Principal Investigator
Joanna K. Garner & Melissa Kuhn – Old Dominion University; Erica Matheny & Alaina Rutledge – National Inventors Hall of Fame
Project Description
This is a descriptive pre-post study of Camp Invention®, a virtual summer enrichment program for students in kindergarten through sixth grade that utilizes science, technology, engineering, and math (STEM) principles and hands-on learning to encourage student interest and achievement in STEM. The study sample is comprised of a subset of 108 students, age eight to 12, who participated in Camp Invention in the summer of 2020 and completed surveys both before and after the five-day camp. Participants reported on a range of measures of attitudes and knowledge about STEM subjects and self-concept related to STEM careers, including persistence, entrepreneurship, and risk-taking. The research team reports on students’ identification with the STEM field and key concepts, and students’ perceptions and preferences regarding different features of the camp experience.
Research Questions
- What are the invention-related self-perceptions of upper elementary and middle school-aged children participating in an OST invention education program, and to what degree do these overlap with their identification with STEM subjects?
- What features of an invention camp experience contribute to a context that is conducive for inventive identity exploration?
- To what extent is gender associated with children’s responses to an invention mindset questionnaire, their identification with STEM subjects, and in their perceptions of the invention camp experience?
Key Findings
The analysis of pre- and post-camp questionnaire responses from 108 upper elementary and middle school-aged children generated a measure of inventive mindset, which was stable over time but largely independent of children’s identification with three STEM subjects typically encountered in school. In alignment with prior studies examining features of educational contexts that support identity development, researchers found that children’s most preferred activities supported perceived confidence, task novelty, and task utility, and least preferred activities received lower ratings on perceived autonomy and psychological safety.
Study Citation
Garner, Joanna K., Matheny, Erica, Rutledge, Alaina, & Melissa Kuhn. Invention education as a context for children’s identity exploration. Journal of STEM Research, August 2021, vol. 4, issue 1. doi: http://doi.org/10.15695/jstem/v4i1.07
The Key Findings above were reproduced from the published report and do not necessarily reflect interpretation of Overdeck Family Foundation staff.
