Technology-Enhanced Agency for Community Engagement

• In Event: Scaffolding Self-Directed Learning in Technology-Enhanced Environments

Abstract

The Missouri Botanical Garden and MIT recently completed “Local Investigations of Natural Science” and “Community Science Investigators” – two NSF-funded projects leveraging technology to support STEM-rich after-school investigations of students’ local communities. While each project had a slightly different focus, both sought to advance interest and awareness among participating tween-age youth (ages 9-13) in how STEM disciplines help in understanding and acting on community issues. A secondary goal was to build interest in future STEM-related careers. Over the course of five school years, professional staff based at nearly thirty schools in the metropolitan Boston and St. Louis regions were hired by the projects to lead intensive after-school and summer programs. Depending on the local project needs, we supported projects’ use of use of geographic information system (GIS) software, global positioning system (GPS) receivers, augmented reality (AR) games and simulations, and use of StarLogo TNG agent-based modeling tools.

Author

• Bob Coulter, Missouri Botanical Garden