2025 ASEE Annual Conference & Exposition

Exploring Pre-service Teachers’ Perceptions of Integrating Engineering Design and Culturally Responsive Pedagogy in STEM Education (Work in Progress)

As the integration of the engineering design process into K-12 science curricula becomes a reality, particularly in Texas, the preparation of pre-service science teachers to effectively implement this approach is more critical than ever. This study explores how pre-service secondary science teachers understand and integrate the engineering design process (EDP) and culturally responsive pedagogy (CRP) into their instructional practices. Specifically, it investigates how their exposure to these teaching methods during their preparation shapes their instructional beliefs, lesson planning, and approaches to student-centered learning in diverse classrooms.
The pre-service teachers in this study participated in a six-week summer program designed to address barriers to STEM education for economically and socially disadvantaged students. The program provided structured training on CRP, including developing students’ funds of knowledge and culturally responsive mentoring, supporting teachers in incorporating these practices into lesson planning and instruction. Pre-service teachers engaged in workshops, reflective journaling, interactive activities, and actual teaching experiences with students. Throughout the program, mentors were supported with training in culturally responsive mentoring practices to ensure ongoing guidance.
To assess the impact of this experience, data were collected through semi-structured interviews conducted after the program and a post-program survey. Findings suggest that exposure to EDP and CRP with guided implementation experiences solidified participants’ beliefs, encouraged them to apply these methods in real classroom settings, and clarified their approaches to culturally responsive and student-centered STEM teaching. This work contributes to our understanding of enhancing pre-service and in-service teacher education, supporting the development of diverse and inclusive STEM learning environments.

Authors

Dr. Mariam Manuel http://orcid.org/0000-0002-5380-5852 University of Houston [biography]

Mariam Manuel, Ph.D., is a Clinical Assistant Professor in the College of Natural Sciences and Mathematics at the University of Houston. Dr. Manuel’s experience in the classroom and working with students from diverse backgrounds informs her research interests in the areas of STEM teacher education for diverse learners, and the use of culturally responsive instruction in STEM with a focus on engineering design.
Dr. Jerrod A Henderson http://orcid.org/https://0000-0002-0501-5805 University of Houston - COE [biography]

Dr. Jerrod A. Henderson (“Dr. J”) is an Assistant Professor in the William A. Brookshire Department of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering in the Cullen College of Engineering at the University of Houston (UH).
He began his higher education pursuits at Morehouse College and North Carolina Agricultural & Technical State University, where he earned degrees in Chemistry and Chemical Engineering as a part of the Atlanta University Center’s Dual Degree in Engineering Program. While in college, he was a Ronald E. McNair Scholar, which afforded him the opportunity to intern at NASA Langley. He also earned distinction as a Phi Beta Kappa member and an American Chemical Society Scholar. Dr. Henderson completed his Ph.D. in Chemical & Biomolecular Engineering at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. As a graduate student, he was a NASA Harriet G. Jenkins Graduate Fellow and mentor for the Summer Research Opportunities Program.
Dr. Henderson has dedicated his career to increasing the number of students who are in pathways to pursue STEM careers. He believes that exposing students to STEM early will have a lasting impact on their lives and academic pursuits. He co-founded the St. Elmo Brady STEM Academy (SEBA). SEBA is an educational intervention that introduces underrepresented and underserved fourth and fifth-grade students and their families to hands-on STEM experiences.
Dr. Henderson is the immediate past Director of the Program for Mastery in Engineering Studies (PROMES, pronounced “promise”), a program aimed at increasing engineering student achievement, engagement, and graduation rates. His research group seeks to understand engineering identity trajectories and success mechanisms throughout lifespans using action-based participatory research and novel methodologies such as photovoice, IPA, and draw-an-engineer and the development of research-informed interventions to improve student success.
He was most recently recognized by INSIGHT Into Diversity Magazine as an Inspiring STEM Leader, the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign with the College of Liberal Arts & Sciences (LAS) Outstanding Young Alumni Award, Career Communications Group with a Black Engineer of the Year Award for college-level promotion of engineering education and a National Science Foundation CAREER Award in 2023 to advance his work that centers engineering identities of Black men in engineering.
Bereket Mego University of Houston

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