compares the persistence and completion of entering Engineering majors at OSU based on whether they participated in Project Lead the Way (PLTW) in high school. The research questions guiding the study are:
1. Do undergraduate majors who declare a major in a field of engineering persist at a higher rate from their freshmen year into their sophomore year if they participated in Project Lead the Way in high school?
2. Do undergraduate majors who declare a major in a field of engineering persist at a higher rate to complete a degree in engineering if they participated in Project Lead the Way in high school?PLTW is a growing program across the nation but little is known of the impact of this program on persistence in majoring in a STEM field beyond their first semester nor if the completion rates of students who participate in a pre-engineering program prior to coming to a university would increase degree completion rates.
Project Sponsor:
Charles and Lynn Schusterman Family FoundationPrincipal Investigators:
Juliana Utley, PI
Toni Ivey, Co-PI
Mary Jo Self, Co-PIProject Personnel:
Travis Mukina, GRA
Kelsey Koblitz, GRA
Anna Hwang, GRA -
OSU Teachers that Dream, Design, Build, Learn about, and Teach Aviation
The OSU Teachers that Dream, Design, Build, Learn about, and Teach Aviation will be a 5 phase program to give hands-on aerospace experience to teachers and undergraduate students, which will motivate and prepare future STEM majors for the industry. This program will have a two-fold mission by (1) providing aerospace/aviation education and career information to current and future K-12 teachers, high school students and undergraduate students participating in Speedfest and (2) through exposing grade 3-8 students to aerospace/aviation education and career information through in-class curriculum units. Additionally, this program will provide leadership for current OSU aerospace engineering students and advancing their soft skills for use in their professional careers.
Overall, this program will impact current teachers in Oklahoma, pre-service teachers, college students, high-school students and grades 3-8 students. Specific objectives include the following:
Objective 1: For Grades 3-8 teachers and OSUTeach preservice students to dream, design and build a RC aircraft; learn about the principals of flight, aerodynamics, and flight planning; and teach an aviation/aerospace unit in their classroom.
Objective 2: To have teachers experience flying and aviation careers which can be translated into specific lessons within their Grades 3-8 classrooms.
Project Sponsor:
Boeing FoundationPrincipal Investigators:
Juliana Utley, PI
Steve Marks, Co-PIProject Personnel:
Matthew Brotherton, GRA -
Oklahoma State University (OSU) Mathematics and Science Robert Noyce Scholarship
The number of STEM jobs in the US has continued to grow over the past several decades, but the availability of qualified STEM workers in the US has failed to meet this growing demand. Therefore, increasing the number, quality, and diversity of mathematics and science secondary teachers has been identified as critical to future US economic growth and success. In response to this call for action, the Oklahoma State University (OSU) Mathematics and Science Robert Noyce Scholarship program in collaboration with Stillwater Public Schools will produce sixty highly qualified mathematics and science secondary teachers by encouraging students to earn teacher certification with their 4-year B.S. degree in mathematics or science. This goal will be accomplished by 1) encouraging undergraduates majoring in mathematics or science to become teachers through summer recruitment internships and recruitment scholarships, 2) providing need-based scholarships aimed at retention and persistence during the semester of student teaching, and 3) supporting students as they progress through their first several years of teaching.
Project Sponsor:
National Science FoundationPrincipal Investigators:
Juliana Utley, PI
Kristen Baum, Co-PI
Toni Ivey, Co-PI
Alan Noell, Co-PIProject Personnel:
John Weaver, Clinical Instructor
Amy Olson, Clinical Instructor
Drew Gossen, GRA