In search of ET : K-12 Engineering and Technology Education in the New York State

In search of ET : K-12 Engineering and Technology Education in the New York State Marjaneh Issapour 1, Keith Sheppard 2 1-Farmingdale State College 2-Stony Brook University Abstract: This paper provides background about New York State K-12 engineering and technology education. It highlights the low status of the engineering and technology practices in K-12 curriculum. While the state education department has specific standards for teaching mathematics, science and technology (MST) for K-12 education, the engineering and technology or ET is largely absent from the STEM core curricula. The technology standard is not uniformly implemented across the state and the standard for engineering does not exist. Data on national projections of occupational employment as well as enrollment trends in engineering programs establish the significance of introducing ET in K-12 education. Further, New York State s Regents results as well as enrollment data for engineering classes establish the low status of ET in New York State K-12 curriculum. Specific findings with regards to ET in New York are as follows: There is no mention of engineering in graduation requirements. There are no Regents examinations in either technology or engineering. Less than 0.5% of high school students enroll in engineering classes.

There are no distinct teaching certification requirements for engineering and technology teachers. Integrating engineering and technology into K-12 education in the state is a challenging task. This paper makes recommendations about this process. Introduction: Engineering as a source of innovation has been recognized globally as a significant driver of national economies. In order to develop new technologies and stay globally competitive, more engineers are required to enter the workforce 1. Most nations, including the United States of America, are striving to increase the number of trained professionals in engineering and technology related fields 2. In November of 2012, the United States House of Representatives passed a bill to increase immigration for high-skilled "STEM" (science, technology, engineering and math) workers 3. This bill ensures a higher level of economic growth in the United States by encouraging the most talented students in the world to join the United States work force. A rationale for the introducing such a bill is the recognition of the correlation between an increase in number practicing engineers and a nation's economy. Currently, in the United States, science and mathematics are fully integrated in the K-12 education. But the engineering and technology or ET is missing from the STEM core curricula for K-12 courses 2,1&4. However, the future job forecast indicates an increased demand in engineering related fields. The Bureau of Labor and Statistics, forecasts a growth in demand for engineering and technology and related fields 5. For example, the national projections of occupational employment for 2008-2018 indicate an anticipated growth of 32.5% for Computer software engineers, 72.5 % for Bio medical engineers, and 30.6% for Environmental engineers 5. In order for the country to meet these demands and become more competitive on a global scale, more domestic students need to be prepared to go into these fields. Research indicates that the technological literacy of the K-12 student population will ultimately lead to a greater number of students who are prepared to pursue studies in engineering and technology 2. The Next Generation Science Standards (NGSS) 6 released in 2013, have recognized the deficiency of ET in K-12 education. These standards were directly adopted from the 2010 National Research Council (NRC) s draft report on framework for science education. The

standards describe the major scientific ideas and practices that all students should be familiar with by the end of high school. In this report, the need to better integrate the teaching and learning of STEM is emphasized. According to the report, engineering and technology should be featured alongside the natural sciences 7&6. This draft report is the first policy setting instrument to seek to motivate changes in K-12 education with regards to engineering and technology. There is a national focus on improving K-12 curricula via integrating engineering and technology concepts 8. But the state education departments need to accept and endorse these recommendations in order to start planning for additional requirements into the existing K-12 education standards. Currently, the New York State Education Department (NYSED) has specific standards for teaching Mathematics, Science and Technology (MST) for K-12. In terms of implementation, science and mathematics standards are incorporated into the official K-12 learning curriculum 9. The Regents examinations in each area are aligned to the standards in these areas. There are no required engineering and technology Regent Examinations 10. Further the technology requirements are left up to individual schools for adoption. This presents a challenge in the state, because there is neither motivation for schools to integrate ET into the curriculum nor for higher education institutions to offer a distinct teacher training programs for teaching ET in K-12. These reasons are discussed later in this paper. It is time for education policy makers to plan and implement ET of the STEM educational curriculum of K-12 in the state of New York. National prospective of K-12 engineering and technology education: In April 1983, the National Commission on Excellence in Education produced the Nation at Risk report 11, indicating that low student achievement was pervasive and threatening to the nation s economic and social well-being. The report characterizes excellence in education: Excellence characterizes a school or college that sets high expectations and goals for all learners, then tries in every way possible to help students reach them. Excellence characterizes a society that has adopted these policies, for it will then be prepared through the education and skill of its people to respond to the challenges of a rapidly changing world. Our Nation's people and its schools

