2025 ASEE Annual Conference & Exposition

It has been well documented that the number of K-12 students with the interest, knowledge and motivation to pursue STEM subjects is declining at an alarming rate. Lack of access to high quality STEM education in rural areas, in particular, remains a significant challenge. This paper will discuss the student outcomes resulting from participation in a STEM-focused middle school (grades 6-8) program centered around engineering and advanced manufacturing. Participants attended one of two partner schools in a rural NC school district. This work is part of a National Science Foundation Innovative Experiences for Students and Teachers (ITEST) project designed to provide community-based engineering design experiences for underserved rural middle school students. The STEM program, referred to as DeSIRE (Developing STEM Identity in Rural Audiences through Community-based Engineering Design), provides an opportunity for students to explore STEM concepts through hands-on, project-based learning within the context of the local advanced manufacturing industry. Over the past four years, the program has engaged students in STEM learning through a 3-part STEM-focused advanced manufacturing elective course, mentoring and guidance from undergraduate engineering students, and participation in informal STEM enrichment activities outside the classroom, including a Saturday Academy and Summer Camp.

The goals of the DeSIRE program are to improve students’ STEM content knowledge and STEM career awareness thus increasing their interest in pursuing STEM careers, particularly engineering. In this study, participants’ science content knowledge was measured using proficiency scores (Not Proficient: Levels 0-2, Proficient: Level 3, College or Career Ready: Levels 4, 5) from end-of grade (EOG) tests taken during the final year of elementary school (5th grade) and the final year of middle school (8th grade). EOG scores of DeSIRE program participants were compared to non-participants within the same school. In addition, the two partner schools were compared to each other to explore potential implementation effects.

Ordinal regression was performed to determine the impact of the program on students’ science content knowledge. It was found that the DeSIRE program improved students’ chances of reaching higher proficiency levels by the 8th grade regardless of their 5th grade EOG score. Additionally, it was shown that the number of years spent in the program had a significant effect on proficiency levels. The probability of students scoring Level 4 or 5 on the 8th grade EOG increased while the probability of scoring Level 3 or Not Proficient decreased as the number of years (0, 1, or 2) in the DeSIRE program increased irrespective of the school attended. Further, students that were deemed Not Proficient in 5th grade showed a significant proficiency increase with just one year in the program and a reduced probability of remaining Not Proficient in 8th grade. Outcomes of this program could have implications for rural school districts seeking to bolster student knowledge and interest in STEM subjects.