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Session Description

Free ticketed event
This session will explore the value and use of task interviewing as a method for assessing and researching understanding among younger students.
This approach provides a structured environment that can be somewhat controlled and therefore allows for systematic and in-depth exploration of a specific topic. It uses the Rethinking Circle Time (ReCT) project to target student attributes of learning the CT concept, including how they develop CT knowledge, why they work through the tasks the way they do, and what happens when they get stuck or overcome challenges.
The session is geared toward educational researchers. It will take participants through the task interviews and put them in the role of assessor (whether a teacher or a researcher). Clips of task interviews and data from a researcher lens will illustrate looking for evidence that answers a specific research question. These practical opportunities will provide first-hand knowledge of the methodological usefulness of task interviews as both assessment and research tools.
The final discussion will provide a perspective on how to conduct these interviews to get the most out of subjects for either assessment or research without overwhelming them. Participants will gain resources and tools that they can implement and basic ideas about how to create tasks.

Speakers

1. Prof. Tamara J Moore

   Purdue University at West Lafayette (COE)

   Tamara J. Moore, Ph.D., is a Professor of Engineering Education and Executive Director of the INSPIRE Research Institute for Engineering Education at Purdue University. Dr. Moore’s research is centered on the integration of STEM concepts in K-12 and postsecondary classrooms in order to help students make connections among the STEM disciplines and achieve deep understanding. Her work focuses on defining STEM integration and investigating its power for student learning. She is PI on EngrTEAMS: Engineering to Transform the Education of Analysis, Measurement, and Science an NSF Mathematics and Science Partnership grant that focuses on curriculum development and implementation of integrated STEM units in grades 4-8. She received a Presidential Early Career Award for Scientists and Engineers (PECASE) in 2012.

2. Kristina Maruyama Tank

   Iowa State University of Science and Technology

   Kristina M. Tank is an Associate Professor in the School of Education at Iowa State University where she teaches courses in science education and a “Toying with Technology” course that looks at how technology, engineering and computational thinking can facilitate integration of other content areas. Dr. Tank’s research is centered around how to better support and prepare educators to meet the challenge of integrating STEM disciplines in a manner that supports teaching and learning across multiple disciplines. She is currently working on a project examining computational thinking and literacy in K-2 classrooms. Past projects include examining how to leverage collaborations between engineers, preservice teachers and cooperating teachers to better integrate engineering and STEM in 3rd -5th grade and looking at the design and influence of computational thinking across a variety of formal and informal contexts and within early elementary STEM curriculum. Dr. Tank has also been involved in the design and delivery of multiple professional development workshops looking at integrating engineering, STEM, and computational thinking to facilitate learning with elementary and middle school educators.

3. Ms. Barbara Fagundes

   Barbara Fagundes is a Ph.D. candidate in the Engineering Education Department at Purdue University. Her background as an elementary school teacher, along with her master's degree in computer science, guide her doctoral research interests, which lie in the representation of females in the STEM field and the design and implementation of engineering and computer science curricula in pre-college settings.