1. Changing the Perception of STEM
Careers for Diverse Middle School Students
K

2. K

3. A Partnership between UCF and
Workforce Central Florida
K

4. Participating Central Florida
Public School Districts
• Lake County
• Orange County
• Osceola
County
• Seminole
County
• Sumter District
K

5. Student Participants
• Under-represented minorities, females, low socio-
economic, and students with disabilities
Resulting Groups:
• 5 Heterogeneous Camps (male & female)
• 2 Homogenous Camps (one all male, one all female)
Targeted Population:
K

6. Expose underrepresented student
populations to STEM careers.
Make a “real life” connection for students
to mathematics and science courses.
Give students a condensed college
life experience.
K

7. What does the literature say?
United States as a STEM super
power (McNeill et al., 2008)
National Focus (Blickenstaff, 2005;
Griffith, 2010; Museus et al., 2011; Price,
2010)
Underrepresentation of
minorities (Museus et al., 2011)
S

8. DATA
S

9. A Qualitative Study
Methodology
Post Interview
Pre Interview
STEM CAMP
• Survey
• Interviews
• Interventio
n
• Survey
• Interview
s
S
Data Analysis
Methods

10. Interview Questions
Pre Interview
S
• What is S.T.E.M.?
• What do you think of when you think of Science?
• What jobs come to mind when you think of Science?
• What do you think of when you think of Technology?
• What jobs come to mind when you think of Technology?
• What do you think of when you think of Engineering?
• What jobs come to mind when you think of Engineering?
• What do you think of when you think of Math?
• What jobs come to mind when you think of Math?
• Of the jobs that you previously mentioned, do you see yourself
obtaining a position in one of those fields? Why or why not?
• How is STEM useful in our country (the United States) at this time?
• How is STEM useful to you in your daily activities?
• What do you expect to learn from this summer experience?

11. Interview Questions
Post Interview
S
• What is S.T.E.M.?
• What do you think of when you think of Science?
• What jobs come to mind when you think of Science?
• What do you think of when you think of Technology?
• What jobs come to mind when you think of Technology?
• What do you think of when you think of Engineering?
• What jobs come to mind when you think of Engineering?
• What do you think of when you think of Math?
• What jobs come to mind when you think of Math?
• Of the jobs that you previously mentioned, do you see yourself
obtaining a position in one of those fields? Why or why not?
• How is STEM useful in our country (the United States) at this time?
• How is STEM useful to you in your daily activities?
• What did you learn about STEM from this experience?
• How has this camp changed how you feel about STEM?

12. UCF & Industry Partners
B

13. On Campus Activities
Bridge Building
Simulated Classroom
Rocket Building/Launch
B

14. More On Campus Activities
Training Simulators
Engineering structures
with playing cards
B

15. • Hands on Learning
• Collaborative Problem Solving
• Real World Issues
Architecture & Design
B

16. Egg Drop Activity
Problem Solving
B

17. S

18. Outcomes
Effects on Participants
More students interested in STEM
Students began considering STEM careers
Camps resulted in a change in perceptions
#1
Foundational knowledge was increased after camp
# 2
# 3
# 4
Increase in understanding of the usefulness of STEM
# 5
S

19. Planning for STEM Camp
Thinking Outside of the Box
B
 Target a population of students – pick a school or
several
 Budget keeping costs down
 On campus partners
 Meals
 Transportation
 Utilize existing university industry partnerships
 Determine length of camp (our plan 4 days)
 Enhance the college experience
 Highlight the college residential experience
 Include engaging hands on STEM activities

20.  What are you going to do to create a
STEM experience at your school?
Contact information is located on Wikispaces:
http://experiencestem.wikispaces.com/
B
 Will your preservice teacher be
comfortable with STEM content?