2025 ASEE Annual Conference & Exposition

Current research has highlighted the pressing need for more research on the impact that engineering can have in dual language contexts [1]. Existing literature has largely overlooked the intersections of language and STEM education and the prevalent ideology that language and engineering content must be kept separate [2, 3]. These ideologies have led to the exclusion of students’ linguistic resources from STEM learning experiences, as early as elementary school. This separation undermines the potential for culturally and linguistically diverse students to engage meaningfully in engineering activities by failing to recognize how bilingualism and cultural identity can enhance problem-solving, creativity, and engagement in engineering.

This research examines the impact of a culturally responsive engineering program implemented at a Title I dual language elementary school in the U.S. Southwest, where 96% of the students are Latino/a. Drawing on the theoretical framework of funds of knowledge (FoK), this study explored how students’ cultural and lived experiences were leveraged to engage meaningfully in engineering activities and to see themselves reflected in engineering activity. Funds of knowledge refer to the historically accumulated and culturally developed bodies of knowledge and skills essential for household or individual functioning and well-being [4, 5]. By recognizing and valuing these knowledge sources, the program aimed to create a bridge between the students' home lives and academic experiences, fostering a sense of relevance and recognition of the students’ linguistic practices.

The study was structured around a bilingual engineering program implemented during one week, which connected the engineering design process to the lived experiences of students. This paper describes the ways in which students participated in a community walk around their school to identify local problems that were personally meaningful to them. This activity was designed to activate their funds of knowledge by allowing students to frame relatable, every-day issues to be solved through the engineering design process. After identifying these challenges, students worked in collaborative groups to brainstorm potential engineering solutions. . A key component of this program was the integration of bilingual communication, as students prepared presentations in both English and Spanish to explain their projects. This bilingual approach was a deliberate strategy to blend content and language learning within the context of engineering.

Data was collected in the form of observations, focus groups, and audio-recordings of the community walks. The data was then analyzed using multimodal discourse analysis to examine how various modes of communication—such as language, gestures, visuals, and spatial arrangements—are used to convey meaning, support learning, and reflect students’ cultural and linguistic identities in engineering contexts. The findings indicate that students were not only able to see engineering as relevant to their own lives, but also developed a sense of ownership and agency in their learning. The use of bilingualism in both content and communication underscored the value of students’ linguistic diversity as an asset in STEM education, breaking away from traditional deficit perspectives often associated with bilingual and bicultural students.

[1] National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine, English Learners in STEM Subjects: Transforming Classrooms, Schools, and Lives. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press (in English), 2018, p. 342.
[2] M. T. de la Piedra, B. Araujo, and A. Esquinca, Educating across borders: The case of a dual language program on the US-Mexico border. Tucson, AZ: University of Arizona Press, 2018.
[3] L. Hoffman and A. Zollman, "What STEM teachers need to know and do for English language learners (ELLs): Using literacy to learn," Journal of STEM Teacher Education, vol. 51, no. 1, p. 9, 2016.
[4] N. González, L. Wyman, and B. H. O'Connor, Eds. The past, present, and future of “funds of knowledge” (A Companion to the Anthropology of Education. Malden, MA: Wiley-Blackwell, 2011, pp. 481-494.
[5] L. C. Moll, C. Amanti, D. Neff, and N. Gonzalez, "Funds of knowledge for teaching: Using a qualitative approach to connect homes and classrooms," Theory into practice, vol. 31, no. 2, pp. 132-141, 1992.