Creating future engineers through elementary engineering professional development

The engineering framework provides a structure for educators to help teach students content, critical thinking skills, and to realize real world connections that are imperative to prepare students for career and college readiness. The need for professional development and new methods of instruction are required for educators to acquire the skills and the depth of knowledge needed to prepare today’s learners. This study identified five fundamental pillars for improving student success in science. The goal was to provide educators with authentic experiences, a deeper knowledge of content and research-based instructional strategies to internalize as they equip 21st century learners. The purpose was to see if science content knowledge improved with the use of engineering design process. The study showed that sixty-five percent of teachers who attended the arranged workshops showed gains from their pre-test to their post-test after completing an engineering design challenge. Another objective was to find out if educators would incorporate the engineering design framework into their teaching if shown the connection between their science standards and state assessment. Sixty-two percent of the teachers who attended more than one workshop in the series implemented the engineering design process in their science classes compared to only thirty-eight percent who only attended one workshop. The study concluded that ongoing professional development has a greater impact on classroom practice than single exposure, and the application of science knowledge within the engineering design challenge can influence the depth of content understanding.