and colleges must be committed to achieving excellence in all these senses 11 (p.14). The Nation at Risk report led to a large increase in requirements for math and science in the K-12 curriculum. This report, as well as the No Child Left behind Act and Race to the Top initiative as part of the American Recovery Act, focused on keeping the United States ahead of other nations in terms of scientific and economic developments 12&13. Currently, the K-12 education is undergoing reform, via the Next Generation Science Standards( NGSS) which followed the 2010 National Research Council s (NRC) draft report. NGSS calls for increased integration of engineering and technology in K-12 education 7. Additionally, one of the key recommendations in a recent report by National Science Board with regards to STEM education is as follows: We cannot assume that our Nation s most talented students will succeed on their own. Instead, we must offer coordinated, proactive, sustained formal and informal interventions to develop their abilities. Students should learn at a pace, depth, and breadth commensurate with their talents and interests and in a fashion that elicits engagement, intellectual curiosity, and creative problem solving essential skills for future innovation 25. The key phrase here is essential skills for future innovation. Engineers, as applied scientists, innovate, create, and build practical solutions for society s every day needs. Almost everything we use is dependent on various forms of engineering 2. Further, there is an increasing demand for engineers in most economic forecasts. National projections of occupational employment for 2008-2018 (Table 1) indicate an anticipated growth of 20.6% in all science and engineering fields, 32.5% for the Computer software engineers, 72.5 % for the Bio medical engineers, 30.6% for the Environmental engineers and 24.3% for Civil engineers 5. The only engineering field that has an anticipated decrease in employment projection is Chemical engineering. Table 1 Bureau of Labor Statistics projections of occupational employment: 2008 18

10-year Occupation growth in total employment (%) All Science &Engineering 20.6 Computer software engineers 32.5 Engineers 11.3 Aerospace engineers 10.3 Agricultural engineers 11.1 Biomedical engineers 72.5 Chemical engineers -1.9 Civil engineers 24.3 Computer hardware engineers 3.7 Electrical engineers 1.7 Environmental engineers 30.6 Industrial engineers, including health and safety 13.8 Health and safety engineers 10.1 Adapted from BLS, Office of Occupational Statistics and Employment Projections, National Industry-Occupation Employment Projections, 2008 18 (2009), Science and Engineering Indicators 2012. Along with projections of increased opportunities in engineering related professions, there is an increasing trend in undergraduate enrollment in engineering programs for the United States in the past decade. The data presented in the figure below shows this upward trend. It must be noted that these data include both American and foreign students enrolled in engineering programs in the United States. Most foreign-born engineering graduates do not join the workforce in the United States, which is one of the reasons for passing the STEM immigration bill. This bill allows high-skilled "STEM" workers, to obtain permanent residency in the United State 3.

500 450 Enrollment (in thousands) 400 350 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 Years Figure1: Undergraduate Enrolment in Engineering Programs:2001-2009, Adapted from Engineering Workforce Commission, Engineering & Technology Enrollments, Fall 2009 American Association of Engineering Societies (2010). Science and Engineering Indicators 2012. The challenge is to educate more American engineers as opposed to granting work permits and residency to foreign-born engineers. Preparation and encouragement of high school students is one major cause for the lack of interest and success in the engineering related careers. This is especially true for women and minorities 14,2&4. The long-term solution should include better preparing American high school graduates to enter engineering. Research indicates a strong background in science, math, and engineering is necessary for the success of the engineering students and to continue the development of new technologies as well as to expand on existing components 1,2&4. Research indicates engineering students who have an exposure to engineering prior to their undergraduate career had higher retention rates 15. Unfortunately, many bright, capable students choose not to pursue sciences in high school, and therefore have no opportunity to enter high paying engineering and technology careers. Engineering appears to be invisible to students 2(p.1). It is therefore crucial to consider integration of ET in K-12.

