Engineering faculty member takes part in STEM video showcase

Adrienne Decker, assistant professor in the new Department of Engineering Education in UB’s School of Engineering and Applied Sciences, is participating in the “2019 STEM for All Video Showcase,” a virtual poster competition being held this week.

The annual event, sponsored by the National Science Foundation, features more than 240 innovative projects aimed at improving STEM learning and teaching that have been funded by NSF and other federal agencies.

Centered around the theme of “Innovations in STEM Education,” the video presentations address a wide range of topics, including science, mathematics, computer science, engineering, cyberlearning, citizen science, maker spaces, broadening participation, research experiences, mentoring, professional development, NGSS and the Common Core.

Decker has two presentations in the showcase that focus on different aspects of computing education research. “csedresearch.org: Resources for K-12 Computing Education” gives an overview of csedresearch.org, a resource center for K-12 computing education information. The project is a joint effort between Decker and Monica McGill, associate professor at Knox College.

“Using Subgoal Labels to Improve Learning Outcomes in CS1” presents information on using subgoal labeling, a technique created in education psychology to help improve teaching in introductory programming courses. It is a joint project between Decker and Briana B. Morrison, assistant professor at the University of Nebraska, Omaha, and Lauren Margulieux, assistant professor at Georgia State University.

“Computing education has always been my passion and area of scholarship since I began my academic career, and right now is an exciting time to be involved in this domain,” Decker says. “There are so many things happening in computing education research right now, from bringing computing into K-12 classrooms, as well as thinking about how to better educate at the university level. Having projects that address both issues in different ways as part of the showcase is amazing.”

During the week-long event, researchers, practitioners, policy makers and members of the public can view the short videos, discuss them with the presenters online, and vote for their favorites. Visit the showcase here May 13-20. 

The STEM for All Video Showcase is created and hosted by TERC a non-profit, research and development organization located in Cambridge, Mass. TERC partners with six NSF-funded resource centers: MSPnet, CADRE, CAISE, CIRCL, STELAR and CS for All Teachers.