2025 ASEE Annual Conference & Exposition

Culturally Responsive Energy Engineering Education in Rural/Reservation Elementary Schools - NSF RET Site at Montana State University

Presented at NSF Grantees Poster Session I

Thirty-one exemplary elementary teachers participated in the NSF RET Site: Culturally Responsive Energy Engineering Education in Rural/Reservation Elementary Schools, hosted by the Montana Engineering Education Research Center (MEERC) at Montana State University (Award #2055138, July 2021 – June 2025). These teachers, comprising 8 pre-service and 23 in-service educators, represented diverse rural and reservation communities across Montana, including single-room K-8 schools and all seven American Indian reservations.
Motivated by MSU’s land grant institutional mission, Montana’s Indian Education for All (IEFA) law, and the benefits of early STEM identity formation in students, the MEERC RET Site sought to integrate IEFA and engineering education for elementary teachers through professional development activities and authentic research experiences. Over the first three Site years, the T-STEM survey revealed a significant increase in the participating teachers’ self-efficacy in teaching engineering through culturally responsive pedagogy. Focus groups indicated that the teachers felt a strong sense of belonging and impact, with each cohort continuing to support one another in refining RET-related classroom activities.
The RET Site team gained invaluable insights over successive years, culminating in a reunion of teacher participants during the third year to inform the Site’s future direction. Key lessons included the importance of appropriately paced and scaffolded orientations to energy science and engineering research, which enhanced participant confidence and engagement. Additionally, time spent together as a cohort was found to be crucial for professional development, and more time was needed to co-construct legacy curriculum materials for broader dissemination.
Ultimately, the MEERC RET Site demonstrated that through respect, relationships, connection, and reflection, teacher participants could be empowered to engage in authentic energy and engineering research experiences. This empowerment not only improved their self-efficacy in teaching engineering but also fostered inclusive engineering identity development among their rural and reservation students.

Authors

Prof. Paul Gannon http://orcid.org/https://0000-0003-0888-8158 Montana State University - Bozeman [biography]

Paul Gannon is a Professor of Chemical and Biological Engineering, and Associate Director of the Montana Engineering Education Research Center at Montana State University in Bozeman.
Dr. Rebekah J Hammack http://orcid.org/0000-0002-8621-1006 Purdue University at West Lafayette (PPI) [biography]

Rebekah Hammack is an Assistant Professor of K-8 Science Education at Purdue University. She served as an Albert Einstein Distinguished Educator Fellow in the Division of Research on Learning in Formal and Informal Learning. Dr. Hammack’s research focuses on the connection of local contexts to STEM interest and identity development in youth, particularly rural youth in elementary and middle grades, as well as how elementary teachers develop teaching efficacy and identity as STEM educators. Through her research, Dr. Hammack aims to advance understanding of how to enhance STEM education in rural schools and communities, providing opportunities to meet the unique needs of rural students.
Dr. Rebekah J Hammack http://orcid.org/0000-0002-8621-1006 Purdue University at West Lafayette (PPI) [biography]

Rebekah Hammack is an Assistant Professor of K-8 Science Education at Purdue University. She served as an Albert Einstein Distinguished Educator Fellow in the Division of Research on Learning in Formal and Informal Learning. Dr. Hammack’s research focuses on the connection of local knowledge and context to STEM interest and identity development in youth, particularly rural and Indigenous youth in elementary and middle grades, as well as how elementary teachers develop teaching efficacy and identity as STEM educators. Through her research, Dr. Hammack aims to advance understanding of how to enhance STEM education in rural schools and communities, providing opportunities to meet the unique needs of underserved rural students.
Dr. Nick Lux Lux http://orcid.org/0000-0002-7434-0660 Montana State University [biography]

Nick Lux is a Professor of Curriculum and Instruction in MSU’s Department of Education and is an affiliate of the Montana Engineering Education Research Center. He has worked in the fields of K-12 and higher education for almost 25 years, and currently teaches in the teacher education program and specializes in educational technology. His teaching and research interests include technology integration in K-12 STEM teaching and learning, and in particular, STEM education and STEM identity formation.
Sweeney Windchief Montana State University - Bozeman
Dr. Abigail M Richards Montana State University - Bozeman [biography]

Dr. Richards has been faculty at Montana State University since 2007. She is particularly interested in retention of underrepresented groups in engineering and first-year programs.
Suzanne G Taylor Montana State University - Bozeman

Note

The full paper will be available to logged in and registered conference attendees once the conference starts on June 22, 2025, and to all visitors after the conference ends on June 25, 2025

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