Girls Rock NAEP Engineering Test
Results from America’s first-ever test of K-12 technology and engineering literacy point to the power of hands-on, applied STEM learning – both in and outside of school – to increase diversity and achievement. The National Assessment of Educational Progress found that girls scored higher on average than boys. And while suburban and rural students outperformed their urban peers, the achievement gaps between race and income groups were much smaller than typically posted on national tests in other subjects.
Filed under: Grades 6-8, Special Features | Comments Off on Girls Rock NAEP Engineering Test
Tags: achievement gap, Education Policy, engineering literacy, girls in STEM, Grades 6-8, NAEP TEL, nation's report card, Public Policy, Research on Learning, STEM education
Teams of middle school students use the engineering design process to design, build, and test a pair of wearable platform or high-heeled shoes, taking into consideration the stress and strain on the wearer’s foot. They activity concludes with a “walk-off” to test the shoe designs and discuss the design process.
In this activity, teams of middle school students express their creativity while learning the fundamentals of engineering design, sustainability, and the basic physics of forces and motion by building a vehicle out of recycled trash that is capable of transporting liquid over rough terrain with as little spillage as possible.
Calling all Starfleet cadets! Star Trek and NASA want you to “boldly go where no one has gone before” and engineer the future of food in space by creating a digital 3-D model of a non-edible, food-related item for future astronauts living aboard the International Space Station.
ProjectCSGIRLS aims to break down the gender gap in tech fields by encouraging middle school girls to learn computer programming and develop ideas that are powerful, disruptive, and cutting-edge. In this contest, students build something using computer science and technology that can help solve an imminent social problem in one of three areas: global health, a safer world, and intelligent technology. Submissions are due April 15, 2016.
Students in grades 6 to 8 investigate the accuracy of sundials and the discrepancy that lies between “real time” and “clock time.” They track the position of the sun during the course of a relatively short period of time as they make a shadow plot, a horizontal sundial, and a diptych sundial. In the process, they learn that time is among the criteria that engineers must factor into their designs.
Students in grades 5 to 7 use Bernoulli’s principle to manipulate air pressure in a series of fun activities so its influence can be seen on the objects around us.
Paris of students in grades 3 to 6 experience the engineering design process by building and modifying devices to catch and protect a “naked” egg as it is dropped from increasing heights. The activity scales up to district or regional egg drop competitions.
