College of Engineering

Two presentations:

• Calling Attention to Unequal Educational Outcomes in STEM Higher Education
  Michael Mack, research associate, UW Department of Chemistry
  
  Unequal education outcomes for historically underrepresented student groups is one of the most urgent and intractable problems in higher education. Where does this problem reside, with the students or with the institution? And who should be responsible for improving student outcomes?
  
  Drawing on organizational learning theory, Dr. Mack examines the “deficit” and “equity” interpretive frameworks for making sense of outcomes in higher education, and shows how these frames oblige us to perceive unequal outcomes across student subpopulations in different ways. Participants in this session will engage with the frameworks to: 1) make sense of ethnicity-based disparities in introductory chemistry course grades at the University of Washington, and 2) construct possible strategies for addressing unequal outcomes.
  Recommendations for how this type of evaluation work can be applied beyond chemistry/science disciplines will be discussed.
   
• Dimensions in Designing Reflection Activities for Students
  Giovanna Scalone, research associate, Center for Engineering Learning and Teaching (CELT), UW Department of Human-Centered Design and Engineering
  
  Reflection is a form of thinking where one makes meaning of past events as preparation for future engagements. Educators use many activities to help their students reflect on and improve their learning, but few frameworks exist to characterize the choices available in designing such activities.
  
  In this talk, Dr. Scalone explores four dimensions of variation that emerge from reflection activities used by engineering educators: explicitness, customization, guidance, and accountability. Each dimension exists on a continuum that ranges from low to high, creating a large design space that allows educators to articulate their rationale for using reflection activities, foreground decisions about the type and structure of the activity, draw attention to potential positive and negative consequences of the activity, and connect to theories of learning. Dr. Scalone shows how these dimensions of variation can be used to design effective reflection activities in engineering and beyond.