Initiatives to build readiness for careers in engineering and technology (ET): This section includes a discussion of different programs that introduce engineering and technology concepts into K-12 classrooms. This includes efforts of professional organizations, higher education institutions and the National Science Foundation (NSF). For example, NSF has funded the development of a variety of activities for middle school and high school teachers to familiarize students with the field of engineering 14. The American Society of Engineering Education (ASEE) has started a K 12 engineering and pre-college division in response to many of the concerns for increasing interest and improving education of future engineers 14 &16. Currently, two different approaches are used to bring engineering concepts and principles to the K-12 curriculum: Introducing engineering as a stand-alone subject in the schools. These programs usually develop and implement a set or sequence of courses at the secondary school (middle school and high school) level, traditionally offered as an option for students planning to pursue engineering or engineering technology as a career goal 2. Integrating engineering concepts and applications into different content areas of the curriculum, through outreach programs. These programs focus on creating educational modules that address the content standards in science and technology, and create connections between the scientific concepts learned in the classroom and those used in engineering applications in the modern workplace. This concept is also referred to as Integrated Curriculum Modules (ICM), where students have the opportunity to experience the making of models of different items such as bridges, houses and other structures. Simultaneously, they are being introduced to the laws of science through their understanding of how objects and systems work 2, 17&20. Both of these approaches usually start as grant funded activities supported by the NSF, Department of Education or other major stake-holder in research and education. Their purpose is to increase admission rates to STEM undergraduate education programs among underrepresented population. As a result, the impact of these programs is mainly dictated by demographics, therefore, limited to a certain population or geographic location 1. There are two nationally recognized programs that provide an optional K-12 engineering curriculum: 1) Engineering by Design EbD which is a standard s based pre-engineering curriculum for K-12 17, and 2) Project Lead The Way Inc. (PLTW). PLTW forms partnerships

among Public Schools, Higher Education Institutions and the Private Sector, in addition to providing a fully developed curriculum for High Schools and Middle Schools. A consortium of teachers, college professors, and industry leaders support the creation of PLTW curriculum materials. PLTW also offers a teacher-training program 18. Both these programs require a financial commitment from school districts and are not mandated by state or federal education standards and guidelines. Teacher proficiency in the engineering and technology fields is another major challenge, which is identified by many of the current initiatives 1. Some institutions of higher education help with teacher preparation; as well as bringing engineering and technology principles and applications to secondary school classrooms 19, 1, 2 &20. An example of such programs in New York State was the collaboration between faculty at Nassau Community College and faculty from the Environmental Engineering department at Hofstra University to educate K 12 students about environmental science and engineering. A hands-on workshop provided a discussion of environmental and civil engineering as a career for young women who participated in a female student mathematics day called Y2M, Yes to Mathematics. The project involved 10 school districts on Long Island, providing the opportunity to incorporate environmental science and engineering to middle school students 14. Another such effort is a program administered by the Center for Science and Mathematics Education and the Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering at Stony Brook. This program offers high school sophomores and juniors hands-on experience doing research in the areas of electrical and computer engineering. Students participate in useful real-world exercises that range from fabricating a fiber voice link to developing an embedded processing system for measuring temperature 19. The assessments of all the above-mentioned programs highlight the following issues 14, 19, 1, 2, 20 : Minds-on learning can provide students with the opportunity to understand how engineering is relevant to the real world through science and mathematics. Engineering activities need to be mapped to state standards for math and science. K 12 teachers need to be assisted and encouraged to utilize this material in curriculum writing.

