Realistic Evaluation of a Boundary Spanner Intervention on University-Wide STEM Engagement

• Grant number: 13/19600-8
• Support Opportunities: Scholarships in Brazil - Post-Doctoral
• Start date: March 01, 2014
• End date: February 29, 2016
• Field of knowledge: Engineering - Electrical Engineering - Electrical, Magnetic and Electronic Circuits
• Principal Investigator: José Roberto Cardoso
• Grantee: David Antoine Delaine
• Host Institution: Escola Politécnica (EP). Universidade de São Paulo (USP). São Paulo , SP, Brazil

Abstract

This project will implement a Boundary Spanner intervention to mobilize the Escola Politécnica da Universidade de São Paulo (EPUSP) to perform increased community engagement for broadening participation in Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics (STEM). Engagement, shown to be an effective method for increasing student enrollment in STEM education, is currently not widely utilized within universities in Brazil due to specific barriers including: university reward structures, knowledge of how to perform engagement, and establishing and managing relationships. Boundary spanners, individuals who serve as liaisons between university and community interests, can be effective at minimizing these barriers. A realistic evaluation of this intervention will lead to understanding the mechanisms of change which lead to increased engagement and the development of knowledge transferable to other universities. The Scientist-in-the-Classroom (SITC) outreach model, used as a gateway to engagement for those who have had no previous experience, and a logic model analysis, used to understand engagement relationships before and after the intervention, will provide for continued facility of engagement beyond the scope of this project. Furthermore, EPUSP currently does not have a consolidated "Engineering Education" research area. This research is a first step towards consolidating current educational research being performed to permanently shift the EPUSP culture towards a continued commitment to engagement and establishing engineering education as a core EPUSP research area.