Keywords: diversity, race, ethnicity, learning style, research, study design
Diversity in Engineering Education Research:
Insights From Three Study Designs
One research area with particular potential for having impact on engineering education is diversity. Diversity
is a significant concern in engineering education, as evidenced by the numerous recent calls to recruit and retain
more women and underrepresented minorities into engineering majors and professions. By encouraging educators to
think about diversity, we hope to emphasize the idea that investigating issues of diversity in engineering
education means both characterizing retention and participation in engineering and delving into the theories that
might help explain these patterns.
Examples of how people are thinking about and studying diversity can be drawn from the work of engineering
faculty who participated in the Institute for Scholarship on Engineering Education (ISEE). The primary goal of
ISEE is to cultivate a diverse community of engineering education researchers who can think and work across
disciplines with the ultimate aim of improving the engineering student experience.
By encouraging educators to
think about diversity, we hope to emphasize the idea that investigating issues of diversity in engineering
education means both characterizing retention and participation in engineering and delving into the theories that
might help explain these patterns.
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Because of the context-dependent nature of diversity issues, it is difficult to provide a simple set of guidelines
or steps to follow. The information below is intended to be useful to other engineering educators who are interested
in studying diversity issues in their own contexts.
Implications of Findings
The example studies below examine types of diversity that are frequently discussed as national concerns:
underrepresented minority students, transfer students, and learning styles. These researchers developed their
studies and conceptions of diversity issues in ways salient to their specific campus contexts.
The researchers were also very deliberate and careful in the development of their research questions and study designs.
In each study, both the research question and research methods allowed the researcher to first assess the study context,
describe the situation, and back up that description with data. The researcher was then well-positioned to dig deeper
and develop a richer, more meaningful explanation of why and how certain things were happening in the setting.
The following suggestions may be helpful for those wishing to embark on this type of research:
- Rethink your definition of diversity by asking what other types of diversity might be playing roles in your setting.
- Formulate a research question that goes beyond exploring the “what” and gets to the “why” and “how.”
- Consider research methods that can portray the landscape and describe your context, and also dig deeper to
understand the experiences of the people involved.
Additional suggestions stemming from the 2006 ISEE Scholars’ experiences include:
- Know your target population. For example, work with a student from the target population early in the study
design process to assist with the development of protocols, subject recruitment strategies, etc.
- Become familiar with your institution’s Internal Review Board and begin the Human Subject approval process early.
- Read the relevant body of knowledge about the diversity issues on which you are focusing.
- Pilot test interview or survey protocols, if possible.
- Get buy-in from your department, school, and/or institution.
Background and Case Studies Examined
The 2006 ISEE Scholars were selected from a competitive, national pool of candidates based on the strength of each
Scholar’s application, including a diversity-focused research proposal. Each Scholar came to the ISEE summer
workshop with an initial research question, which was revised and refined over the course of the week. Scholars
also developed research plans, including appropriate research methods and project timelines.
The suggestions offered above for those wishing to embark on engineering education research are based on the three
examples of Scholars’ research described below as well as the overall experiences of the entire 2006
Scholar cohort.
Study #1 examined the experiences of African American and Hispanic American students at Lafayette College. Focusing
on these students is important and timely in this specific context because of the demographics of this four-year
college’s student population, the college’s current efforts to recruit and retain students from these particular
minority groups, and the fact that the college already practices many proven retention strategies, including
working with the POSSE Foundation. Scholar #1 investigated the following question: What effect does an intensive,
structured mentoring program (POSSE) have on the retention of first year engineering students from minority
backgrounds? A grounded theory approach with purposeful sampling of the college’s Class of 2010 was used to address
this question. Quantitative information was collected in order to understand the background and current academic
circumstances of the study participants. In addition, a semi-structured survey with a wide range of questions was
conducted, making it possible to delve into nuances of the students’ educational experiences and enrich the
researcher’s understanding of what was taking place in the study setting.
Study #2 also examined diversity along racial/ethnic lines, but does so in combination with students’ pathways into
engineering. It is appropriate to narrow the scope from all minority students to specifically Hispanic students,
because this university’s undergraduate student population was 21% Hispanic in 2006 and the state has an explicit
interest in addressing the educational needs of Hispanic Americans. Scholar #2 investigated the following question:
What are the most meaningful learning/developmental experiences that motivate Hispanic students to transfer from
selected Texas community colleges to a four-year engineering program? The study design includes a large-scale
questionnaire administered to Hispanic American transfer students that was used to gain a broad understanding of
the transfer student experience. Next, focus groups were conducted with small groups of students from the target
population for guided discussions with the researcher. Information from this study will inform the university’s
efforts to support these students during their time on campus, and should help improve recruitment and retention
efforts as well.
Study #3 examined a different type of diversity. In this study, student diversity is defined as differences in
learning styles which may or may not be addressed in a typical college classroom. Scholar #3 investigated the
following questions: What are the relationships between learning styles and clustered major groups, gender, and
length of time in college? and In order to debrief students and make knowledge of their learning style useful for
them, what information about learning styles will be most useful for (and read by) participants? This study
design includes a survey that incorporates the Felder Learning Style Inventory, as well as basic demographic
questions. The results of the survey will be used to get an agglomerative measure of the learning style distributions
that can be compared across different demographic factors. In addition, focus groups and individual interviews
targeting upper-division students were conducted, so that their experience with learning can be used for reflection.
Studying the diversity of learning styles may be useful for individual students and their learning, and may be
useful for improving teaching styles at this location.
The three studies described above provide examples of how some researchers are conceptualizing and investigating
diversity in engineering education. For other engineering educators who may wish to conduct similar studies of
diversity issues, it is important to view these examples not necessarily as models to be replicated, but as
illustrations of the importance of context and the critical need to rethink assumptions about diversity.
Authors: Cheryl Allendoerfer, Sharon Jones, Jaime Hernandez, Rebecca Bates, and Robin Adams
Source: Proceedings of the 2007 American Society for Engineering Education Conference
The full paper, including references, is available via ASEE proceedings search.
For a printable pdf of this research brief, click here.
Brief created July 2007
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