Successful integration of engineering and technology into K-12 must consider these results. In addition results of such initiatives indicate that training, preparation and providing support are vital elements for the success of teaching integrated STEM curriculum 29. The most imperative pre-requisite is gaining the support of K-12 educators, and the following specific challenges need to be addressed 1, 19, 20, &18 : 1. Lack of State Standards to motivate inclusion of engineering in science education. 2. Lack of trained teachers 3. Lack of text books and teaching material and resources Since the policies for K-12 education are set at the state level, it is interesting to explore the status of ET in a specific state. Status of K-12 engineering and technology (ET) education in New York State: Currently, New York State K-12 education is aligned to MST standards. These standards are based on the NRC s 1996 recommendation from the National Science Education Standards (NSES). If the NGSS recommendations are adopted, the next generation science education standards will focus on STEM core curricula. NYS s current MST standards do not include engineering. The three important issues to consider are; 1) high school graduation requirements, 2) Regents exams offerings, and 3) teacher certification programs. The graduation requirements in NYS require each student to complete six credits of MST. Only one of these credits may be replaced with a technology course. The state s standards for mathematics (standard 1) and sciences (standard 4) such as Physics, Chemistry, Earth Science and Living Environment are very well defined and implemented in the K-12 curriculum 28. Although the key ideas for technology T are defined, they have a faint presence in the requirements. The engineering E is missing all-together. The graduation requirement includes passing a common state mandated exam for a minimum of five of these science and mathematics classes. It is, therefore, possible and most often the case to graduate without any engineering and technology courses. These common state level exams are Regents exams. There is a Regents exam requirement for every science subject, as well as for mathematics 27. The Regents exams are developed and administered by the New York State Education Department (NYSED) under the authority of the

Board of Regents of the University of the State of New York 10. There is no Regent exam for technology or engineering courses. Since a strong background in physical sciences is the pre-requisite for the engineering classes, it is interesting to see what science courses are taken by students across the state. Table 2 below displays the Regents science courses that students take as well as the Regent s results. Table 2 NY State Regents Science Results Subject # Taking Exam % Passing (65%+) % Mastery (85%+) Living Environment 236,323 81 32 Earth Science 165,998 72 30 Chemistry 108,466 78 20 Physics 49,262 79 32 New York State Education Department (2011-2012, BEDS data) 21 Essentially all students take Living Environment, approx. 70% take Earth Science, 45% take Chemistry, and 21% take Physics. It is important to note that, in order for students to take and succeed in the engineering classes they must have taken Chemistry and Physics. In parallel with science and mathematics standards, teacher certifications for these areas are also in place. Since there are no engineering and technology graduation requirements, there is no incentive for schools to offer such courses and for students to take them. As a result no teacher training and certification for ET is in place either. In fact, engineering and technology courses are taught by teachers who are certified in another area of science, mathematics or work shop teachers. This situation is not unique to NYS and is similar to most other states in the U.S. 20 &22. The next section outlines a brief history of ET in the state of New York. History of engineering and technology education in the New York State: In terms of the adoption of engineering and technology education in K-12, New York State education department has a timeline going back to the 1980 s. In addition, PLTW and EbD, both nationally recognized engineering education outreach programs, were initiated in New York State 17 &18.

In the 1980 s, New York State added a new discipline called Technology Education. Technology Education replaced an existing Industrial Art curriculum. This discipline focused on technology as a content base. Technology education organized around three content areas: Resources for Technology, Systems of Technology, and Impacts of Technology. The systems approach to the study of technology became the key to the comprehensive understanding of technology 4. The technology classes have been and still are taught by high school teachers who are certified in science, math and other subject areas. In addition, no standard curriculum and course content was developed or mandated by the state. Therefore, technology education experiences offered in one school were very different from another 22. In mid 1990 s, the New York State Framework for MST (New York State Learning standards for Mathematics Science and Technology) was published. This publication defines the study of technology as both a body of knowledge and a process of purposeful application of knowledge 22. The technological concepts described as Key Ideas in the MST Learning Standard area s standard number five for technology education are: 1. Engineering Design 2. Tools, Resources, and Technological Processes 3. Computer Technology 4. Technological Systems 5. History and Evolution of Technology 6. Impacts of Technology 7. Management of Technology Although the MST document offered a clear definition of standards for the education system, curricular decisions were left to the local educational agencies (LEA s) for development. Each school district had the freedom to decide what content would best be able to deliver these seven Key Ideas. In early 2000, assessment standards and specific competency tests at the middle school and high school level for technology education were developed, but these assessments were not mandatory 22.

In 2006, the New York State Education Department produced a white paper called The NYS Technology Education Framework Initiative, which boasted seven Technology Content Organizers (TCO), listed below 21 &22 : 1. Materials 2. Manufacturing 3. Information and Communications 4. Transportation 5. Living Systems 6. Energy 7. Environmental Quality These seven TCO s may have been an attempt to give the field of engineering and technology an identity similar to the traditional sciences (biology, chemistry, and physics). Unfortunately, the same weakness as the MST document existed in that the adoption of the paper was left to each school district. Currently in New York State, local curriculum is aligned to MST, which is the result of 1996 K- 12 National Science Education Standards (NSES) adoption. If the Next Generation Science Standards (NGSS) are adopted by the state, the current curriculum will be impacted. Current learning standards for Science include Elementary science, Intermediate science, Earth Science, Living Environment, Chemistry and Physics 28. There are standard Regents exams for each of these areas 27. Such a requirement and expectation does not exist for engineering and technology education, as there are no Regent exams offered in this subject. In parallel with these requirements, there are specific teaching certification exams for science and mathematics instructors in order to become certified 23. There is no distinct teacher certification for ET instructors. Specifically in New York State there is no certified, state approved institution for technology or engineering educator training. A number of universities have attempted to fill the void by offering outreach programs 19 &1. Searching through the New York State school report cards, in the Accountability and Overview Report and Comprehensive Information Report for all school districts in all counties of New York State, engineering technology (ET) as a curriculum is absent for the most part 24. There are, however traces of ET s presence in some high schools that offer Principles of

Engineering to their students. Currently some schools in NYS offer Principles of Engineering (course number 5154). Total of 70 such classes are being taught throughout the state. Table 3 shows a more detailed breakdown of this offering by region (please note that these data include BOCES programs as well). Table 3 New York State Information Department, Reporting and Technology Services Course Registration Data 2011-2012 (course code 5154 Principles of Engineering) Region Number of classes Number of students Number of teachers New York City 3 74 1 Nassau-Suffolk 15 260 12 Mid-Hudson 8 190 7 Upper Hudson 11 169 8 Lake Champlain-Lake 2 14 2 George Black River- 5 52 5 St.Lawrence Upper Mohawk Valley 0 0 0 Central 3 66 3 Southern Tier-East 1 13 1 Southern Tier-Central 1 10 1 Southern Tier-West 5 56 4 Genesee-Finger Lakes 15 282 10 Western 1 22 1 State Excluding N.Y.C. 67 1134 54 Total State 70 1208 55 New York State Education Department (2011-2012, BEDS data) 21 There are 2.7 million students enrolled in grades K-12 in New York State. Total enrollment in grades 9-12 is 854,364. While 236,323 students enroll in Living Environment, Only 1,208 enroll in the engineering course 26. This is less than 0.5% of the population. The first four regions of the above table, represents 70% of the total New York State s student population 26. Table 4 below is a comparison between the Principles of Engineering, and some popular science and math classes that are taken by majority of the 9-12 graders (Earth Science,

Integrated Algebra and Math 8 classes), in the most populated regions. The science and mathematics courses listed in this table have a required Regents exam. Table 4 Engineering versus required Science and Math classes by Region Number of Engineering classes(5154) Number of Earth Science classes (4286) Number of Integrated Algebra classes (4127) Number of Math 8 classes (4124) New York City 3 1610 2724 1861 Nassau-Suffolk 15 1491 1176 914 Mid-Hudson 8 947 972 784 Upper Hudson 11 461 410 424 Total 37 4509 5282 3983 Source: New York State Education Department (2011-2012, BEDS data) 21 There are few engineering classes in comparison to the Regent science and math courses. Less than 1% of students who take Earth Science enroll in the engineering class. This percentage is even less in comparison to the Living Environment which is the most popular science class in the state. Discussion: There is a projected need for trained professionals in engineering and related fields. It is imperative to introduce ET in K-12 education in order to meet this need. The Next Generation Science Standards (NGSS) recognizes the need for integrating engineering in K-12 of the American education standards 7. NGSS outlines exactly what engineering concepts should be introduced that what level. It is now up to the states education departments to accept these recommendations and start planning for integration of ET into K-12. The current state of ET in light of NGSS s recommendation presents a challenge for the educators in the state. As indicated by data in the previous sections currently in New York engineering is not institutionalized, because: Engineering is not mentioned in the graduation requirements for NY State. There are no Regents examination in either technology or engineering The existing engineering classes enroll less than 0.5% of high school students

There are no distinct teaching certification requirement for technology teachers Discussion and Recommendations: The technological advances in all aspects of everyday life impacts the global economy. Sustaining the US economy is dependent on innovative engineering and the number of engineers and technology specialists entering the work force. It is important that the educators prepare a more qualified pool of high school graduates to pursue engineering and technology related careers. Though there needs to be a clear and systematic approach to improving K-12 curricula by integrating engineering and technology concepts. The focus of this discussion is specifically how this can be done in New York State. As demonstrated in the previous section, few school districts offer Principles of Engineering. In addition, there is no standard assessment for this course and its implementation. For instance, the types of minds-on projects offered are left to the discretion of individual technology teachers. According to Mr. Dettelis, from the New York State Technology Education office it s near impossible for the entire field of education to embrace new ideas and new products without financial incentives and/or regulatory mandates. 4. The first step is the endorsement of NGSS recommendation by science educators in the state. This can potentially lead to the inclusion of ET in the next generation science standards at the state level. The effective instruction in engineering and technology requires having a strong mathematics and science foundation. To ensure students meet the science and mathematics prerequisites, it is most suitable to introduce the engineering classes at the Advanced Placement (AP) level. This initial step could follow the development of a Regents/ AP examination for technology /engineering education respectively As noted earlier, K-12 science educators do not have the acceptable training to teach engineering and technology classes. The training, preparation and providing support are vital elements for the success of teaching integrated STEM curriculum. Therefore engineering education at K-12 should have a distinct teacher certification requirement similar to those in the other areas of science. Training programs for engineering teachers need to be developed for local and regional engineering educators at K-12 levels.

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MARJANEH ISSAPOUR is the Program Director of Renewable Energy and Sustainability Center (RESC0 at Farmingdale State College (FSC) a Campus of State University of New York. She is a Professor of Electrical and Computer Engineering Technology at FSC. Marj is an IEEE Senior member. She currently chairs the Educational Activities Committee of the IEEE-Long Island section and is an X-com member. http://www.ieee.li KEITH SHEPPARD is Director of the Center for Science and Mathematics Education at Stony Brook University and is an Associate Professor in the Department of Biochemistry and Cell Biology. Prior to arriving at Stony Brook in 2007, Dr. Sheppard was the Program Coordinator for Science Education at Teachers College, Columbia University with direct responsibility for Science Teacher Preparation programs.